Mendoza

So thanks to yet another Argentine holiday, last weekend we had Thursday and Friday off as well. It was the anniversary of the end of the "Guerra Sucio" or Dirty War. It was an ugly time in Argentinian history, as 30,000 people "disappeared" at the hands of state-ordered violence against left-wing activists, or anyone who appeared to be... think Henry Kissinger and violating human rights. Anyway, with the long weekend we decided last minute to head to Mendoza, and it was a fantastic decision to say the least.

Mendoza is known as some of the best wine country in the entire world. Located in the middle of the Andes mountains, everywhere I looked felt like I was looking at a postcard. We took off from the bus station Wednesday night at around 11pm, but due to a big accident and some traffic the journey took over 16 hours. Not fun. But views like this have a way of quickly removing any frustration from traveling:

Yeah I took this...I'm pretty artistic. Vineyard, mountains, no big deal.

So we pretty much lost most of the day Thursday traveling, but we settled into our hostel and hung out on the terrace, enjoying of first bottle of wine of the weekend. We didn't have much daylight left, but we went to the center of town where there was a fair going on for the holiday. There was a parade going on in the streets, wood carving, little stands selling anything you can imagine...just a really cool environment.

For dinner we went out to a nicer italian place which I will always remember , because I had the best steak of my life. Absolutely incredible, like nothing I've ever had in the states. I put my knife down after every bite, just savoring each and every bit. I don't know how they do it, but I could eat that carne asada for every meal.

The next day we got started early at 9 am, taking the famous Mr. Hugo's bike tour through the vineyards. I expected a guide, but the bike "tour" really consisted of a bike rental, a map with all the vineyards, and unlimited wine at the tours completion. We met Mr. Hugo himself, who basically runs the operation out of his home. He's the man, and the tour ended up being perfect for us. We were able to see 3 bodegas (vineyards) as well as a museum. Each stop offered a tour and wine tasting for very cheap, which we of course took advantage of. So our group of 9 (our crew for whole weekend: 1 other guy and 2 girls from Michigan, and 1 guy and 3 girls from Vanderbilt, and one guy traveling on his own that just graduated from Florida that was staying in our hostel; we adopted him into the crew for the weekend) took off on our bikes and covered what had to be at least 10 miles for the day. 2 of the girls had very limited biking experience which slowed us down a bit, but the entertainment from many near crashes (and 1 actual wipe out) more than made up for the slow pace haha.

Stop 1: History Museum. We didn't really have a tour guide here, but walked around and saw some old school equipment and had our first wine sampling.

all class

Stop 2: Tempus Alba. When we first got here it looked like it was closed, but I guess we were just early. This place was gorgeous, with a truly amazing balcony overlooking the vineyard. We were the only ones there for a while, so it was quiet and seemed like were getting private VIP treatment. I tried a merlot, a malbec, and their premium malbec. It was a really cool set up, as she sat the glass of wine on top of the description of it. One of the coolest patios/balconies I've ever been on. Couldn't help but think of Dad, who appreciates a drink outside on a patio more than anyone I know. We are one in the same my man, I loved every minute of it (I've already staked out all the cafes/restaurants who have great spots to eat outside if and when you guys come visit).

tell me you wouldn't love this dad!

Stop 3: Trapiche. This is one of the biggest wine companies in Argentina and worldwide, so this had a completely different feel. You'll see Trapiche on the shelves at the grocery store. We had a tour guide here, who took us around and taught us a bunch about the history and development of vineyards in Argentina. Huge european/italian influence, and up until about the 1970's people pretty much drank either water or wine, consuming over 90 L on average of wine per year. In the crisis of the 70's (i.e. when beer, soda, and others became popular) consumption dropped to about 30L per person, so a lot of bodegas had to stop production. Of course, Trapiche powered through and prevailed.

The tasting with a guide was awesome because he taught us what to look for in the taste. After the weekend I consider myself near connoisseur status, pretending I know how to use words like cuerpo (body), estructura (structure), and lagrimas (legs, direct translation is tears which makes more sense) to describe the taste. Now I obviously am not that good, but I can now do a few things somewhat accurately: I can tell if the wine is a malbec or not, and if it's "young" or had been aged in an oak barrel (which is better). Malbec is a grape that is pretty much only found in southern South America, with the best place to grow being Argentina. Now its probably because Mendoza makes the Malbec in the world, but to me it's in a class of its own. I wasn't a huge wine fan coming into the weekend, but Malbec from Argentina is fantastic!

balcony outside

glass floors

our guide, great guy who gave the tour in both english and spanish

Stop 4: Familia di Tommaso. After a quick lunch, the group split up. We wanted to go see this place because it was oldest bodega in Argentina, but it was 3 more miles just to get there. Only Allie, Liz and I were man enough to make the trip, and it was a great decision. Really cool place, great tour guide, and possibly the best wine of the trip. There's a little restaurant outside and it's still owned by the same family  who started it back in 1869.

picture of the boys after the first harvest...partyin hard

tour guide

After a long bike ride back to Mr. Hugo's we rejoined the crew and had some of the free wine offered. Then we headed home, pretty exhausted. What did the drive home look like, you ask?

living

the

dream

Day 3: On the advice of a guy we met in the town square, we went to the natural hot springs in the middle of the Andes. It was pretty incredible, and literally surrounded by the mountains. Really relaxing day, it was pretty much a hot tub water park

pretty unstable drawbridge ha

Day 4: Carinae. We were leaving mid day, but we decided to hit this little bodega in the middle of nowhere first. Another great decision. Named after the constellation that can only be seen in South America and during the months of harvest. So legit. The bodega shut down in the crisis of the 70's but it was maintained and still grew grapes. In 2008, a traveling couple with no wine experience at all (he's an engineer) stumbled across this place and decided what the heck, lets quit everything and run this bodega. Crazy to think about. We had an amazing tour guide yet again who I think was a cousin of the family. We sampled wine basically right inside their house. Really cool experience right before getting on the 15 hr bus home.

tour guide in the middle

Other highlights:

-In Buenos Aires there's a big pharmacy chain called "Farmacity", where you can recharge your pay as you go phones. In Mendoza we stumbled upon this little gem:

The exact same logo and colors as farmacity but this place is a farmaCIA, and of course they dont recharge phones. Just like having the golden arches outside but the restaurant is McDowell's. Those sneak Argentine bastards.

-We missed our bus home, again because of south american inefficiency. Our bus company was "Cata" but in little print at the bottom it said our return trip was on "Chevallier", a different company. Just like walking to the airport with your Delta ticket and in little print at the bottom it says "flight is American Airlines". Unbelievable. But thanks to some spanish good cop bad cop by Jodi and I ( me of course taking the role of bad cop as in any frustrating situation), we were able to get a free first class upgrade to the bus leaving in an hour. LTD

-Back in BA, I went to a fair and stumbled across the first captain of the Argentine boomerang team. I told him I'd buy one if he taught me how, so he left his stand and we walked to a nearby field. I'm a natural, he made his sale, and I added boomerang alongside wine-expert to my ever-growing skill set. (pictures of this encounter in a future update)

Miss you all family! Can't wait to sit on the balcony in Florida with you Uncle Jim, but now as men with seasoned tastes in exquisite wine. My spanish is getting better every day, as I just enjoyed a family dinner and understood/participated exponentially more in the conversation than the first time. Please book Buenos Aires flights and visit me immediately!