There are hundreds of reasons to visit Argentina, the scenery, the meat, the music and the tango to name but a few. One of the main draws for us was the famously excellent wine, particularly the Malbec. We drink a lot of Malbec at home (how else are you supposed to get through an English winter?) and were looking forward to trying some in its home country.
We organised the tour through Trout and Wine, a brilliantly named and professional company. We were in a group with just one other couple and a friendly and knowledgable guide. We travelled towards the Uco valley and made our first stop just outside it, at Pulenta. It is a small winery with a 135 hectare vineyard. We were shown around whilst enjoying a glass of La Flor Sauvignon Blanc, which was crisp and grassy and thankfully available in the UK. The winery is beautiful, very stark and minimalist. In the tasting room, we passed round glasses of coffee, grass, vanilla, rose petals and more, which we had to blindly smell and guess the contents. We were good at this game. We were less good at picking out the individual aromas in the La Flor Malbec, Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon and Gran Reserve Cabernet Franc, but we were good at drinking them. They were all delicious, especially the Cabernet Franc which is a new grape for us. We've had it a lot in combination with other grapes at home, but never 100% as this one was.
Next we went to La Azul, a tiny family-run winery with three different lines of wines.The production is all done in one room, as is the tasting. We tried glasses of Sauvignon Blanc, Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon and lastly were given a taste of 100% Malbec straight from the barrel. This wine will not be bottled until 2015. All the wines were delicious but the last Malbec was our favourite.
Good food, good wine and spectacular views of the foothills of the Andes. A great day. How could it not be?
Kate
So, we made a beeline for Mendoza, a city on the eastern side of the Andes, where the main industries are olive oil production and wine making, so predictably, the people enjoy the finer things in life. The city itself is pretty and vibrant, with fabulous restaurants and chic wine bars. There are numerous fountains that spurt red water to look like wine, and pavement cafes line the streets. The surrounding area is the largest wine producing region in Latin America, and it was here that we went on a wine tour.
We organised the tour through Trout and Wine, a brilliantly named and professional company. We were in a group with just one other couple and a friendly and knowledgable guide. We travelled towards the Uco valley and made our first stop just outside it, at Pulenta. It is a small winery with a 135 hectare vineyard. We were shown around whilst enjoying a glass of La Flor Sauvignon Blanc, which was crisp and grassy and thankfully available in the UK. The winery is beautiful, very stark and minimalist. In the tasting room, we passed round glasses of coffee, grass, vanilla, rose petals and more, which we had to blindly smell and guess the contents. We were good at this game. We were less good at picking out the individual aromas in the La Flor Malbec, Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon and Gran Reserve Cabernet Franc, but we were good at drinking them. They were all delicious, especially the Cabernet Franc which is a new grape for us. We've had it a lot in combination with other grapes at home, but never 100% as this one was. 
Next we went to La Azul, a tiny family-run winery with three different lines of wines.The production is all done in one room, as is the tasting. We tried glasses of Sauvignon Blanc, Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon and lastly were given a taste of 100% Malbec straight from the barrel. This wine will not be bottled until 2015. All the wines were delicious but the last Malbec was our favourite.
By now we were feeling a little giddy and a lot hungry. Our last destination was Salentein, an enormous winery with a concert area in the middle where the audience sit against barrels. We ate a fantastic lunch at their restaurant. To start was a mozzarella and tomato salad followed by empanadas (Argentinian Cornish pasties). A huge, beautifully cooked piece of bife de chorizo was next, served with hand-cut chips and mushrooms. For dessert there was a Malbec muffin which was warm and fluffy, with white chocolate and berry ice-cream. It was all delicious and perfectly matched with Sauvignon Blanc, Merlot, Pinot Noir and Malbec. Our memories of these wines are a little hazier, but we definitely enjoyed them all!
Good food, good wine and spectacular views of the foothills of the Andes. A great day. How could it not be?
Kate
