And now I am in mendoza... One of the well known wine regions in Argentina, the region that produces 75% of all argentine wine.
I arrive to a city surrounded by mountains... Beautiful... Just what i like. But it is still very very hot... Worst of all it feels stuffy and like we say in Portugal 'ar de trovoada'(it feels like there could be thunder).
The city in itself is nothing compared to Buenos Aires. Much smaller not as easy to get lost and a lot less traffic(less risk of getting runover!).
After a long nap, I took to the streets of Mendoza... And soon realised the weather was not making my life easy... The stuffy air gave me a headache and made me feel queasy. After 2 hours of exploring I decided to head back armed with sparkling water to help my uneasy stomach.
When I decided to venture back out for dinner it was raining and thunder!! Oh it felt good... The temperature instantly went down and the cold rain helped to cool off! At first i was a bit uncertain of venturing the streets with lightning but no one else seemed to be worried about it!
Obviously I went for dinner where I could have nice meat... I got recommended Facuno. I had a nice piece of sirloin with garlic chips and pumpkin mash. I ordered a glass of wine... But my mistake was to order a glass of white wine... And here is where I felt like a wine snob. But really I just couldn't let this one go.
The waiter brings me the wine, an argentine sauvignon blanc, pours it for me to taste and although a very nice wine, it was warm!!!! I told the waiter it was warm... His response?! Whilst he kept pouring said he knew it was warm but he didn't have cold wine, and that he would bring me some ice for the wine... Wait... What?! Did you just say you would bring me some ice?! For the wine?! No way... I couldn't let this man ruin this wine!! So I kindly said no and asked the waiter to chill the wine... Inexcusable!
My second day in Mendoza was spent tasting wine and exploring the town. I was picked up from the hotel in the morning by a very nice tour guide, enrique, who then took me to my first 'bodega'. One that I personally selected, Luigi Bosca. On the way to the bodega, I got a very detailed explanation of Mendoza and its wine heritage. I learned so many new things! (I have some knowledge of argentine wines) I wasn't aware that Mendoza produced most of Argentinean wine and that it has over 1000 producers! It's incredible! I also learned that the producers have a big problem with hail in the winter... It comes down in the form of tennis balls which destroys the vineyards.
At Luigi Bosca we got shown around the property, which had this beautiful smell of macerated grapes. We then get guided into their shop where we got to sample four of their wines, a sparkling, white(sauvignon blanc) and two reds(pinot noir and cabernet sauvignon).
Bodega Luigi Bosca
After we rushed over to Septima to see if we could still get the tour before lunch, but unfortunately we weren't on time! Never mind... We still have lunch there to look forward too. A four course lunch, paired with three of their wines. Septima is owned by a Spanish company, the seventh property to be owned by this company, located on the no. 7 road, on the seventh mile. Lunch was really good with good wine and an amazing view of the vineyards with he mountains as backdrop!
Argentinean wines are still like I remember! The reds are nice and smooth with no tannins and the whites extremely aromatic. I got to try different grapes, but my favourites are still their crown jewel Malbec and torrontés.
Back to town and I decide to take the city tour, which I was surprised to find out is bigger than what I expected! The whole town has a unique irrigation system that dates back to Incan times. A system the foliage of the town requires to exist because Mendoza is desert land. This system guides the water from the Mendoza river into canals found all over town. It's genius! This also allows the town to have a magnificent park(parque San Martin). A park that houses an artificial lake used by the regatta club, golf club, horse riding club, tennis club and amazing views.
My third and last day in Mendoza was spent on a guided tour called 'Alta montaña', a tour which takes you up the mountains towards the border of Argentina and Chile. A day long trip that takes you through the most amazing views and luckily for us the day was nice and clear and we got to see mount Aconcagua, the highest mountain of the Andes at 6,960.8 metres. Covered in snow it was astonishing! So beautiful and majestic!
On our way to our final destination we also stopped at 'puente del inca' a bridge formed of organic materials and the first location site where General San Martin's army camped. Here you could find the ruins of a stone bridge and the river Mendoza. Legend says if you drink the water of this river you rejuvenate! The water was so cold and nice! We then went further up the mountain to 4000m above sea level to 'Cristo redentor', where the two countries meet! Turns out I did go to Chile... For a few minutes. It is unbelievable how much temperature drops! We went from 34C to 19C, very cold and windy! And the high altitude also gets to you ... I had to do my jumping photo and from just two jumps I was out of breath! Back down we went and stopped at the bottom of the mountain for lunch. A gorgeous meaty hikers lunch that a wonderful Colombian family(who joined us for the tour) kindly paid for mine! There is still hope in the world with small and kind gestures like these... Thank you! You made my day:)
On the way back into town we stopped at the 'dique Potrerillos'a beautiful blue lagoon created by the river dique. What a beautiful site!
This was just a magnificent day, where I got to see exceptional views and meet wonderful people.
For my last dinner in Mendoza I wondered the street of Sarmiento where i ended up at 'Downtown parrilla' and was recommended to try the Mendocina trout. It was delicious and went down well with a glass of Malbec(thought i was going to leave argentina without a taste of their crown jewel!)
I was surprised to learn that in mendoza you take the siesta in the afternoon, so shops close until 17h and then re-open until 21h(this explains why the town looked deserted in the afternoon) and it makes a lot o sense because it's too hot to be out during that time. As a result the town comes to life at night, where people come out onto the street to enjoy the cooler weather.
I now leave this town and country with amazing memories and experiences, and move on to explore a different country... Floripa here I come!!!!!
