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September, 2006
Around 8 pm on Saturday, September 23rd, we left Buenos Aires headed to Mendoza, Argentina ... the wine country. Our bus didn't arrive until the next morning, and we were well rested because we slept through the night in our "cami" seats (seats which lie flat). We traveled with our friends Pat and Walt from the sailing vessel Centime and immediately upon our arrival we found our hotel and began touring the city. Mendoza is a quaint little town and it reminded us of Buenos Aires though smaller. It has a small town feel with the culture of a large city. Though we only stayed in Mendoza for about three days, we enjoyed its atmosphere. After strolling around town a bit, we hooked up with Mark and Susan from the rugby group for dinner.
We had a few days in Mendoza so we only had time for two main attractions ... the vineyards and Alta Montaña. We took the public bus to Maipú, the city where the vineyards are located. Centime (Pat and Walt) and Mark and Sue decided to take the Bikes and Wines tour which meant they rode bikes to each vineyard. However, due to rugby inflicted ailments, we decided to walk or take a taxi. Our first stop was La Rural where our tour guide, Paula, provided us with the background of the vineyard and it's owners. As she walked us through the vineyard and museum, she explained the current wine making process and a bit about the history of Bodega La Rural which commenced at the beginning of the 19th Century when the Rutini family entered the wine industry. The winemaking tradition of the Rutini family was born when Don Francisco Rutini started making domestic wines for the citizens of his native town, Ascoli Piceno, Le Marche, Italy. His only son, Felipe Rutini, decided to emigrate to the Americas to continue with the winemaking tradition. It was in Coquimbito, Department of Maipu, Mendoza, where he planted the first vines. Towards the end of 1885 he began the construction of a winery, which he named La Rural, with the motto " Labor et Perseverantia. Don Felipe passed away in 1919 leaving his descendents in charge of the company who took up the development of white and red fine varietals such as Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Malbec. Later on the Chenin grape from the Loire Valley was incorporated.
As much as we enjoyed our delightful lunch, there were still more vineyards to tour. Off we went to Tempus Alba where our tour guide Mariano showed us around. Tempus Alba is a family owned and operated business and they still select and cut the grapes by hand. This particular vineyard only makes red wines and some of their vines are still very young, only three years old. The tanks used to ferment the wine are stainless steel and each tank is connected to a computer which controls the temperature. This vineyard has some very nice wine which is sold in the US under the label Preludio. In Argentina, the wine is sold under the Tempus label.
We had a great time touring these vineyards and the guides were especially professional and knowledgeable. We only managed to stop at two vineyards during our trip, so some day we must come back to Mendoza and finish our wine tour. Our second main attraction was Alta Montaña. The highlight of the trip was the Puente del Inca, a natural stone bridge which was an impressive sight. It was formed by the Río de las Cuevas and it is nestled in an arid valley, overlooked by majestic mountains ... a spectacular sight. The bridge and surrounding rocks are all stained a nicotine-yellow by the very high sulphur content of the warm waters which gurgle up nearby from beneath the earth's surface. Just beneath this bridge are the remains of a once sophisticated spa resort, built in 1940s but swept away by a flood.
Our trip to Mendoza had come to an end, it was now time for Rankin and me to travel to Santiago, Chile via bus on the Alta Montaña Route. Follow us to Santiago, Chile or catch up on the latest travels by selecting What's Happening. Don't forget ... keep coming back.
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