Any wineries worth visiting in Argentina?

J

Jay Miller

Jay Miller
Certainly not definite but given the decline in the currency we're considering a vacation to Argentina this year. Neither of us have ever been to South America.

Any wineries not making overoaked Malbec?

And for that matter any must-visit non-wine related places? I assume visiting both the north and the south would be problematic so any advice on what general region to concentrate on is also appreciated.

Thanks!
 
Buenos Aires is a great city and you could easily spend days there without running out of interesting things to do, see and eat.

Although this might be the obvious pick, I enjoy the wines of Achával-Ferrer. A 2005 Achával-Ferrer Finca Altamira that I had last month was complex with age and excellent. I understand that Santiago Achával is no longer involved at Achával-Ferrer, and I can't speak to recent vintages, but in my mind, this was the apex of Mendoza Malbec. Maybe someone else can give a more current assessment. You should also investigate the white Torrontés from Salta. They are crisp and bright whites and really inexpensive. I have no idea if the wineries of Salta are equipped for tourism. Mendoza is still pretty rugged but visitable. You might also consider white water rafting in Mendoza, at the foot of the Andes, which was pretty awesome.
 
Carmelo Patti in Mendoza is very enjoyable and makes wine that I think many Disorderlies would like, particularly those who like Italian wines (this is not just a polite way of alluding to VA). Chambers Street sometimes sells them, so you can get a bottle to test drive (I like the Cab better than the Malbec). Weinert is also worth visiting to see their huge collection of foudres. Larger production, sort of like the Lopez de Heredia of Argentina.

This said, I don't know that I'd say a trip to Mendoza should win out over sufficient time in Buenos Aires (at least four days) and perhaps a trip to Bariloche.
 
Almost the only guy making naturally-oriented wines is Mathias Michelini, so I’d look for those. For old-style pre-Parker wine I’d look for anything with bottle age from Bodegas Lopez-Montchenot, or pre-2000 Weinert. Alas, I would not touch anything from Achaval-Ferrer because of the oak, concentration, alcohol and fake acidity.

There’s an excellent museum with the Eduardo Constantini collection.
 
Don't forget Bonarda and Bonarda-based blends. I enjoyed the Tercos Bonarda recently - a very jolly quaff, not at all overripe or oaky, sort of mid-priced Tuscan or Abbruzzi in body and style. If you can find an older Ricardo Santos Semillon, really develops in the bottle after a 3-4 years.
 
A friend was recently in Buenos Aires for work and he wanted to bring me back a bottle I couldn't get in the States. I was clueless but the research I did at the time came up with Carmelo Patti (http://www.experiencemendoza.com/en/things-to-do/wineries/carmelo-patti/); Bodegas López (I think their two main wines are called Montchenot and then maybe Chateau Vieux Red Wine Gran Reserva); and Bressia, which makes a Bordeaux style blend called Conjuro. He couldn't find any of these but I still figure they may be worth the search. Again, this is just based on online research.
 
i have some old Carmelo Patti Cab. there's a fair bit of bottle variation but the good bottles are quite good. i think David Bowler distributes it.
 
Thank you everyone!

The point of the trip won't be wine-oriented (which would bore Arnold silly) but I thought it would be a good option to have in my back pocket if we have the time and are travelling nearby.

He's pushing for Prague at the moment which I'd like but the euro is a lot stronger than peso at the moment.
 
The most compelling wine I've tasted recently was a Malbec from Finca Adalgisa. When I tasted it last year current release was 2011, and the first aromatic comparison that came to mind was older (they're all kind of old) Musar. Pretty small production, something like 5,000 to 6,500 bottle per year.
 
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