C & C globetrotting around the world…

Continuing South, we had a beautiful bus ride with some impressive sights in the Valley of the Río las Conchas (Quebrada de Cafayate) between Salta and Cafayate. The landscape was really amazing and we wish we could have explored it more. A great way to discover this area is by car since then you can stop along the way to go into the various canyons and faults and to take pictures. Cafayate is a small town at 1,683m altitude and is one of the most important wine producing regions of Argentina because of the quality and originality of the wines produced in the area. The wines produced around here benefit from the low-humidity mild weather of the valleys. The most characteristic type of wine cultivated in the area is Torrontés. This is a white Argentine wine grape variety, producing fresh, aromatic wines with moderate acidity, smooth texture as well as distinctive peach and apricot aromas on the nose. Torrontes has a very fruity aroma, but the wine is actually dry and crisp. Wine connaisseurs say that the aromas are reminiscent of Muscat and Gewurtztraminer wines. The Salta region in northwest Argentina is particularly noted for its Torrontés as the grape thrives in cold dry, windswept conditions.

Arrived in Cafayate, we found a hostel and had lunch at the market “comedor”. Later we visited Bodega El Transito, a modern winery, where we tasted some wine. It wasn’t too good, so we didn’t buy anything. We also went to a wine shop where we tasted more wines and although the guy was friendly, he served the wines at the wrong temperatures and hence they weren’t at their best. For dinner we bought groceries: wine, steak, onion and bell pepper. It was funny because the store didn’t have change, so they gave us a lemon instead.

The next day we took a free winery tour organized by the hostel with a few other people. The vineyards in the area around Cafayate are located at altitudes between 1,700-3,000m, making them the highest in the world. The first winery was Bodega Vasija Secreta with 190 hectars and 100-150 years old. They have a small museum on site and we got a guided tour of the museum and the wine-making process. We tasted a few wines, which were better than the ones yesterday, and bought one. The second winery was Bodega Domingo Hermanos with 220 hectars and also 100-150 years in operation. They let the wine ferment in fiber glass tanks, which they then age for only 3 months in oak barrels, producing very young wines. They are more for mass production and selling to restaurants in 5L demijohns. Both wineries we visited feed the grape leftovers to sheep and cows and use their milk to make cheese. The dung is used as fertilizers in the vineyards. At Domingo Hermanos we tasted a few wines and cheese and they were very good. Although they make table wine for restaurants, they also produce really good wine in their Reserva Collection, of which we bought a bottle. Domingo Hermanos is also starting a vineyard at higher altitudes, but this will be a boutique wine and we didn’t get to try it. It should be good though. Across from Domingo Hermanos, there was a stand selling salamis and cheese, so we tried llama salami. It tastes quite good. That was the end of our tour, but we wanted to taste more. Together with Kait, a girl from the US, we set out to visit another winery. Bodega Nanni is a boutique winery with only 47 hectars and organic wines. We tasted 4 different wines (Torrontes, Cabernet-Sauvignon Rose, Tannat and the Torrontes Late Harvest, a dessert wine). They were all very good (the best from all we had here in Cafayate), so we bought a bottle of each. It’s a little crazy if you’re backpacking, but we will drink them on special occasions before we fly back. Not only was the wine really good, but the lady who did the wine tasting spoke English and she explained the wines very well. The place was also nice and had cool tables made of barrels and corks. Quite a fun morning!

On the bus from Cafayate to Tucuman the scenery was arid at first, but then we entered a narrow green valley with lots of curves and construction. In Tucuman we changed buses to go Buenos Aires. As soon as we got on the bus, the “attendant” asked us to close the curtains in order to prevent rocks thrown at the bus to injure us. That sounded scary, especially since there were rock marks on the window already and we were sitting in the first row. The overnight bus from Tucuman to Buenos Aires was great though. We had a “cama” (bed), a seat that was reclining 160 degrees. At 10:30pm they served us a full 3-course dinner with wine (and refills), chocolate (on top of the dessert) and whiskey. That was luxury and no rocks were thrown at us luckily.