We have visited a lot of new relatively new wineries in Argentina on this tour so today is the turn of Luigi Bosca – one of the oldest family estates and still run by the Arizu family. The Luigi Bosca brand is famous throughout the country, has a loyal domestic market and has become a significant exporter of its wines. They have an impressive portfolio of wines produced from their old vines in Lujan de Cuyo.
Our visit was hosted by Soledad Martin who I have known for many years and had flown in specially for our visit from Buenos Aires. After a quick cellar tour we had an impromptu barrel tasting with Roberto Arizu – one of the family winemakers. We sampled a wonderfully elegant Chardonnay that had been aged in French oak and acacia wood, followed by a first……A Petit Verdot that had been aged for three years in Mongolian oak barrels. It was an extraordinary experience and reflects the innovation and desire to experiment within the estate. We then tasted through 12 wines culminating in the magnificent Icono – the very top wine of Luigi Bosca.
We then headed over to Atamisque – a truly amazing place near Tupungato. 400 hectares of fruit trees, vineyards, golf course, boutique hotel, stables and more …A light fish lunch was enjoyed immensely as they have their own trout farm so trout ceviche followed by grilled trout was the order of the day.
We finished a tasting through a range at their elegant stone winery.
Dinner was at the wonderful Siete Cocinas restaurant in Mendoza. The menu celebrates different regions of Argentina and the food is innovative, beautifully presented and very high quality. Cuttlefish pickle and tabbouleh was followed by a sous vide poached egg with a green bean and creole sauce puree. Oven roasted goat and slow cooked pork were the mains followed by a delicious dulce de leche dessert. Despite having tasted 20 wines during the day we still managed to get through some sparkling Viognier, an Uco Valley Riesling, our first Bonarda and of course some more Malbec.
It has been wonderful being back in Argentina!
Back to Chile tomorrow……