What do biking and wine tasting have in common? For us, it’s how we spent two full days in Mendoza, Argentina. Home to the Malbec grape, among other varietals, Mendoza is known throughout the world as a center for wine, almost (but not quite) as well-known as Bordeaux, France or Napa Valley, California USA. While there, the vineyards beckoned and what better way to tour than by our own two wheels, taking our time and going where we wanted? We spent two days on bikes riding around the Maipu area in Mendoza, visiting a total of four wineries, one wine museum, one beer garden, one distillery, and one wine-centered restaurant. We got our fill of Malbec and also discovered some new wines that have been added to our list of favorites!

The grapes were all full and plump, nearly ready for harvest.

Some dusty bottles of wine left in the cellar to age.

The Bikes

Long before arriving in Mendoza, we had heard of Mr. Hugo’s Bikes – a friendly older man who rented bikes out to tourists interested in visiting the wineries. Although there are other companies who offer bike rentals, we wanted to meet the popular Mr. Hugo for ourselves. We arrived and were greeted by his friendly family and menagerie of animals before meeting Mr. Hugo. He was as nice as reported, welcoming us with a big smile and hearty “¡Hola!”. His daughter, who speaks English, sat down with us to go over a map of the area, marking the wineries and places of interest for us to visit. Distracted a few times by the dogs and cats that kept wandering over to say hello, we made a plan for our first day to bike to the furthest point and visit three wineries before heading back to the beer garden and distillery. Our second day’s plan would include another winery, a wine museum, and a restaurant for a long lunch. Mr. Hugo selected our bikes for us and helped adjust the seats before seeing us off with a wave.

Our bikes for the day!

Mr. Hugo was very friendly, greeting us with a big smile each time we saw him.

The Wineries

Out of the hundreds of wineries located in the Mendoza region of Argentina, we only visited four. This number seems low, and I would have expected that we would have gone to more during our time in the area. However, the four that we went to all proved to be unique and beautiful, forcing us to linger and savor our time rather than rushing on to the next destination. At each winery, we participated in a tasting of three or four wines each, a mixture of reds, rosés, whites, and sparkling. By selecting a variety each time, we were able to sample different varieties of grapes, different methods of aging, and different ages of the wines. A few new favorites emerged, such as Torrontes and Tempranillo, both of which were new to us. Some of the tastings were held in a formal tasting room, with descriptions of the wines. Others were on our own, on a patio overlooking the vineyard where we could discuss the wines as we sipped. One winery offered a tour, with an English-speaking guide who walked with us into the vines and picked grapes for us to eat so that we could taste the difference between the varietals. Another winery had horses in a nearby paddock, enabling me to reminisce about having my own when I was younger. We sampled some food at two of the wineries, a cheese and meat plate at the first and a duo of empanadas at another. Each location provided a scenic backdrop to our day and the perfect environment in which to drink a glass of wine.

At each winery, we had a different atmosphere in which to do our tasting, such as this one under a pergola covered with vines.

Surprisingly, we tasted some white and rose wines that we liked just as much as the Malbec.

The Lunch

Our first day of wine touring consisted of five locations, where we sampled wine, beer, liquor, and a few small appetizer-sized plates of food. For our second day, we knew we wanted to move a little bit slower and relish our time in the wine country. The name of one restaurant, Casa de Campo, kept popping up in my research as a gourmet restaurant known for their tasting menu. After a hot and sweaty bike ride, we pulled up to the restaurant and found a table inside near the air conditioning. Settling in for a long lunch, we ordered a bottle of – what else? – Malbec to keep us refreshed. The five courses looked more like nine courses, since the starter and dessert both had three different items on the plates for us. We slowly made our way through the meal, taking our time to digest and rest between each course. The tasting menu was perfect as it allowed us to try a large variety of dishes, which included:

• First course: a trio of a beef empanada, a stuffed zucchini, and bread with olive oil, ham, and tomato
• Second course: ribeye asado with grilled tomato
• Third course: slow-roasted loin with potatoes and vegetables
• Fourth course: meat pie (in phyllo dough), potatoes, and salad
• Fifth course: a trio of a candied apricot, candied pumpkin over cheese, and ice cream with a plum reduction

An espresso rounded out the meal for me and we both enjoyed a sweet dessert wine, compliments of the house, after our last course. Not wanting to move, but knowing we had more to see, we slowly got up from the table and got back on our bikes to visit another winery.

The second course was my favorite – the meat was so tender it nearly melted in my mouth!

The dessert round – a trio that were sweet enough to round out our rich and heavy meal!

The Beer Garden and The Distillery

In addition to the multiple wineries located throughout the region of Mendoza, there was a beer garden and a distillery that fell along our route. We stopped for a beer and empanada at the first and shared a tasting of three local liquors at the latter. While they were an interesting diversion from the vineyards and wine tastings, I preferred the focused approach of winery to winery that we employed the remainder of the time.

Jon enjoyed an IPA beer during a break from wine tasting.

Summary

The purpose of our visit to Mendoza was to go wine tasting and drink some local Malbec. We successfully completed this mission and even had some extras thrown in as a bonus! Although hot, the bikes proved to be an economical and efficient way to tour the wineries of Maipu. Had we traveled further from Mendoza to some of the other wine regions, we would have needed a car or taxi to drive us around. As amateur wine enthusiasts (certainly not professionals!), we had a good time discovering some new varietals and exploring the wineries of Maipu. The landscapes, Malbecs, and meals would definitely draw us back again in the future, perhaps for an extended and more leisurely visit.

We walked through the vineyards at a few places and learned how to tell the difference between types of grapes – the shape of the bunch and of the leaves.