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  3. A Weekend Guide to Mendoza

A Weekend Guide to Mendoza

By Food & Wine
Updated January 17, 2017
Each product we feature has been independently selected and reviewed by our editorial team. If you make a purchase using the links included, we may earn commission.
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Credit: © Fredrika Stjarne
If you love bold Malbecs and grilled grass-fed Argentinean steak as much as we do, now's the time to plan a visit to one of the most stunning wine regions on earth. Argentina's wine capital, Mendoza, just reopened its international airport after a major expansion. That’s great news for the smart wine lovers who flock here, to what’s essentially South America’s Napa Valley: a sun-bathed, insanely scenic region in the foothills of the Andes, famed for its stellar Malbecs (among other wines), architecturally arresting wineries and world-class restaurants. Behold a weekend itinerary well worth an intercontinental flight. —Nora Walsh
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Good Vibrations: Malbec & Gregorian Chants

mendoza argentina wine
Credit: © Kaiken Winery

It’s morning: Grab a coffee, then head south of the city of Mendoza to Kaiken, in the nearby Luján de Cuyo region. You’ll be met at the gate of this biodynamic winery by a gaggle of sheep, chickens and geese—all part of the winery’s bucolic charm. In the cellar, try the velvety 2013 Mai Malbec to the sound of Gregorian chants. Winemaker Rogelio Rabino believes their vibrations help to facilitate fermentation, and they certainly add to the atmosphere. kaikenwines.com.

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A Taste of Italy

caelum wine mendoza argentina
Credit: Courtesy of Bodega Caelum

At the tiny, family-owned Caelum, Italian winemaker Giuseppe Franceschini has branched out from Malbec into varieties originating from his home country. Try the elegant, hazelnutty 2014 Caelum Fiano Reserva (a grape originally from Italy’s Campania region) while snacking on some actual nuts: pistachios grown right on the estate. bodegacaelum.com.ar.

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Time for Lunch

susana balbo wines mendoza
Credit: Courtesy of Susana Balbo

Susana Balbo is known as Argentina’s Queen of Wine: She brought the floral white Torrontés variety to worldwide fame during a time when there weren’t many women making wine in Mendoza. Stop at her eponymous winery for lunch at Osadía de Crear, where her new Malbec-and-Pinot-based Signature Rosé del Valle de Uco complements ultrafresh local trout with a cabbage-and-fennel emulsion. susanabalbowines.com.ar.

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Superstar Bubbly

cruzat wine mendoza argentina
Credit: Courtesy of Bodega Cruzat

Head over to Cruzat, where winemaker Pedro Rosell makes remarkable high-end sparkling wines with grapes harvested more than 3,000 feet up in the Andes. His newly launched Millésime 2006 is intense and complex, and can go head to head with top French Champagnes. It’s pricey by Argentinean standards—about $60 per bottle—but a steal given its quality. bodegacruzat.com.

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Room with a View

cavas wine lodge mendoza argentina
Credit: Courtesy of Cavas Wine Lodge

Predinner, return to your villa at Cavas Wine Lodge. Walk out onto your private rooftop terrace, where you can sip a glass of 19 Escalones Sauvignon Blanc while taking in postcard-perfect views of snow-dusted Andean peaks. And be sure to book a soak in the spa’s Bonarda Wine Bath, a blend of the red grape’s extracts and essential oils; it’s intended to help the circulatory system, and is also exceptionally relaxing. Doubles from $700 per night; cavaswinelodge.com.

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The Fire Dome

restaurant-1884-mendoza-wine
Credit: From Left to Right: © Ryan Donnell; © Fredrika Stjarne

On the terrace of star chef Francis Mallmann’s landmark restaurant 1884 stands his impressive new “fire dome”: an intricate construction of metal rods that suspend whole lambs and dangling vegetables over live coals. The vast wine list includes rarities like the smoky El Enemigo Cabernet Franc—perfect with Mallmann’s succulent grilled meats. 1884restaurante.com.ar.

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The World's Most Famous Winemaker

clos-de-los-siete-mendoza-wine
Credit: Courtesy of Clos de los Siete

Back in 1999, French superstar wine consultant Michel Rolland, whose clients include Bordeaux’s Château Ausone and Napa Valley’s Harlan Estate, founded Clos de los Siete with six friends. It’s now one of the world’s most technologically advanced wineries, home to five individual producers and 2,100 acres of vineyards. Make sure to try an older vintage of Rolland’s raspberry-scented Clos de los Siete red. closdelossiete.com.

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Space-Age Design

o-fournier-mendoza-wine
Credit: Courtesy of O. Fournier

An architectural stunner, O. Fournier looks like a temple to an ancient god, perhaps if it had been designed for James Bond. Tour the winery and taste its first sparkling wine, the delicate, green-appley NV Alfa Crux. Then sit down to lunch in the glass-walled restaurant, Urban, where the twice-cooked oxtail with bone marrow tempura goes brilliantly with the winery’s intense 2011 Alfa Crux Malbec. ofournier.com.

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Horseback Tour Through the Vines

casa-de-uco-mendoza-wine
Credit: © Fredrika Stjarne

Casa de Uco is Mendoza’s latest luxury wine resort, with 790 acres stretching toward the Andes. After checking into your room set amid the vineyards, take a horseback tour through the nature reserve and stop at the tasting room for a glass of the 2014 Casa de Uco Single Vineyard Malbec. It’s made with grapes you can pluck off the vine on the way back to your room. (We won’t tell a soul.) Doubles from $400 per night; casadeucoresort.com.

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    1 of 9 Good Vibrations: Malbec & Gregorian Chants
    2 of 9 A Taste of Italy
    3 of 9 Time for Lunch
    4 of 9 Superstar Bubbly
    5 of 9 Room with a View
    6 of 9 The Fire Dome
    7 of 9 The World's Most Famous Winemaker
    8 of 9 Space-Age Design
    9 of 9 Horseback Tour Through the Vines

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