Martin Bruno | Argentina Wine, Travel, Culture & Food

Wine

ARGENTINA’S GREAT SOMM HOPE #1: MARTÍN BRUNO

One of two Argentine sommeliers who will compete in the A.S.I. Concours du Meilleur Sommelier du Monde (A.S.I. Contest of the Best Sommelier of the World), we meet Martín Bruno, sommelier at top Buenos Aires restaurant Tegui, in part four of The Real Argentina’s somms series. Martín spills the beans on how he’s been diligently preparing for this prestigious competition, which is being held in Mendoza for the first time on 15-20 April 2016.

Wine

AND THE BEST SOMMELIER IN ARGENTINA IS…

After participating in five demanding competitions over the past decade, Martín Bruno has finally nailed it to become Argentina’s best sommelier. He will now represent his country in the Americas’ cup in 2018.

Wine

YOUNG SOMMS RISE THROUGH THE RANKS

The world of wine will turn its attention to Mendoza in April, not because of its bottled goods for a change, but because Argentina’s principal wine-producing province is hosting the prestigious Concours du Meilleur Sommelier du Monde (A.S.I. Contest of the Best Sommelier of the World) for the first time.
Around 50 sommeliers, each who has already succeeded in national and regional competitions to reach this crucial point, will head to Mendoza for the Argentine Sommelier Association organised event. And Argentina proudly has two top noses – Paz Levinson and Martín Bruno – in the final, which comes around every two years. Over the next few weeks, various Argentine sommeliers talk to The Real Argentina about their industry and this competition.
In part one, we meet some young somms who are coming through the ranks: Andrea Donadio from Oporto Almacén; Gabriella Gera from Don Julio; Marco Scolnik from Chila; and María Laura Nuñez from Aldo’s Vinoteca & Restorán.

Food

COSTA RICA: THE FOODIEST STREET IN BUENOS AIRES

Buenos Aires is definitely a foodie city. But if you were to eat a street, the foodiest street in BA, where would you go? After a decade of research, I nominate Costa Rica – Palermo Hollywood section.

Wine

THE BEST SOMMELIER OF THE WORLD 2016 IS…

Swedish sommelier Arvid Rosengren clinched the coveted title of world’s best in the fifteenth A.S.I. Meilleur Sommelier du Monde competition in Mendoza last night. It was a double scoop for the New York-based somm, who had taken Europe’s top title in 2013. Competition in the 15-strong semifinal came from Argentina’s very own Paz Levinson, who was anointed Best Sommelier in the Americas in 2015, and Japan’s Hiroshi Ishida, Asia and Oceania’s top taster, also in 2015, as well as a string of candidates from Europe.

Wine

INSIDE THE SOMMELIER OLYMPICS

MENDOZA – Huddled together in small groups, mentors rub backs and mop their wards’ brows, sommeliers easily distinguished from other revellers at a cocktail party thanks to perfectly pressed black suits and aprons. The tension and nerves crackled like an Andean electric storm around the Park Hyatt Mendoza hotel as 60 competitors from around the world chewed down cuticles, waiting to find out whether they’d earned one of 15 coveted places in the Contest of the Best Sommelier of the World Argentina 2016 semifinal.

Wine

AN ARGENTINE FIRST: BACKSTAGE AT THE CONTEST OF THE BEST SOMMELIER OF THE WORLD

Sixty competitors, five days, one title; the world’s best sommelier.
Although the immediate thought is ‘football’ when mentioning Argentina and World Cup in the same breath, the world’s fifth-largest wine producer is about to host a very different championship next month: the 15th A.S.I. Concours du Meilleur Sommelier du Monde (Contest of the Best Sommelier of the World).

Wine

The Sexiest Wine Cellars in Buenos Aires

While foodies come over all emotional trying to decide which Instagram filter to use on a tasting menu, we oenophiles get decidedly hot and bothered over wine cellars – and not just their contents. Wooden wine racks have given way to temperature-controlled fridges, which in turn have been eclipsed by bespoke storage facilities that rightly take centre stage in fine dining establishments. Let’s take a look at some of Buenos Aires’ sexiest wine cellars.

Wine

Argentina’s Top Sommeliers

As grape harvests across Mendoza, Patagonia and the north-west provinces are in full motion, that can only mean one thing: it’s time for a new batch of wines to start reaching store shelves and restaurant cavas. And who can we trust for a solid opinion on floral aromas and tobacco notes? Sommeliers, that’s who. Some of Argentina’s top wine experts – already established or coming through the ranks – talk about their work in this flourishing industry.

Food

Welcome to Morfilandia

Rich pickings are easy to find in Argentine Patagonia. Prawns from Chubut’s waters, succulent lamb from both the Andean and coastal regions, fresh spider crab and toothfish from the depths of the southern Atlantic, smoked trout from the Lake District, and there’s even wine from Río Negro and Neuquén… And, as appetite demands, a brand-new food fest – Morfilandia, Kermesse de Sabores, which translates as Grubland, Flavours Bazaar – shook up a farm located between Trelew and Rawson, Chubut province, in November 14th and 15th.