Author: Tom Bruce-Gardyne
Having worked his passage from London to Buenos Aires, Tom spent his gap year travelling round South America. Years later, while teaching English in Santiago he got into wine and returned to work in the trade in the UK and Italy. Since 2000 he has been a full time journalist, has written three books on Scotch whisky and has just won the Louis Roederer 'regional wine writer of the year award' for his weekly column in the Glasgow Herald.
Having worked his passage from London to Buenos Aires, Tom spent his gap year travelling round South America. Years later, while teaching English in Santiago he got into wine and returned to work in the trade in the UK and Italy. Since 2000 he has been a full time journalist, has written three books on Scotch whisky and has just won the Louis Roederer 'regional wine writer of the year award' for his weekly column in the Glasgow Herald.
Not so long ago, Argentine winemakers believed their greatest export triumph would come from well-known international varieties like Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet. After all, these were the grapes demanded by wine drinkers in the West, rather than something called Malbec or Torrontés – Argentina’s most planted white variety. Of course, it is hard to ask for something if it is not on the menu.
And that is definitely no longer the case with Malbec, whose popularity abroad has given Argentine winemakers a boost in self-confidence. Having scored with the country’s top red grape, many are now looking to repeat the success with Torrontés…
Back in the Middle-Ages, Malbec was planted all over southern France. But it wasn’t known as Malbec. It had over a thousand synonyms, and besides Medieval wine drinkers knew precious little about grape varieties. But there was no doubt Malbec was highly thought of, especially up-river of Bordeaux, where it was blended with the even darker Tannat grape to make the famous ‘Black Wine of Cahors’…
They say that tango is the very expression of the Argentine soul. Certainly its roots are entwined with those of modern-day Argentina as the country emerged into a nation of immigrants in the late 19th century. It was a time of tremendous change especially in the port of Buenos Aires (B.A) which was swamped with Europeans seeking a new life in the New World. Soon the influx of Italians alone outnumbered the resident porteños – citizens of B.A, who were mainly descended from Spanish colonists and African slaves…
Mendoza is the great throbbing heart of Argentine wine. The province is home to some 1200 wineries and produces over a billion litres a year – almost two thirds of the country’s total and nine out of ten bottles exported. Almost all Argentina’s top producers are based here, even if many make wine from other regions, notably Torrontés from the northern province of Salta. The reason for Mendoza’s pre-eminence in Argentine wine is…
If you have made it all the way to Argentina, you really should try and find time to visit Salta – home of the highest and perhaps most spectacular vineyards in the world. But be patient – arriving in the provincial capital of Salta after the flight north from Buenos Aires is barely the start. It is a good four hours drive to the town of Cafayate and the fertile Calchaquí Valley – the main wine region of Salta. Along the way you will probably despair of ever seeing a vineyard. The fields of maize and tobacco that surround Salta soon give way to desert where nothing grows save giant cacti flicking V-signs at the sky…
It is fair to say that the southern cone of Argentina is not immediately synonymous with wine. Instead, for those that know it, Patagonia – conjures up images of wide prairies, isolated sheep farms, lakes and forests. It is landscape of lonesome beauty scoured by the constant wind, which stretches south until it finally reaches the frozen tip of Tierra del Fuego. Here the great Latin American landmass tapers into the sea, its spectacular glaciers pointing the way to the South Pole. For millions of others however, Patagonia is simply just a brand of outdoor clothing…
This relatively unknown province was bound to make wine if you think of its Spanish namesake. In fact La Rioja claims to have the longest continued history of wine production in Argentina, having been planted with grapes by Spanish missionaries in the mid-16th century. La Rioja is a gruelling, seven hour drive north from Mendoza, passing through the province of San Juan on the way…
