March 18-21, 2008 - Mendoza, Argentina

March 18, 2008 - Mendoza, Argentina
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I had a good night's sleep. The air-conditioning in the room was good. As I had an early morning pickup, I woke up by 6, and was ready by 7. I was the first person at Breakfast. It was quite dark outside. While waiting for the tour bus to arrive, I talked to the front desk manager (Walter) about arranging private tours to the vineyards / wineries I wanted to visit in Mendoza. Walter called up a local taxi service and told me that a private tour would cost me around 250 pesos (US$83). I was also told that I needed to provide a 1-day notice to the taxi company about taking a private tour of the vineyards. Walter provided me with his cell phone number.

The tour bus arrived a little after 7. I took the seat close to the driver. It was a minibus with a capacity for 18 people that was perhaps half full at this time. After a few more passenger pickups, the bus was close to being full (perhaps 14 people). We headed out of Mendoza towards Villavicencio. Villavicencio is famous for the bottled water it produces. I doubt whether there is any other brand of mineral water in Argentina. After a drive of 20 minutes, we passed the factory producing the bottles of mineral water. We continued on and stopped at the spring where the water is sourced from. We stopped for around 10 minutes at the spring where we saw captive Guanacos. We were also given a free bottle of Villavicencio water thereby saving each of us around 2-3 pesos!

We left the springs at Villavicencio and climbed the mountains. The driver and guide (there were 2 people - which was unusual) spoke Spanish. The drive was truly hair-raising as we went around numerous hair-pin bends during our climb up the mountains. Being in one of the front seats, my thrill level was definitely more! We stopped at a viewpoints at 2200 metres and 3100 metres. From the viewpoint at 2200 metres, one could see the Villavicencio hotel far below us as well as the wonderful dirt roads with the numerous hair-pin bends that we had just traversed. From the viewpoint at 3100 metres, one can catch glimpses of the tallest mountain in the Americas - ACONCAGUA which stands at 6962 metres (over 21000 feet). We managed to get brief glimpses of ACONCAGUA as there was an extensive cloud cover.

We start heading down the mountains from the 3100-metre viewpoint. We were riding through the Andes. There were beautiful vistas all around and I took colour and Black & White pictures through the front windshield and through the window next to me. We stopped at Upsallata for breakfast. Despite having had a breakfast (2 hours ago) I had a buffet breakfast here for 12 pesos. Quite good.

We drove past the Puente del Inca (Inca Bridge) as it was quite crowded at this time. We would be stopping there on our way back (crowds or no crowds). We continued towards the Statue of Cristo Redentor (Christ the redeemer) - a 3 metre high statue - erected on the border between Argentina and Chile to preserve the amity between the two neighbours. The statue was erected in 1904 at an altitude of 4200 metres.

If I thought the climb up the mountains (after visiting the Spring at Villavicencio) was hair-raising, the climb up the mountains to reach Cristo Redentor put my heart in my mouth. Every time the driver look anywhere other than the road or talked to the guide seated next to him, my pulse rate and heartbeat increased by a significant magnitude! THE (and I mean DEFINITIVELY) most hair-raising experience I have ever had.

The views were magnificent during our ascent. When we finally reach the top, I heaved a huge sigh of relief. It was freezing cold at the top with blustery wind conditions. I decided to brave it in my T-shirt even though I had a nice Alpaca sweater in my backpack. After 10 minutes, I got used to the cold and the wind was not an issue as long as I held my belongings (backpack / camera etc.) securely. We got good pictures of the Chilean and Argentine borders as well as the statue of Cristo Redentor. Prior to the opening of the tunnel (as a border crossing passage) between the 2 countries, this was the route taken to go from Argentina to Chile and vice-versa.
We spent around 30 minutes here. Everyone (except the lunatic - Moi) was covered up. I guess these folks cannot handle mild temperatures :)

I took more pictures on the way down as our Vehicle stopped at many places to let upcoming vehicles pass by. We retraced our route and stopped at Puente del Inca (Inca Bridge) which is a natural formation. It is covered in limestone lending it a sickly yellow colour. I got quite a few nice pictures. Pictures taken in Black & White do really stand out.

A lot of Argentine women (as compared to Brazilian women) are WIDE BODIED. Despite them wearing pants, flesh does spill over! I am yet to see an Argentine Woman in shorts (who looks good in it). [Brazil was full of them - Women in shorts, looking good]

From Puente del Inca, we headed a few kilometres south for our lunch break. As usual it was a tiny restaurant with a limited selection and I was the victim of daylight robbery - 25 pesos for a Vegetable sandwich and a coke! During lunch, I chatted with an Argentine couple from our tour group. He spoke English. SHE WAS GOOD! Lucky Bloke is all I can Say :)

Post lunch, we started our drive back to Upsallata. I took pictures along the way. They appear to have come out well. On reaching Upsallata, we had a brief stop for coffee. During the drive back to Mendoza (via a different route than the one we set out on this morning), we saw quite a few horrible accidents where the truck is completely overturned, cargo spilled all over and the cab smashed beyond recognition. Our driver who chatted up the cops (manning many of these accidents) snickered every time with the smug knowledge that it must have been a Brazilian who did not have a clue about driving these roads.

Our driver drove like a maniac. Since I am alive to write this, I guess I have come out on the right side of Statistics! I observed advertisements for Gasoline in many places. While the US gasoline is categorized into 87, 89 and 91 (or regular, premium and supreme), Argentina has Normal, Super and FANGIO (Named after the Formula-1 great - Juan Manuel Fangio)! I must say that I saw no gasoline classification named SENNA while in Brasil.

As we neared Mendoza, we drove by the Vineyards at Lujan de Cuyo. The Ruca Malen and Norton Vineyards were anything but impressive.

We reached Mendoza around 7:30 PM. I sent a text message to Amor and wandered around for a bit, waiting to see if she wanted to get together for dinner. After wandering around for close to 45 minutes, I settled on the Hotel's restaurant (TREVI) for dinner. Yes, the owners are Italians who have been in Argentina for many decades.

I had a Tortelli y Espinaca y ricotta with salsa verdura along with a Trapiche fond de cave Malbec from 2006 that had a strong nose, was medium bodied with a long finish. It was very good. The service was excellent at this restaurant. The owners (perhaps brothers) are terrific hosts and ensure that their customers feel right at home. One of the owners (who came over to see how I was doing with the dinner) was quite upset that I had not mixed the salsa properly and that I had not asked for extra cheese! He took the fork and spoon from my hand to mix the salsa properly before giving them back to me! One more mistake like this and I will perhaps be thrown out of this hotel as well :)

Tomorrow looks like a free day (as I have nothing planned for the moment).

March 19, 2008 - Mendoza, Argentina
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I had a leisurely wakeup as I had decided (last night) to do a city tour of Mendoza (by myself)
today. After breakfast, I walked on San Martin and purchased a Mobile phone card for 20 pesos. I headed to the Mendoza tourism office to ask if they could assist me in Vineyard visits and tastings. The tourist office provided me a list of Vineyards along with their contact details and told me that I would need to call the Vineyards directly and talk to them about tours and tastings.

As I had a fresh phone card in hand, I started to call the vineyards I wanted to visit. My first call was to Achaval-Ferrer a premium winery in the region. I was given a tour and tasting appointment at Noon today! I called Norton (a famous winery) and was given a tour and booking for tomorrow at Noon.

I scrapped my city tours plans for today (herein lies the flexibility of travelling solo) and headed to the bus terminus. I boarded a bus to the town of Lujan (20 Kilometres away). The cost was 1.65 pesos. After an hour's ride, I was dropped in the centre of Lujan around 11:15 AM. I took a taxi shortly thereafter to take me to Achaval-Ferrer winery. What should have been a short 10-minute ride took more than 20 minutes as the taxi driver was not familiar with this winery. We finally found after asking at least 3 different people for directions. The winery is located deep within the Lujan area.

The drive from the gate of the winery to the main building was about 1 Kilometre. The tour commenced around 12:20 PM. Apart from me, there were a Danish couple and 4 Belgians. The tour was conducted in English.

Achaval-Ferrer is a relatively new winery. It has been in operation for 10 years. During their first year of Operations (1998) they produced 2 barrels of wine. In 2007 they produced 11,000 barrels! This is definitely a small operation when compared to Norton (Argentina) or Concha Y Toro (Chile). Achaval-Ferrer focuses solely on Reds and Malbecs only. The winery has 3 owners (Achaval, Ferrer and the winemaker whose names escapes me). During our tour we met Mr. Ferrer who was helping sort grapes! The fermentation takes place in Concrete Tanks. This (Fermentation in Concrete tanks) is a Unique aspect of Mendoza Wineries. Fermenting in Concrete tanks helps in the gradual adjustment of temperature unlike steel tanks where temperature changes are immediate.

The Vines are pruned for super concentrated grapes which results in super concentrated wine. After fermentation, the wine is aged for 18-months in Oak barrels, followed by aging for 18-months in the bottles themselves before being shipped to the market. The United States is the largest export market, followed by Brasil, Europe, the rest of Asia and finally the rest of Latin America.

Achaval-Ferrer specializes in Single Vineyard Malbecs. They produce 3 Single Vineyard Malbecs grown at different altitudes. MIRADOR is produced from grapes grown at 700 feet, BELLAVISTA is produced from grapes grown at 1100 feet while ALTAMIRA is produced from grapes grown at 2200 feet. They also produce QUIMERA which is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (25%), Cabernet Franc (5%), Merlot (25%) and Malbec (40%).

Their tasting room was terrific. We barrel tasted all their Single Vineyard Malbecs - MIRADOR, BELLAVISTA and ALTAMIRA. Mirador and Altamira supposedly sell for more than $100 a bottle (I need to verify that). The pour during our tastings was generous. The wines were uniformly excellent. The guide (a young girl) was excellent. I did not buy any wines here. I may do so later. I was not even charged the 30 pesos for the tour and tasting!

I requested the reception (at Achaval-Ferrer) to call me a taxi and waited. The setting of this winery is truly magnificent. The rows of vines were spread in front of me and I could see the snow-capped Andes in the distance while behind me the grape sorters were doing their job that result in these wonderful, super-concentrated wines. This vineyard / winery has to be my Numero UNO when it comes to grand settings. I sent a text message to friends just to rub it in!

The taxi did not turn up. After multiple calls and a wait of over 3 hours, a friend of one of the managers (at Achaval-Ferrer) pulled up in his taxi to take me back to Lujan! Walking is not an option as the town is far away.

During my 3-hour wait for the Taxi, I fixed up some more wine tastings - Luigi Bosca and Zuccardi. I was scheduled for a tour and tasting at Luigi Bosca at 5 PM this afternoon while I was scheduled at Zuccardi at 5 PM tomorrow.

I paid the taxi driver 30 pesos as he had to drive all the way from Mendoza - just to pick me up! I took his number and promised to call him in case I needed transport to visit the Zuccardi Winery. The cost would be 100 pesos as it would involve - Pick up from hotel, head to Winery, wait at Winery - while I tour/taste and return to Mendoza

As Luigi Bosca was also in the Lujan de Cuyo area, I decided to head there after a late lunch. After the wonderful tastings at Achaval-Ferrer, I had a rather sad lunch of toast and Orange juice for lunch! I had to eat something before the next tasting so this was better than starving.

The taxi from the centre of Lujan to Luigi Bosca cost me 6 pesos. This is a very big winery that also produces good wines consistently. Hence it was on my list of places to visit. The tour started 15-minutes late. The guide was horrible and appeared to be going through the motions. Luigi Bosca produces 28 different varietals! Compared to Achaval-Ferrer, these folks are not selective when it comes to producing wines. Luigi-Bosca wines start at 25 pesos, while Achaval-Ferrer wines start at 200 pesos!

Luigi Bosca uses steel tanks for fermentation. Barrel aging is done for 3-6 months. As the guide herself said, Luigi Bosca is more interested in making their money today. The Wine tasting was OK. The pours were adequate. We were charged 15 pesos (per person) for the visit and tasting.

Achaval-Ferrer will henceforth be the benchmark against which other vineyard visits and tastings will be measured!

I took a bus (from the entrance of Luigi Bosca) back to Mendoza. On alighting at the bus terminus at Mendoza, I went about researching and booking my bus ticket to Santiago, Chile. I opted for a CAMA seat on ANDESMAR for 75 pesos ($25) for March 22, 2008.

After booking my tickets, I went about looking for a vegetarian restaurant - which had been recommended in my guide book. On reaching it, I found it to be closed! Perhaps they open only for lunch!

I headed to an Internet cafe to backup my memory cards. On the walk back, I purchased a Phone card from a local kiosk that did not work. After a 20-minute tug-of-war with the kiosk owner (who refused to refund my money as I had opened the package!), I headed to a nearby movistar office where the problem was fixed. Talk about getting an Ulcer for the wrong things!

Based on the e-mail I had received from Michel and Lisa (Swiss Couple who travelled with me in Salta), I headed to their hotel to meet with them for a coffee. They had apparently checked out earlier in the day! I was confused. Amor had sent me an e-mail as well saying that she had tried calling but was unable to get through to me! I cannot wait to get to Chile and IT'S EFFICIENT MOVISTAR (yes, the same company operates in Argentina as well) network!

I capped the long day with a very good ice-cream!

An interesting note
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Instalment payments are offered even for credit card payments! I could have split my tour charges to ACONCAGUA (yesterday) into 3 payments of 40 pesos (US$13) each. The cost of the bus trip I had booked to Chile (earlier today) could have been split into 3 payments of 25 pesos (US$8) each!

I head to visits & tastings at Norton (Noon) and Zuccardi (5 PM) tomorrow. I will head to a visit and tasting at Bodega La Rural on Friday (Noon).

March 20, 2008 - Mendoza, Argentina
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I woke-up late and by the time I was ready, breakfast had closed. I took a taxi to the Bus terminal ($4.50 pesos). I booked a ticket on the 10:30 AM bus to Bodega Norton ($2.25 pesos). I purchased a box of chocolate covered peanuts for breakfast. Upon boarding the bus, I requested the driver to drop me off at Bodega Norton. I noticed a lot of familiar faces (from yesterday) as the bus route today would take me past Lujan de Cuyo. Quite scary when you consider that most of those folks are regular commuters, while I am a tourist!

The ride took almost 1 hour and 15 minutes before I was dropped near Bodega Norton. The bus stop was hardly 100 metres from the Bodega Entrance. On reaching the entrance, the security folks twisted themselves silly in trying to determine how I would reach the tour commencement area as I did not have a vehicle of my own. I was finally asked to head to the store where one of the girls took me through various buildings before dropping me off at the tour commencement area.

The tour and tasting was to cost 10 pesos. We were all given a welcome glass of sparkling wine - which turned out to be decent. Norton, like Achaval-Ferrer, is situated in a great location. Norton is a much larger and older winery (founded in 1895) and we had wonderful views of the vineyards and the Andes from the tour commencement area.

Norton uses mammoth steel tanks for fermentation. The English speakers were a smaller tour group as compared to the Spanish speaking tour group. Most of the folks in the English speaking group were Americans. To break the monotony, I told the group that I was from India! Many of the wines produced here spend 3-6 months in OAK Barrels before being bottled. The OAK barrels are 95% French OAK and 5% are American OAK. Norton even had 12 experimental barrels of CHINESE OAK. Depending on the amount of lead or arsenic - that all Chinese products carry (!), I think it will serve as an excellent Toilet cleaner :) For the large operation that Norton runs here, they only employ 300 employees. The Grape pickers employed during the harvest season are temporary folks and many of these folks are from Bolivia.

On Thursdays, Norton allows anyone to come in with their containers (usually 5-Gallon Jugs) and buy wines from the Barrels. I have seen this taken place at some French Vineyards as well.
Today being Thursday, there were a whole lot of people filling their 5-Gallon jugs at the back of the bodega!

The tour was done in a very professional manner. At the end of our tour we tasted the following:

2007 Sauvignon Blanc Reserve - Excellent (I am beginning to appreciate white wines better)
2004 Syrah Reserva - OK (Read: Don't spend money buying it)
2005 Malbec Reserve - Good
2006 Malbec D.O.C (similar to Appellation Controlee in France) - So, So (Read: Avoid)

One peeve about the tastings here was that they did not give us fresh glasses for tasting the different wines. As I said yesterday, Achaval-Ferrer remains the benchmark for wine tours and tasting.

I had a 20-minute wait at the Bus stop before taking a bus back to Mendoza. We passed Rio Mendoza and I noticed that it was dry. Not sure if it ever runs full. I got back to Mendoza by 2:15 PM. I headed to Naturata vegetarian restaurant and had a decent fill for 15 pesos. I headed to an Internet cafe and spend 40 minutes here reading the transcript of Obama Speech on race relations. Pretty Impressive.

I decided to call up the cab driver from yesterday. Hector said he would be at my Hotel in 15 minutes. I headed up to my room to rest a bit. Within 5 minutes, I get a call from reception saying that a taxi is waiting for me downstairs. On reaching the hotel reception, I found a new driver waiting for me. Hector had been held up and had sent someone is his place. It was 4:15 PM. I chatted a bit with Julio (the new driver) on our ride to Bodega Zuccardi. We reached Familia Zuccardi around 4:45 PM. I was asked to follow a guide, who when he realized I needed an English tour & tasting guide, gave me a brief (really brief) history of the winery before feeding me to an English tour already in Progress!

The tour group was comprised of Europeans including a young, terribly bored teen who annoyed the hell out of me with his antics. We tasted wines from the fermentation tanks and as expected they turned out to be very Tannic.

Familia Zuccardi has been in Operation for 45 years and produced 13 Million Barrels (20 Million Bottles) a year. The wine pour and tasting was decent although we did not taste premium wines such as Q or ZETA. Of the remainder, the Textual (Caladoc) - Grenache/ Malbec from 2006 was the best. We also tasted Port (Fortified wine) containing 120 grams of residual sugar.

The Shop at Zuccardi was a Zoo. The staff were interested in pushing all and sundry with little time for queries and the Euro trash were obliging them and buying up like there was no tomorrow! Overall I think the tour was just OK while the tastings were decent.

On the way back I requested the taxi driver to drop me off at a main street where I paid him 100 pesos (US$30). From here I took 2 buses to reach Cerro Gloria. After a short steep climb, reached the top. The views from here were decent. There is an Impressive Statue of General San Martin up here. After taking a few pictures, I made my way down and managed to get into a crowded bus to reach the city centre.

Dinner was at a vegetarian place called 'The Green Apple'. There were way too many Aubergine dishes for my taste. I headed back to the vicinity of my Hotel and went to an Internet cafe where I blogged for 2 hours. I still have a long way to go before I am current. I got back to the hotel around midnight, wrote my diary and went to bed.

I plan to visit Bodega La Rural at Noon tomorrow. Outside of that, the rest of the day is free.

I have been surprised to see children walk around with their parents close to midnight. Schools in Argentina have 2 sessions - one in the morning and one in the afternoon. I guess these kids out with their parents late at night may be attending the afternoon session. Or maybe, Thursdays are "come out and show yourself" days here! Who knows?


March 21, 2008 - Mendoza, Argentina
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I woke up around 7:30 AM and headed out of the hotel (after breakfast, of course) by 9:30 AM thereby giving myself plenty of time to reach Bodega La Rural. I waited a while at the Bus station. I noticed that folks were going around asking change for 2 pesos. They were not begging but asking for Change. It then hit me. My electronic bus card had less than 50 centavos left in it. Apart from 20 centavos in Change, all I have are notes which means that I cannot travel on the public bus as one needs to provide loose coins for the fare or swipe the electronic cards (with adequate money on them)!

I left the bus stop and walked to 2 or 3 kiosks to inquire if they could recharge my electronic bus card. None of them could. I gave up and walked to the bus terminus. The official recharging office was closed for GOOD FRIDAY! I was asked to head to another Kiosk that had a REDBUS sign outside it. The Kiosk's recharging machine has broken down. The Kiosk attendant told me to go to the nearest bathroom! You wonder why? Most public toilets in Argentina (and Chile) have attendants who provide you with toilet paper and hand towels if you tip them. As tipping in mostly in Centavos, there was a very good chance that the bathroom attendant would be able to give me some change in exchange for my bills.

I head to the bathroom and ask the attendant to change 10 pesos. He could not do it. I then requested change for 2 pesos. He gave me 2 1-peso coins. Excellent! I ought to be able to go to the bodega and return as the 1-way fare is $1.10 pesos and I have $2.20 pesos (in addition to the 2-pesos changed by the bathroom attendant, I had 20 centavos in my pocket).

I walk to the bus and presently get on a bus (171) headed to Maipu where the Bodega is located. While I know that I need to South East from Mendoza City, the bus appears headed North East! I decide not to fret. After a while, the bus takes a road that appears to head due South. I am beginning to think that all will be well after all. However, in order to get off at the appropriate stop close to the Bodega, I request a fellow passenger for assistance. After describing the route in general, he tells me that I ought not to worry as it would take another 25 minutes for the bus to get close to Bodega Rural. It is 11:15 AM and I am assuming that I will reach the Bodega area close to 11:45 AM, which would be in time for my 12 Noon tour. [All the conversations are in Spanish - Broken or good, mostly broken on my part!]

The bus enters MAIPU town centre and appears headed in a different direction. I approach the driver and tell him that I need to get off at Bodega Rural. He tells me that we had passed the Bodega long ago and that I need to take the bus returning to Mendoza so that I can be dropped off at the Bodega! GREAT!

I am dropped at the Bus terminus at Maipu. Pretty soon, another bus departs the terminus. I pay the driver $1.10 and he tells me that we would be at the Bodega in 15 minutes. It is 11:45 AM and it looks like I am cutting it mighty fine!

It appears that my fellow passenger (who gave me assurances and directions) must have confused Bodega La Rural with Bodega Lopez because Lopez is exactly where he told me it would be! Oh well, I wish I spoke better Spanish or better yet he had spoken excellent English or Tamil!

After 15-minutes, the driver drops me at a bus stop and tells me to ask around for the exact location of the Bodega. Based on my map, I know it must be close. A lady who runs a bike shop tells me that the bodega is 1-Kilometre away. I start walking. It appears that the driver has dropped me a stop earlier. From the bus stop closest to the Bodega, it is a 0.5 Kilometre walk to the Bodega.

I reach Bodega La Rural at 12:15 PM. The guard tells me that the next tour is at 12:30 PM. That's not too bad. I spent the time visiting the Museum that has a good collection of old cars, carts, tools etc used to harvest and transport grapes decades ago. La Rural is in operation since 1895 and they grow only Cabernet Sauvignon in the Mendoza area.

The tour finally starts at 12:45 PM. There are more than a 100-people on this tour. The guide decides to do the entire tour in Spanish, even though she is Bilingual. At the end of the 30-minute tour, we are given a single tasting of a BAD Cabernet Sauvignon. If we wanted to taste more wines, there would be an additional charge for those. Based on the horrible free sampling, I decide not to press my save and instead save my money.

I should have listed to HUGH JOHNSON (whose guidebook has served as a wine reference for me in these parts for the past 4 months) and visited some other winery. Instead I listened to the IDIOTS from the South American Handbook and here I am visiting this Zoo. People bring babies and young kids to these tours and tastings. The bored young ones annoy people by never keeping quiet. I blame the IDIOTS (any parents / guardian who brings a child to these places has to be CERTIFIED as one) rather than the Kids themselves.

I walk back to the main road. I have no change with me and I still need to take a bus to Mendoza. I walk into the tourist kiosk nearby and ask for change (for $10 pesos). Seeing my sad, pathetic look, a local fishes out a $5 peso, 2 $2 peso and the crowning glory of it all --> a 1-PESO COIN! I find 20 centavos more in the deep recesses of my pocket and am ecstatic as I now have $1.20 for a fare of $1.10.

The bus comes along in 5 minutes. To my surprise, I find that the fare is $1.40! I tell the driver that although I do have money, $1.20 is all I have in CHANGE. Fellow passengers do not have any change either. While trying to find change (or rather hoping for it) once more in my pockets, I pull out the REDBUS card. The driver spots the card and tells me that I could use a combination of CARD and CHANGE. I put the fare $1.20 in the coin slot and swipe my card as well. Hooray! I have 20 centavos (I had assumed I had 50!) on my card, giving me the fare of $1.40. I take a seat and ponder for the rest of my 30-minute ride.

Argentine buses appear to have embraced modernism (technology) without proper planning. While Electronic cards are laudable, there should be an adequate number of vending / recharging kiosks where people can purchase or recharge their cards anytime of the day by cash or credit card. In addition to accepting Change, buses should also be designed to accept notes (at least up to 10 pesos) and dispense change.

I think the bus company simply hoards the change that it collects from the Coin slots. There is a perennial shortage of coins in this country. If you are visiting Argentina, upon arriving there (any place), head to the nearest bank and obtain about US$100 worth of coins! The unused part can be exchanged on exiting the country. I have been told that many merchants pay a premium to get coins. $100 1-Peso coins can command a price of $105 pesos!

I had a vegetarian sandwich and a large Orange Juice for lunch. I blog for 2.5 hours. After blogging, I take pictures near Plaza Espana. I make an attempt at shopping for souvenirs, but I am so disinterested that I give up and head to my hotel. I take a shower and write my diary before heading out.

I finally do some Souvenir shopping and buy some Mendocinian Chocolates. I have an Ice-Cream (banana split) at a famous Ice-Cream place. It is really good. I blog for 2.5 hours again. I still have a huge backlog of 30-days to get current!

Upon reaching the hotel, I request a wake up at 6 AM. My Bus to Santiago departs at 9 AM.

Notes on Bodegas in Mendoza
======================

Ideally a tasting tour at a Bodega should comprise of 8-10 people. If the group size is anything larger, avoid the bodega altogether (however good it is reputed to be). When planning Bodega visits, visit those recommended in a good wine book. Do not visit Bodegas recommended by folks like Lonely Planet, Footprint Guides etc. They are good at ferreting out cheap places to stay and eat. Sadly their taste in wines follows the same trajectory.

Among the wineries I visited, Achaval-Ferrer stands out in its tours and tastings. Norton comes second. Familia Zuccardi had a decent tasting although its tour left a lot to be desired. The rest (Luigi Bosca and La Rural) were a waste of my time.