Foley and Fitzgerald

Speaking of new travel friends. There are so many great people out here traveling and every once in awhile you really hit it off with someone that you know you will see again. We met this great couple from NYC and it was just serendipitous. We traded travel secrets, had a long breakfast together and I feel like I made friends for life. He is a wine writer and she is a novelist. I wish they could edit my work!!

We had lunch while touring the wineries at Frances Mallman's place at Escorihuela Gaston Winery. Beautiful colonial old building with a pleasant outdoor walled garden and tile floors. The food and service were outstanding...we rated it an 8. And we are tough foodies to please.

The only way to get around this busy big town is by hiring a driver.
Don't drive and be careful crossing the street. We had a driver for the entire day and it costs 50$. Worth every cent because the wineries are spread over several growing areas and there is lots to see. We only touched on a few wineries. The first was San Felipe.
They have a tour in English, a wine museum that was very interesting,
and they are making some very good highend products, including a label called Rutini.

The next winery was Escorihuela where we had lunch, and then we headed East to Familia Zuccardi. This winery is amazing. It is owned by a local family that used to work the fields. We had a personal tour by Diego Marcos Salguero. What a great guy. They are in the process of turning the entire winery organic. I was so impressed with their facility. They have this beatiful architecture taking colonial ideas in a modern building using cement blocks, glass, tile and fine wood. They've built a restaurant in the vineyard where they serve lunch. Below the building are caves and a private tasting room. They are growing grapes as well as importing from other regions and countries and exporting all over the World.

Back to Mendoza. Things to do here. It is a town of trees and plazas. Each one has a fountain shaded benches and and a large variety of trees that are marked with their name. They have all kinds of popular trees that produce lots of shade for this warm summer climate. They have very little rain here and all the watering is done with a canal system that runs along the edge of the streets. There are shops and cafes serving typical food at reasonable prices. There are museums and historical buildings showing a past of the explorer San Martin. There are internet cafes everywhere with high speed access.

I like to watch the people. They hit the streets around 9am, working from 10 till 12:30, and then everything closes for siesta. They reopen at 4pm and stay open into the night. The evening meal starts at 10pm.

We went to a place called LA SAL, with a very hip goodlooking rising Chef. We were the only ones there until almost 11pm. By the time we left at 12 midnight the place was filling up. They had live tango music. What I loved about the place was that it was so unique. The style would never pass code in the states, with two floors overlooking a central floor area, ...possibly dancing later?

The Argentine people are friendly and very beautiful. They try to speak English but I always attempt my Spanish on them. It helps to speak some Spanish. Between Phillip and I we have a good intermediate knowledge and get by. It comes in handy.

Anyone in the wine business needs to come and see this area. It has just begun, even though they have been making wine for a long time.
They are on the move and will have more and more exposure into our markets. They make exceptional wines with great value. ...