Sometimes it comes together like magic

Arriving at Urban Restaurant

Valle de Uco is regarded as the premium area for wine growing in Mendoza. It is closer to the Andes and at a higher altitude which means slightly cooler days (still hot by NZ standards) and much cooler nights which slows the ripening process giving better flavours.

The table setting

It is around 80 kilometres from Mendoza with the first part of the road being a divided motorway. Then the rest of route (called RN40) was single lane with the surface of the road rather cut up. On the advice of our AirBnB host, we decided to go for lunch to a place called O Fournier. It is at the far southern end of the Valle de Uco. A combination of the GPS and Google Maps got us to the right place. The winery was a piece of stunning architecture. When we arrived there was a security man at the gate who asked if we had a reservation. Of course we did not. I then spoke to a man whose English was not good on the phone but I got the idea that it was ok and we slowly drove up to the winery.

As we walked toward the restaurant which was sort of signposted a man came to greet us, introduced himself and led us the rest of the way to a rather stunning restaurant. It was fine dining - not quite what we expected. There was no price for the food but since we had eaten extremely simply since we had arrived in Mendoza it was an opportunity to have a splurge. The setting was spectacular. There was only one couple there when we arrived and we thought that there couldn’t be too many other people coming since it was around 1:30pm. It turned out not to be the case. We were even seated so that we could look at the view of the lake and the Andes. As other groups and couples came in it became apparent that we had just been early and very lucky to get a table.

Needless to say, the food was exquisite and it came with four wines to taste. We took two different flights of wine so that we could taste their best and the lesser ones.

Empanadas

We had a sauvignon blanc (the more expensive one was very good and the less expensive one reflected it). It was nothing like a Marlborough one - more like something between a Bordeaux and Loire wine. There were a couple of Malbecs in the tasting and a couple of blends. All were superb. The Malbec’s were much better than anything I had had in New Zealand – rich, savoury, complex with a hint of fruit. The blends which had Malbec, Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvignon and something else were subtle, great length and hugely complex. A wine taster’s delight.

A couple with the best seats

As I said, the food was the best we had had in Argentina and in either France or New Zealand you would have paid 3-4 times the price for it. The menu is in the blog.

It was hard to tear ourselves away from the meal and the setting but we wanted to visit one more place.

In front of the artificial lake

Zuccardi had been recommended and we followed the GPS and got there down a rather rough gravel road. Again there was a spectacularly designed building. We went up to the door but it was locked. I said to B that it was probably closed or finished for the day. However, she kept trying to open the door and next thing a lovely man invites us in and offers us a sparkling wine or a coffee. As I was driving I opted for the coffee but B grinned and said without hesitation “the bubbles please”. We sat outside looking at the Andes and the now autumn colours of the vines. It was very very pretty.

When we went to pay before buying a bottle of their very expensive wine, (some were around $NZ100 to $NZ200) he said the wine and coffee were complimentary. The best marketing ploy ever. Who could not buy a bottle or more of wine?

The backdrop to the vines

The sun was going down as we got back to the apartment having to negotiate the rush hour traffic. We had eaten enough for lunch not to need to get anything more. It was a magical day and one of the highlights of this trip.

open the door and next thing a lovely man invites us in and offers us a sparkling wine or a coffee. As I was driving I opted for the coffee but B grinned and said without hesitation “the bubbles please”. We sat outside looking at the Andes and the now autumn colours of the vines. It was very very pretty.