Wine, Food and Song in Mendoza

Bus Trip to Mendoza
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The ride to Mendoza across the Andes would be nearly seven hours and the zig-zag up from the Chilean side was both a little frightening and a sight to behold. Once on the Argentine side, we cruised alongside the lovely Rio Mendoza. We pulled into the bus terminal around 2:30 and called Gustavo, the owner of the apartment we had rented, for a lift.

I don't want to rehash or bore you with the details of our initial disappointments and struggles during the first couple of days, but a summary seems in order. Upon arrival to the lovely apartment, it was discovered that none of the amenities that led us to splurge on this place were working - wifi, rooftop pool and satellite tv which is the least important, but still something that was promoted in the vrbo listing. We found an ice cream shop/cafe with wifi just a block away and used that for our internet fix and to communicate with Gustavo about the progress. By Monday at 5pm, no one had turned up to fix either the wifi or the satellite tv and the pool was still covered in the giant black tarp. We had not paid the rental balance and had no intention of doing so until things were working, so I sent an ultimatum email stating that we would find another place to stay that night if things were not addressed. That night around 7pm the wifi was working and the satellite would be serviced the next day. The pool area had been cleaned up and they had begun to fill it (although that process wouldn't be complete until our last day in Mendoza). Why do people make it so difficult? Happy at last...

Beyond
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That Saturday after arriving and getting a bit settled, we set off towards el centro to find a bite to eat. What we actually found was that Mendoza is the city least amenable to late afternoon diners. A vast majority of restaurants close completely during the 4-7pm range and reopen for dinner some time after that. Many of the places that remain open during that time close down the kitchen and just serve drinks. We finally grabbed a sidewalk table at a spot where there were three or four others occupied and proceeded to be somewhat hurried by the waiter to order and pick out a bottle of wine. To keep it simple we ordered pasta, but it took a while to pour over the extensive wine list and we eventually chose a Santa Julia Tempranillo which turned out to be quite nice. Afterwards we strolled back by the Carrefour for a few groceries and through the mercado artesan across the street to ponder more gifts and souvenirs. Have I mentioned that at this point because it would have been outrageously expensive to ship things back from Argentina, we had bought another bag to cart around all of our things? Fortunately, we were able to leave it in Buenos Aires since we were able to come back to the same apartment for our twelve hour layover between Mendoza and Caracas. It may become an issue on the smaller island hoppers we take to Grenada and the USVI. Blood, sweat and tears to bring gifts of love to our family & friends, yo! :)

Mural in Post Office
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On Sunday evening, after a day of wandering around the town, I was flipping through a local publication of happenings in Mendoza when a flash of recognition came across my mind - Bajofondo. The name was familiar and it took me a minute to remember why: at a wonderful little restaurant in Santiago, Mylodon, we asked what cd they were playing because we were really enjoying it. Bajofondo. I scanned down the page to the show information - 9pm at the Auditorio Angelo Bustelo, Tonight! So we made the impromptu decision to go, hastily changed and gathered our things as it was nearing 8:40pm. We hurried down to the ice cream shop to ask where it was located and if we could walk. It seemed a taxi was in order, so we scurried down to the next intersection and hopped in a cab. Ten minutes later we were let out in front of a very packed auditorium. I found someone to ask about buying tickets and we ran downstairs to see what was still available: two tickets, sixth row, only 20 pesos more than the others? Yes, please, here is my Visa. Como? Ah, yes, of course you only take pesos on the day of the show. Donde esta uno cajero automatico cerca aqui? We scoot off towards the governor's mansion across the street for an atm. Cash in hand, we bought the tickets, hurried upstairs and were taken to our seats. Todd had the recording gear setup just as the lights dimmed and a lone violinist took the stage. What a great performance! Bajofondo is a part of the electronic tango movement and are gifted musicians with a high energy that infected the crowd. Download the recording at: http://www.4shared.com/file/72071478/80af9719/bajofondo_-_tracks_01-09.html.

Kickin' it Patio Style!
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For breakfast each day, we had french toast egg-in-a-hole with locally made jam, coffee and juice. This was typically consumed between 10-11am, thus our late afternoon dining habits. Monday, we ventures out for a long walk through a huge city park and green space, stopping for a beer and a kitty interlude at a little place in the park. Towards the end were some lovely gardens with thick, ancient trumpet and wisteria vines, an array of sculptures and a troupe of ballerinas? Surreal.

As we strolled back through town, we kept an eye open for a place for dinner that night. Todd was keen on a small place called La Barra, so after showering and changing we made our way the few blocks back. La Barra is the real deal. We were seated in the small courtyard out back which was trellised in grape vines and designed with the open fire-pit/grill as the centerpiece. The owner tended the fires, selected, prepared and cooked all of the carne which included lamb, beef and pork. We opted por compartir (to share) an ensalada mixta, grilled provolone with olive oil and herbs and the brochette de cordero (lamb kebab). Everything was perfectly fresh, well-prepared, delicious and paired well with a local Syrah. The restaurant is open at the discretion of the owner and usually for only two to three hours a night, so we felt fortunate to have discovered it. Back at the apartment, Todd headed up to the roof with a glass of port and met three men that lived in the building who had been grilling and feasting in consolation of one of the three's impending divorce. They shared their marinated pork remains with Todd and he shared the bottle of port. I am imagining they waxed philosophical on wine, women and song. :) Adrian worked in the wine industry and spoke English, but his two friends spoke only a little, so Todd was able to practice and learn more Spanish and in turn teach a bit of English. Needless to say, we slept in the next day and slept off the pains of indulging in too much of the fruit of the divine vine.

Plaza Chile
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On Thursday, we took a taxi to the airport to rent a car for our final two days in Mendoza. After negotiating one of the last available from all three companies, we set off towards Cacheuta and the thermal springs. It was a tiny area essentially at the end of the road before the Potrerillos Lake. We shared an Andes and some empanadas at the shop/cafe/home of a local near the hot springs. The park has pools of varying size and degree of heat as well as a nice cool natural pool complete with wave machine. It was crowded with the spoils of several tour groups. We chatted up three Australian cuties (to Todd's delight) in one of the warmer baths and then headed back to cool off. As the sun began to sink behind the mountains, we opted for a quick soak in a jacuzzi sized thermal, changed and hit the road as we wanted to make it to El Salto and the Jerome Microbrewery before nightfall.

Todd Sees a Man about a Ladder
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With the combination of rain and difficult to decipher maps, it took us a bit longer to get there than anticipated. We were hoping to be able to eat there as Jerome has a small brewpub on sight, but were informed upon arrival that the restaurant was only open on weekends. The owner and brewmaster was very generous and gave us a tour of the small facility. He was, of course, impressed with Todd's knowledge and we hung around afterwards to taste a couple of brews. Being that were ravenous and a good hour drive from Mendoza, we asked if there was anywhere nearby to get a bite. The brewmaster called a friend that had a small place in El Salto built onto their home to see if we could stop by. No problem. We chatted a bit more, finished our beers, tried a shot of a distillation that he was playing with (yowza!) and made our way to Tomillo for a quick dinner. Our hosts were genuine and kind, staying open just to feed a couple of late night tourists. We had a lovely small vineyard Malbec, the best homemade spinach pasta with olive oil, garlic and parmesan and some very fresh chivito (young goat). In our wine and food afterglow, we thanked our hosts for their generosity and made our way back to the city.

Endless Trees
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For Friday, I had arranged a tour at a medium-sized bodega, Ruca Malen. We had an English speaking guide who reminded me a little of Suzanne with her cute hair and glasses, obvious intelligence and subtle wit. The group of six included two older couples, one British and the other Dutch. The tour was informative and the facility elegantly simple. For the tasting, we had a crisp, clean Chardonnay, a young Malbec, an '06 Petit Verdot which will be incredible in a couple of years and an '02 Cabernet Sauvignon that was divine.

Fountain I
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We had a late meal at Anna Bistro that night and walked the couple of blocks back to the apartment to pack up once again for our two whirlwind layover nights in Buenos Aires and Caracas.