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It’s high time that Anuva Wines start recommending some wineries to visit in Mendoza, since this is a request we get a lot. Keep in mind that there are around 800 wineries in Mendoza in the 4 main regions of Maipú, Luján de Cuyo, Valle de Uco and San Rafael. Many large ones are very commercial, touristy and museum-like with fancy restaurants and artwork. This list here represents our favorites, in no particular order, and spans the range of quaint, small and family to large, commercial, Disneyland-for-wine type establishments.

1. Carinae Vinos. Owned by Philippe and Brigitte Subra, a lovely couple from France, this boutique winery has lovely vines, a nice little tasting room and plenty of personality. Great if you want to get to know the owners and winery personally. They also have fantastic Torrontés and a high end blend called Prestige which Michael Rolland consults on.

2. Carmello Patti. What a character. Will talk your ear off and let you taste whatever you want. Best Cabernet-Sauvignon in Argentina and widely distributed in the U.S.

3. Andeluna Cellars. Absolutely gorgeous grounds and tasting room with intricately carved tables and chairs. Great Reserve Chardonnay.

4. Salentein. Here is a museum (literally) in Mendoza with a gorgeous restaurant with a view of vines and the Andes. Their tour is also beautiful with their vast array of barrels and ins and outs.

5. Weinart. This is a non-traditional choice but I put it on here because of the history of the cellar. It is one of the only wineries in Mendoza that has oak casks (of 2500L up to 10,000L!!) that they are actually still using and experimenting with. They also have vintages of Malbec back into the 60s and 70s so if you happen to run into Peter Weinart, make him an offer and maybe he’ll let you have a bottle.

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As I wander around Mendoza, meeting with everyone under the scorching hot sun, I am pleased to announce that we came out in the press again!

Check it out: http://www.portlandmonthlymag.com/eat-and-drink/articles/0309-pour/

We began the Anuva video project with a visit to Bodegas Sin Fin and Carlos Caselles the owner. I usually beg not to have any wine poured during business meetings and the like, as I find it distracting to both the meeting and the tasting of new wine. But I could not resist, as at the same time, having the wine there for the camera also looked very good.

When he poured the Sin Fin Guarda Malbec, I took in the aroma and was immediately brought back to one of my first wine tasting experiences in Argentina with one of our sommelier consultants, Leandro Martinez. Sweet vanilla extract along with red berry aromas and a hint of baking spices jumped out at me and in the mouth, the ripe fruit lingered long and velvety.

My disappointment came when I realized that I would have to spit out the wine, since it was my first meeting of the day, and much business needed to be discussed, and footage shot.

Looks like we’re off to a great start here in Mendoza and I hope to share some great video footage of the wineries and their key players very soon.

We’ve sometimes been critical of Wine Spectator, however, they are still one of the most-respected and most-read wine publications out there. So it was with great surprise and delight that three Argentine wines cracked the Wine Spectator Top-100 list released a few weeks ago. No, they were not any that Anuva Vinos features (2009 maybe?), but they were from small wineries with limited productions. Last year, the goliath Catena Zapata was the onlly Argentine wine to make the list, and this year aside from two Mendocino wines, the top rated Argentine wine was from Salta. As this year’s theme was all about ranking value, it’s great to see that the rest of world is noticing not only what great value that Argentine wines offer, but that some of the very best wines that this country produces do not come from Norton, Chandon, or Zapata. Not to mention that not the entire country, not just Mendoza, is producing great wine…

Welcome to our blog! This part of the site is one of my favorites because we can do a deep dive into the latest and greatest things that are happening in wine, the micro-bodega (small wineries) industry and of course, the breathtaking country of Argentina. Before I get ahead of myself, I want to take a step back and give you the lowdown on how Anuva Vinos got started.

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