The Travel Chica

Live Simple. Consume Less. Experience More.

Cafayate: Wine, Wine, Wine! (part 2)

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In Part 1, I told you about my favorite bodega experiences in Cafayate.

In Part 2, I now share the rest of my favorite wines from this region and, most importantly, where I tried them.

Most of the bodegas in town that offer free or very cheap tastings will only let you taste their lowest level wines.  It is not even possible to purchase a glass of their nicer wines.  Many restaurants operate the same way, and you have to buy a whole bottle of the good wines.

Luckily, I found two great places to taste the finer wines of Cafayate.

Terruño Restaurant

Carlos’s restaurant already made it into my post about delicious food in Cafayate.  He makes it into another post by being the only restaurant that carries quite possibly every wine from Cafayate AND the only restaurant that will sell you a single glass of any of those wines.

In addition, Carlos and his staff are extremely knowledgeable and helped me select which wines to try.

They earned bonus points for bringing me goat cheese too.

This is where I tried the Coquena Malbec.

It is an impressive for a young wine that did not spend time in oak.

Santa Cepa Vinoteca


This small vinoteca carries some of the best wines from Cafayate at the best prices.  You can pick up a bottle to take home with you, or you can enjoy it there (with some goat cheese of course).  Similar to Terruño, you can purchase by the glass or by the bottle.  The owner Maria is very knowledgeable and helpful with picking out wines to try.

And it’s a cute place to hang out.

I love the tables and stools made out of wine barrels. In the evening, they turn down the lights and play good music.

 

I made a new friend who also enjoys a good glass of red wine and a new obsession with Cabras de Cafayate goat cheese.

Roxy and I have become regulars.

My Favorites

Chanté

Chanté is a vino de autor, meaning it does not come from a bodega but rather a winemaker.  This one is a spicy blend of Malbec and Syrah made by M. Carolina Cristofani, and I actually met her one day she stopped by the vinoteca.

Kind of cool to meet the person who made the wine you are drinking. 

This bottle only costs 40 pesos (US$9) too!

Next up is the Nanni Bonarda Reserva 2010.

I first discovered my love for Bonarda at a wine tasting in Buenos Aires.  I was anxious to try one from an organic finca in this region, and it did not disappoint.  Spicy and full-bodied.  It is more than double the price of the Chanté at 95 pesos (US$ 21) but worth it.

In the middle price range at 75 pesos is Gualiama Malbec.

This is from the small bodega Salvador Figueroa.

 

In addition to my relaxing stay at the wonderful Viñas de Cafayate Wine Resort and seeing gorgeous landscapes, the wines I have discovered in this part of Argentina are among my favorites.  Discovering Terruño and Santa Cepa helped round out my wine experiences perfectly.

Do you have a favorite restaurant or vinoteca for tasting quality wines?

 

 

Comments

  1. Ooh, I love goat’s cheese, that would have won me over too! love your photos. Down here in SW Australia there’s a tiny winery that I love to visit – they only have a couple of varieties of wine, but they’re great, and they also have really tasty meals to go with it – but mostly I like it because it’s a bit of a secret and nobody else is there!
    (Wines are a bit pricier than you’re getting though – Australian wines are always most expensive here and then cheaper to get overseas – ridiculous!)
    Amanda Kendle recently posted..Learning to love art galleries

  2. Yes it would be cool to meet the person who made the wine you´re drinking. Just catching up on your wine posts now – as usual, right up my street :)
    robin recently posted..El Perro

  9. Love your photos! I make it an effort to try a wine from a different country each month or so and Argentina is next on my list. And now I want that wine barrel furniture in my house!

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