Winemaking as a Family Business

07.02.08-Today’s tastings gave us a new window into the lifestyle of the family winery. What was particularly interesting was the legacy aspect of the wineries, in that either the owner came into the winery through inheritance or they are part of a family that expanded into winemaking.

Without going through the intricacies of all three of our tastings, it is interesting to note that they all came from this tradition. Within the U.S. when one says family winery generally it is a matter of a generation or two that has been involved in the project, with the hopes of passing it on.

What one can witness in Argentina, however, is that this process is a couple of generations further, within an environment of economic classism. One particular winery was being run by third generation wine owners, and was being supported by third generation employees. At one time they had the grandfather, father, and son, working at the same time at the winery.

I always really enjoy interacting and learning from these people, since they have such an interesting life story to tell. In addition, I love learning more about the people who are making things work from the ground up, for they too have a dynamic and interesting story to tell.

Before I forget (we did a tasting of our malbec and cabernet sauvignon wines tonight, so things are a little cloudy!), we had a fantastic dinner with Daniel from Los Domados winery last night. We were picked up at about 9:00pm and drove (with a few missteps) to a restaurant that sells their wine. It was a very modern and hip place, and I, the newfound carnivore, ordered rabbit, while Ashley, the other carnivore, ordered chicken. We tasted their collection over appetizers and dinner, and, I have to say, it was absolutely delicious and one of the best lines we have tried. Their devotion to quality is such that their production is extremely limited but I am hoping that we can get our hands on a few bottles to bring into the U.S. You can definitely taste the land in their wines – their rocky vineyards are so stressful that the vines produce wine that is intense, concentrated, and with a eucalyptus note that is rarely found elsewhere.

In addition to Daniel, joining us were the business manager and a friend of Daniel’s. They were both amazing people with amazing life stories, and we ended up chatting until one in the morning, despite needing to be up by 7am!

Our Argentinean-Italian Tango-Dancing Winemaker

07.01.08 - Today we went to the Uco Valley, a winegrowing region that looks like Eastern Washington, but in dramatic contrast the soaring snow-topped Andes Mountains are off in the distance. First thing in the morning the air is so crisp and clear and the mountains sparkle. How rejuvenating!

One winery in particular was by far the most interesting experience of the day. Our host was Daniel, one of three brothers running the bodega. We first visited their vineyards which were planted by his Italian grandfather in the 1920s. In the shadow of the Andes, we arrived as workers pruned the vines, twisting them back to follow their prescribed positions.

The winery was about an hour drive from the vineyards, and during that time we learned a bit more about our extraordinary host. Although a second generation Argentine, he holds an Italian passport. He splits his time between Italy, France, and Argentina. He met his French girlfriend while living in Beijing where he lived for three years teaching tango at the National Academy. The most interesting winemaker we’ve met yet! We tasted his wines that night over dinner, and they were fabulous.

If everything goes smoothly, we may have found our first winery. Exciting!

First Day at Work and Drinking at 9:00am

06.30.08-We just finished our first day of tasting, and who would have thought that it would be so tiring! Perhaps it was because we had our first taste of wine at 10:00am and our last at 5:00pm ! Like they say, good work if you can get it.

We were picked up by a representative from the first winery, and whisked around before heading to the tasting room. With the winemaker opening the bottles we went through about fifteen different wines, including an unfiltered cabernet that was harvested just four months ago and had been pulled straight from the barrel.

Our second winery picked us up from the first and after tasting their delicious, terroir influenced, offerings, we were treated to a lunch of barbeque pork and steak to accompany their 2006 reserve malbec. They are the brainchild of a Mendoza based family that is very active in the community and make terrific wines. What was cool about the winery was that it used to be a mosaic tile factory so the entire place I mosaiced in brilliant colors. Wonderful!

The third winery is a family operation where we were hosted by the grandson of the founder. He is one of about ten members of his family who work at the winery, and who spends weekends there playing soccer and drinking wine while it is closed to the public. In addition to tasting their organic, unfiltered wines, we were able to meet our host’s father, brother, and sister, all while having a quiet taste. One thing that really stuck out was that all of their labels are applied by hand by a couple of ladies sitting in the bottling room. I know that this is a small boutique winery, but what a lot of work!

All in all, this was a fantastic introduction to the bodegas (Spanish for wineries), that we could be partnering with, and I can’t wait to see what the week will bring.

Mendoza: You Can Have Your Steak and Drink Wine Too

6.29.08 -- I’m finally here with Ashley in what is the wine Mecca in Argentina: Mendoza. Known as the Napa Valley of Argentina, this is where we will find what we came here for – a new wine to introduce to the American market. A desert at the foot of the Andes, the Mendoza region’s over 500 wineries are watered by canal systems that collect and channel snow run-off from the mountains just in the distance. Without this liquid gold, Mendoza would be a wasteland. But with it, it's the perfect location to grow grapes: ideal soil conditions, lots of sunlight, extreme temperature swings during the night and day, and essentially no air pollution. Beautiful.

Yesterday was spent traveling from Buenos Aires to Mendoza. Due to a flight delay I meet Ashley at the Mendoza airport to travel to the center together. What a joy to see her! Those few days seemed like months!

We took a taxi to town and headed out quickly in search of dinner. After a couple taxi rides and a bottle of wine (why not, right?), we found a fantastic steakhouse. We arrived at 10:30pm and told the waiter, Andrelito, about our business and how excited we were to be there. After making a wine recommendation, he told us he would take care of us. The steak we received was definitely not the one we ordered. We split a 16 oz steak that took about 45 minutes to arrive. We were told the wait was to smoked it rather than cooked it over a flame. It was the best steak I’d ever had, thick and incredibly juicy. Oh my god, it was delicious. The wine we had was a 60% Malbec/40% Bonarda blend that was rich enough to hold up to the dinner yet fruity enough to stand on its own. What a meal.

Incidentally, we left at about 12:30am, and people were still coming in for dinner!

Tastings:

Michel Rivier 60% Malbec/40% Bonarda: Fruity like a malbec but the bonarda gave it some oomph. Perfect with red meat.

Michel Rivier Malbec Rose: Light and refreshing like a traditional rose but the mablec gives it a fantastic fruitiness. Great for a warm day.

Siete Fincas Malbec, Syrah, and Cabernet Sauvignon: All three offerings were in top form, with the cabernet being a favorite. Well worth the price.

In Argentina Even Vegetarians Eat Steak

6/27/2008 Well I went for it – I had a steak! For a vegetarian it took mental power, but I did it. Last night at about 7:30pm I ducked into a small café to order pasta, and I ran into folks from the hostel who were there watching a soccer game. Not wanting to admit that I eat dinner at such an early hour (even on weeknights Argentineans eat at 10:00pm) I ordered a beer and commenced to chat.

We were all hungry but waited until 8:30pm before going to a restaurant, lest we be considered tourists (gasp!). Even at 8:45pm we were the second group to arrive, and it only started filling up at 9:30pm. I split a “lomo” steak with a new friend. The waiter suggested a side of thalamus glands, but normal cow meat is enough for any vegetarian.

Needless to say the steak was delicious and smoky. It was “melt in your mouth” tender with a slight crispness to the edges. Like a vitamin B shot, the protein surged through my veins as I tore through everything in front of me like a proper carnivore. I even had room for a little bit of chocolate almond ice cream!

The remainder of the evening was spent on the roof of the hostel polishing off the half empty wine bottles that I had accumulated. I was joined by my new friends, including a young Argentinean who left his post at the front desk to drink. He taught us Porteno slang. Porteno is the name for people from Buenos Aires (which has something to do with the Buenos Aires being a port city). Through his teachings its become apparent why the accent is difficult to understand. In particular, portenos leaving off the last word in common expressions. For example, instead of saying, “como te va?” for “how’s it going?”, they say “como va?”. This brevity is a time saver in conversation, however it makes thing challenging for us tourists. Also, their pronunciation is different from the Mexican Spanish I was taught in high school. Instead of “yo” like “yoyo”, portenos say “jo,” with a soft j. Mama Mia!

I get to see Ashley tomorrow, I can’t wait!

Shot Gun Beers and $72 Wines

6/25/08 - I’ve just arrived in Buenos Aires for my three week wine and beer scouting mission. I’ve only driven from the airport to my hostel, but I’m amazed at how European it looks and feels. It is the Vespas of Italy, the language of Spain and the architecture of Brussels. Everything is slightly crumbly and it feels like people are working to keep it together. Though not frantically. People are dressed impeccably.

Starting this business is the most liberating thing that I’ve done. I’m free to succeed or fail. I can choose how I want to dress and present myself to others. The only people that I have to answer to are Ashley and myself. By far we are the toughest bosses that I’ve ever had, but that’s only because we together have everything to gain or everything to lose through this!

I quickly dive into my research:

-I go to two different grocery stores that specialize in bottles less than AR$30 (about $10US). There is a lot that I’ve never ever seen before. How are we going to narrow down our choices?!?

-I then go to Lo de Joaquin Alberdi, a wine shop near Plaza Serana. The wine steward shows me very high end items, AR$215. Yikes! I ask about the best value and he pointed out a few in the under AR$25 range. He said that AR$25 is the minimum that he'll go for. I think I may be in the wrong wine shop for our target market.

-I taste my first Argentinean beer, Quilmes. It is a light lager, with slightly more body than Budweiser. Not worth pursuing – except to shot gun later.

All I know is that Ashley will love it here.

Finding the Artisan in Duty Free

6/28/08 -- I’m stuck in Santiago, Chile’s international airport for a 9-hour layover with all the other cheap riff-raff because I’m too stingy to pay the $135.00 visa fee to enter the country. To fill my time I stretch out to take a nap. But I’m promptly crowded out by a chatty family glaring at me for taking up two seats. I then walk around Duty Free stunned that people still buy Toblerone bars and Clinique face wash. Where is product diversity? Granted, airports aren’t the world’s source of creative expression, but even in Chile I can’t escape the same old Duty Free junk.

Somewhat frustrated and bored, I obviously, given my new profession, wandered into a Chilean wine shop. Here I must find something original. Some grape varietal I’ve never heard of, a unique label or at the very least reasonable prices.

As I enter my frustration increases. It is the same damn wine culture as everywhere else. Bunches of plastic grapes hanging on a stenciled wall. Fake oak barrels stacked with pewter embellished decanters. A mosaic floor with chubby angels pouring wine into the mouth of a naked woman. Uuughh! Did I come all this way to find wine culture to be the same? Why don’t I just sell Tommy Girl and be done with it?

While others may turn around and walk out, I keep looking because what the heck else am I going to do for 9 hours? Plus my personal love of wine “the beverage” compels me to look deeper and read the labels: Valdvieso, Odfiel, Santa Helena, Carmeriere. Finally, something different! As I begin to chat with the shockingly good-looking young employee about Chilean wine, I’m excited by these wines’ stories buried deep in this boring shop. And then it struck me – by starting this journey of importation am I representing perhaps one of the last industries where the small guy really can participate? Can you find variation and artisanship behind the Clinic-style marketing? Folks are frustrated with wine because there is just “too much to choose from,” but with the consolidation of products, isn’t that a good thing? Shouldn’t we be relieved to see a big business that may continue to offer artisan work?