Jugo de Torrontes

In Chilecito, after that goat dinner and a recoop in the Automobile Club de Argentina (a hotel that I am convinced used to be either a school or a hospital), we visited the Riojana wine cooperative in town. During our tour we witnessed the massive dumping of Merlot grapes directly from a large truck into a large de-stemmer, as 2 guys stood in the truck with the grapes, pushing them into the machine with large pitchforks. It was quite a sight, and it may make you think twice about buying wine that comes in a jug or box...

There we tasted some interesting bubbly made from Torrontes - one dry, simple style and one more sweet one that better expressed the grape. But what we enjoyed most was a fresh, pure juice made from the Torrontes grape. Like peaches and honey with a flowery aroma, it tasted just like some Torrontes grapes we had sampled at a vineyard in Mendoza. Peter got 3 cartons of the juice and bought me this hat, which came in handy during the roadtrips that followed in the blazing sun of 40+ degree-celsius temperatures (that's over 100 degrees fahrenheit, every day!).

Goats do roam

Peter and I arrived in Chilecito last night, a city in the La Rioja region of Argentina, north of Mendoza and south of Salta. We got in just in time for dinner, and goats were on the menu. A specialty in this country, I had gotten my first taste in La Consulta and liked it. So we ordered a bottle of Torrontes and goat prepared 2 ways - 1 grilled and 1 stewed in Torrontes.

First - the wine: this Santa Florentina Torrontes from La Rioja was a tough one. Different from the ones we've had so far, it changed every time we tried it and had marked acidity. At first we likened it to a Pinot Grigio, but then those orangey notes started showing up in the form of a creamsicle. The acidity was more pronounced than in the other Torrontes we've had so far, but it seemed out of balance and/or artificial. Very interesting.

Now for the goats: the grilled goat was goatier than we would have liked. Peter suspects it was an older goat. The goat stewed in Torrontes was more tasty and delicious. However, the actual Torrontes couldn't hold up to its goaty cooked self. After a bit of stew the wine tasted like orange juice... from concentrate. Not good. It was more enjoyable before we started eating. Oh well - the whole thing was an experience I'm still laughing about.