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Wine history
Argentina is the largest country of Latin America. The wine story began with Jesuit monks who brought vines in the mid-16th century. Nowadays, Argentina grows a wider range of grapes than any other wine producing country in South America. This diversity reflects the backgrounds of the immigrant winegrowers who arrived from France, Spain and Italy.
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Wine regions and climate
The most important wine regions of the country are located in the province of Mendoza, San Juan (Cuyo region) and La Rioja. Salta, Catamarca and Río Negro are also wine producing regions. The Mendoza Province produces more than 60% of Argentine wine and the source of an even higher percentage of the total exports. The vast majority of Argentina's vineyard land is in the western province of Mendoza, in the foothills of the Andes.
The Mendoza region is crossed by important rivers, carrying snowmelt water from the Andes.
The areas dedicated to the wine producing regions are dry, arid with a low level of rain and humidity, determining factor as regards grape health. This permits cultivating with little or no pesticides.
Mendoza's wine region is divided into four zones: the High Zone, Mendoza East, Uco Valley, and Mendoza South.
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UCO Valley (Mauricio Lorca)
Over the last twenty years the Mendoza'Uco Valley has become the most sought-after vineyard area in Argentina. It possesses Mendoza's highest altitude vineyard, many of which were used as orchards (apple, cherry, apricot) until a vine-planting boom began in the late 1980s. Investors hope that Uco Valley will become the Napa Valley of South America. But whereas many vineyards in the Napa Valley occupy the low altitude Valley floor, vineyards in the Uco Valley lie on uneven, mountainous terrain at 3,000-4,900 ft. The vineyards grow directly beneath the Andes mountain range. All other Mendoza vineyards grow in the foothills of the Andes. Uco Valley is subdivided into the three departments, which, from north to south, are: Tupungato, Tunuyan (where is located Vistaflores) and San Carlos areas.
Uco Valley wines are characterized by their firm, crisp mouthfeel and forceful aromas; they are quite distinct from other Mendoza wines, which tend to be rounder and less aromatic.
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