As pairings: frog legs, Provençal-style scallops, seafood quiche or a good roast chicken.
Let's talk little, let's talk wine
The Bousquet family hails from the town of Carcassonne in the south of France and has 4 generations of history in the winemaking tradition. A vacation to Argentina in 1990 was enough. For Jean Bousquet, third generation winemaker, it was love at first sight. The Frenchman's object of desire: the Gualtallary Valley, a picturesque, isolated and arid terrain located in the Uco Valley within Mendoza, Argentina. Here, where condors fly and not a vineyard in sight, Jean discovered his dream terroir, an ideal place to cultivate wines from organic farming.
The vines grow in the Uco Valley, in the foothills of the Andes. The grapes, grown organically, benefit from significant temperature differences between day and night, which allows them to reach good maturity while retaining natural acidity. The wines are vinified with sensitivity without aging in oak barrels to let the fruit express itself. This wine reveals intense notes of citrus , peach , pear , melon , white flowers and tropical fruits . The palate is aromatic, fresh and salivating.
Where are we traveling?
Mendoza
In the central-western part of Argentina, at the foot of the Andes, Mendoza concentrates 75% of all the vineyards in Argentina and the largest number of wineries in the country. This makes it the most important wine-growing province and one of the main production centers in the world. Mendoza has been cultivating vines since 1598 and this culture took on its full scope after the arrival of the railway in 1885.
The Andes record their highest peaks in Mendoza: with 6,959 meters, Aconcagua is the highest peak in America. The presence of the Andes, which acts as a barrier to the humid winds of the Pacific, added to the distance of the Atlantic Ocean, models the climate generating ideal conditions for the cultivation of the vine. The altitude, the continental climate, the heterogeneity of the soils and the water of the thaw are key factors for the production of excellent quality wines, which are added to a marked winemaking tradition.
The little history of the country
Argentina
Although Argentina is considered the "new world", its wine tradition is much older than one might think, dating back to the time of Spanish colonization, in the 16th century and then by Italian settlers. Unlike Chile, wine has long been part of the country's culture.
Over the past 20 years, the country's wine producers have increased quality levels and managed to consolidate an international export market. No wine-producing country in the world has made more progress in the last years of the 20th century (on the viticultural and oenological level, if not necessarily financially). Argentina has now become the fifth largest wine producing country in the world, after France, Italy, Spain and the United States.
Argentina is one of the most important wine-producing countries in the New World, and the largest wine producer in South America. The high-altitude deserts of the eastern Andes have given rise to a high-quality wine industry, and the terroir here is well suited to Argentina's adopted grape variety, the ubiquitous Malbec. Originally from Bordeaux, he is today responsible for some of the most famous Argentinian wines, which are characterized by their brightness and intensity, with floral notes and dark fruit flavors. Other red varieties produced in Argentina are Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Bonarda, Syrah, Tempranillo and Pinot Noir. Among white wines, the emblematic grape variety of the Argentine wine region is Torrontés, which gives a wine with a floral and tropical taste. The country also produces Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Grigio.
Today, Argentinian wines are recognized throughout the world for their full-bodied reds and as high quality wines.