Wine tasting on bikes--what a novel concept! The town of Mendoza is outfitted perfectly for this activity. Timmy and I rented bikes for the day from Mr. Hugo's Bike Shop. It's 50 Argentine pesos for the day, which gets you a map of the wine route and the use of a rickety old bike.
The late start had us determined to see as many vineyards and do as many tastings as time would allow. We stopped at a food and liquor tasting first, then it was on to the vineyards. We toured a working vineyard and got to see some of the inner workings of the wine making process. Then we sampled many glasses of good Argentine wine. I lost count as the distinctions of each place seemed to blur together past the bucolic scenery.
The police in Mendoza are very tourist friendly. Since wine tasting on bikes is such a common activity, they patrol the area looking for wine tasters that have had a few glasses too many, and offer rides to the riders and their bicycles. When Timmy and I had trouble finding one of the vineyards, a police officer on a motorcycle offered his help. He ended up giving us a police escort--leading the way on his motorcycle in slow speed so that our bikes could follow--right up to the front doors of the wine tasting room!
At our second to last stop we met Wally, a crazy, fun-loving Canadian from the Yukon. It was clear Wally came to Mendoza with two goals: to get a tan and to get as drunk as possible while still retaining the ability to ride a bike. Wally turned everything into a big party. We joined him and the two girls from New Zealand, shared a bottle or two at the next stop, and marveled at the view of the sun-drenched vineyards from the patio.
Wanting to savor the moment, we lingered a little too long at the last place, and had to race back to return our bikes to Mr. Hugo's on time. When we got there, Mr. Hugo was throwing a party of his own for all the people who had rented bikes from him. We sat in his yard, talking, laughing, and drinking some cheap table wine supplied by Mr. Hugo who made everyone feel like family.
Wanting to savor the moment, we lingered a little too long at the last place, and had to race back to return our bikes to Mr. Hugo's on time. When we got there, Mr. Hugo was throwing a party of his own for all the people who had rented bikes from him. We sat in his yard, talking, laughing, and drinking some cheap table wine supplied by Mr. Hugo who made everyone feel like family.
No comments:
Post a Comment