Last night we went along to the Hyatt wine awards, the annual medal dish-out here in Mendoza – well to be accurate, the actual gala-dinner awards ceremony thing is tonight, but for the last two nights there was a sort of mini consumer wine-fair with stalls from some of the wineries who had entered.

It was a fun evening, and a bargain at the price – just AR$25 (about 4 quid) to try wines from about twenty of the regions bodegas. After my fortnight of bodega-hopping, there were quite a few faces that I recognised too – and it was when chatting to Estefania from Finca Sophenia that she asked what my favourites have been in the last few weeks – and it got me thinking… So here is a hastily put together list of favourite bits from my month in Mendoza:

• Best Architecture: O.Fournier – Well it had to be really! With its UFO-like roof floating over the winery, itself sitting in the lunar-landscape of recently winter pruned bushvines.

A frosty sunrise at O.Fournier

• Best Lunch: Norton – this was a hard one, with spectaular meals being a feature of my time here in Mendoza. Thanks to the recommendation from Joe Fattorini – I feel I have perhaps rather undeservedly received some pretty special attention, and Norton, who don’t actually have a restaurant as such, hosted John and I in the garden of the old Norton family house. Five courses, three silver service waiting staff and a chef – just for us. Probably the finest lunch of my life. I feel like a fraud, I am going to have to buy a lot of bottles to make up for that one!

Lunch at Norton

• Best Advice: Stephanie Morton-Small (Commercial Director at Finca Decero) – It was while talking to Stephanie and John that I decided to keep with the travelling, and stay in California for the Harvest on my way to New Zealand – and her enthusiuastic comments such as “You can’t go back to Cardiff and get a temping job! You’ll die of boredom!” that made me see the light and get myself out to Napa for some Autumn sun…
• Best … Ok so I tried to put more here – but there have been so many ‘bests’ in Mendoza! and rather than make this too long, I’ll write about each of them seperately (eventually) Thanks to everyone who has helped me, fed me, watered me, and made me feel so welcome here!

I hope this whets your appetite to hear more about my time in Mendoza – I leave in the morning to start winding my way home to the UK, where I plan to knuckle down to some serious writing before I fly to California in September…