The
high altitude wine region of the Calchacquíes Valleys, Salta Province is not
well known outside of Argentina. Spaswinefood introduction to high altitude wines began with an exploration of Cafayate wineries, located at an altitude more than 1,800 meters in
the southern part of Valles Calchaquíes. From Cafayate,
we continued north on Ruta 40 to Molinos where we took a 25 kilometer ripio
(gravel) road detour to visit Bodega Colomé. The upper Calchacquí Valleys where
Colomé’s vineyards are located ranges from 2,300 to 3111 meters in altitude.
This makes Colomé one of the highest wine producing regions in the world.
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| Colomé Estancia © Spaswinefood |
Bodega Colomé is one of the oldest,
continuous producing wineries in Argentina. It was founded in 1831. Today
Bodega Colomé is known for its production of organic and biodynamic
wines. Colomé was featured by James England, as one of the top five organic and biodynamic bodegas in Argentina. Even though Colomé is off the beaten path it is well worth the efforts to get there. It is an impressive estancia
consisting of a luxury boutique hotel, vineyards, the James Turrell Museum
and Bodega Colomé. Restaurant service is also available at the bodega. During our visit we ate lunch and tried some of their wines.
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| Tasting Torrontés at Bodega Colomé © Spaswinefood |
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| Bodega Colomé Tasting Room © Spaswinefood |
Based on the wines we tasted their wines are very good. This is not surprising given Colomé’s history, its beautiful
setting and reputation for producing fantastic Malbec and Torrontés wines. Their wine portfolio includes Malbec Reserva, Malbec Estate and Torrontés. Check out an interesting post by Vinography,
which describes a trip to Argentina to check out Argentine Malbec. You will also find reviews of Bodega Colomé's wines at Reverse Wine Snob, Snooth, Wineanorak and Wine Dine with Us.
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| Colomé Lunch © Spaswinefood |
If
your travels take you to Argentina take the time to visit Bodega Colomé. You need to check out this very unique winery. In fact, you might say that the wines have the perfect atitude for wines grown at this altitude! When we visited Bodega Colomé we met people who had flown to Argentina specifically to visit Colomé. Colomé does offer accommodations at their
luxury boutique hotel. The James Turrell Museum alone is well worth a visit.
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| Colomé Estancia Hotel © Spaswinefood |
The town of Molinos is another possibility for
accommodations, as are other towns in Salta Province. For
those on the adventurist side the countryside in this area is absolutely
stunning. After visiting Bodega Colomé we camped in the beautiful
desert, not far from Bodega Colomé. At camp we enjoyed some of our high altitude Salta
Province wine purchases.
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| Desert near Colomé © Spaswinefood |
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| Camping in the desert near Colomé © Spaswinefood |
Colomé is a must visit for a wine
enthusiast, or an adventurer interested in exploring the uniqueness of
Argentina’s northwestern landscape. If a visit is not possible then you must check out
Colomé wines.
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| Colomé Torrontés 2011 © Spaswinefood |
Later in our Argentine travels when we visited Buenos Aires, we were able to buy Colomé’s wines there. I have discovered that Colomé wines are also available in the US at wine shops and from online sources, such as Wine-Searcher. I have Colomé wines on my watch list given that they continue to experiment with high altitude wines. Recent reports I have read describe experiments with growing Pinot Noir at high altitude. I invite you to join me in my travels in Argentina and elsewhere in search of the best in Spaswinefood.
Sharon
September 2012
© Spaswinefood
I especially liked the camping.
ReplyDeleteThey have some amazing wines!!
ReplyDelete