Wine Review: Landfall Traveling to South America.
There are two ways to get from Santiago in Chile to Mendoza in Argentina which are separated by about 120 miles. One is to drive through [and up and around] the Andes mountains while the other is to fly. We wanted a unique experience so we chose the former option. Summer in this part of the world meant we were driving up and down through a mostly dry, barren, rugged red rock desert with some spectacular snow-capped peaks off in the distance. Guidebooks say the drive should take between 5 and 6 hours depending on traffic [particularly at the many switchbacks] and the problematic border crossing.
Accompanied by our guide Marcelo and a driver we left Santiago around eleven in the morning with a planned stop at Errazuriz Winery in Chile’s Aconcagua Valley for lunch. Errazuriz was founded in 1870 and the fifth generation of the same family is now in charge. The scenery [we were sitting outside] was breathtaking, the food and wine were first-rate. My idea of heaven.