Desert, Wine and Stomach Bugs

I traveled by bus from Salta to Cafeyette in an effort to wine taste in the northern most part of Argentina's Napa Valley. The bus ride held spectacular views throughout the 4 hour journey, through the Quebrada de Cafeyette aka possibly the Sedona Arizona of Argentina.

So the last photo above was taken by my friend from the bus. Amazing no? Anyway after four hours of bus journey-ing through the desert we began to arrive at an oasis.........of vineyards!

The abrupt change in scenary was surprising and my spirits soared after months in Brasil without drinking hardly a drop of wine. (sidenote: Brasil is not known for its wine. Remember that. Do not be so foolish as to order a glass of wine while in Brazil during dinner. It will not be delicious.)

After my self-imposed hiatus from drinking wine, the beautiful vineyards and wine tasting rooms of Cafeyette were the charming and welcoming relief my palette desired.

We even found a few bodegas, or wineries that had some strange architecture. But nevertheless, the local grape, torrones, and cabernet-malbec were indeed delicious. If you have never tried a Torrontes from the Salta/Cafeyette region of Argentina I would recommend it. Also if you can find a Torrontes by the Munoz Familia Vineyard you should do two things: First drink it. No matter what the price (although it should be reasonable). and Second: Call me immediately and tell me where I can get some.

Cafeyette was such an amazing little town, it even had an ice cream shop that sold wine flavored ice creams. My friend and I can be seen below eating a cabernet ice cream and a torrontes ice cream. YUM!!!

Now let us not forget that when there is good wine, there is normally good food. This was the case in Cafeyette and after living in Brasil for 11 months, I was in heaven, eating at a fine dining restaurant that had delicious food and wine pairings!

Can you feel my excitement for this meal? Although, ironically I also had the worst case of stomach problems throughout my entire year in South America, once I landed in Cafayette. Oh yes. It was bad. But did I let that stop me from wine tasting and eating good food? NO! I powered through the stomach pains, the endless urge to excuse my self to the bano, and took some stomach meds and always carried around a spare roll of TP with me!

One of the famous things to do while also in Cafeyette beside drink wine, is to go and explore the Quebrada or rock desert in the surrounding area. And just in case you were wondering how my friend, also marine biologist, and I were feeling after half a morning in the desert, I think this picture says it all.

However, despite the lack of ocean, we saw some amazing landscapes, very similar to the Grand Canyon and Arizona. This photo pictured below, also was from some glacier period and the different color relate to....uh...different things in the rocks....but the yellow is old algae fossils from when this area used to be covered by ocean! Yay! remnants of an ocean!

The rocks and desert landscapes were pretty spectacular. Even if they were without salt water. But after our excursion of desert activities, we decided to treat ourselves to a delicious meal.

The local finest: llama meat, slow cooked over an open fire for 12 hours, some veggies and a delicious bottle of Terraza's Cabernet Sauvignon. What a deliciously amazing place!