Cafayate

June 22, 2025 to June 23, 2025

Saturday the 21st of June 2025

Being pitched so close to the river, we were expecting that we would be packing up a wet tent this morning. Surprisingly, it was bone dry.

After a couple of cups of coffee I wandered up to have a look at La Garganta del Diablo. I was the only one there. By the time Leigh did the same half an hour later the parking lot was start to fill up.

I got breakfast going while Leigh had a decko at the Devil's Throat.

We got going soon after ten but had a very short ride to our next stop.

Less than a kilometer further on we reach El Anfiteatro, the Amphitheater. It was full of tourists already despite being only ten thirty.

We now had a headwind through the rest of the Quebrada de las Conchas. We were struggling to travel faster than six or seven kilometers per hour and we had thoughts of arriving in Cafayate after dark. There was still so much to see on the route - Los Castillos, Las Ventanas, El Obelisco, La Yesera, El Fraile and El Sapo among others - but we felt pressurised into slogging away with minimal stops.

The view from Tres Cruces. The road followed the Rio Las Cochas but hugged the mountains so we were constantly climbing and dropping as we made our way up to over sixteen hundred meters.

The views changed constantly over the 83 kilometers of the valley.

The countryside was classic desert scenery at the northern end of the valley.

Fortunately as we reached the end of this beautiful valley the wind simply disappeared and we were able to make it to Cafayate, pretty knackered but with three hours of daylight left.

Just outside Cafayate we turned onto our old friend, Ruta Cuarenta. The RN40 is one of the longest continuous roads in the world stretching from stretching from Cabo Vírgenes near the Straits of Magellan in the south to La Quiaca on the Bolivian border in the north. It runs down the eastern side of the Andes for approximately 5194 kilometers. We've ridden parts of it down in Patagonia on previous trips and will probably stay on it until we reach Mendoza.

We have a very nice apartment here for the next two nights. Tomorrow we hope to visit some bodegas for a look at Cafayate's wines.

Monday the 23rd of June 2025

We hit three different bodegas today, giving us a good feel for the wines of Cafayate. We'll probably pay for today's excesses tomorrow

Leigh enjoying a glass of their very good Torrontés in the vineyard adjacent to the tasting area.

A platter of cheeses accompanied our wines. The old wine trade saying that goes "Buy on apples and sell on cheese" is valid for a good reason.

Domingo Hermanos' wood aged Torrontés was very good but we found their reds, made with Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Malbec, uncharacteristic of these Bordeaux varietals.

Our next stop was Bodega Nanni, an organic certified winery. Once again a good Torrontés and so-so reds for the same reasons.

We took a break to get to the grocery stores before they shut for siesta and to have some lunch. Then we headed off to the third bodega for the day, Bodega El Transito.

Once again, a nice Torrontés but reds that might be considered atypical.

A bottle of El Transito's Torrontés for supper (a good match for chili con carne).

On the whole an interesting experience. Cafayate is a young wine growing area and is possibly still trying to find its feet and its own character. That said, all the Torrontés we tasted were enjoyable.

Cafayate town is very wine tourist focused with an incredible selection of bodegas having retail and tasting outlets close to the town center. Also lots of wine bars and restaurants. We could easily spend a few days here.

We head southwards on Ruta Cuarenta tomorrow. Today's over-indulgence will determine how far we get.

Today's ride: 59 km (37 miles)
Total: 1,701 km (1,056 miles)

Rate this entry's writing	Heart	4
Comment on this entry	Comment	0