An evening with Gauchos in Mendoza

Eighteen hours after departing the small bus station of San Martin de los Andes we had arrived in Mendoza. This was a city I had little expectations for and was more of a pitstop to break up the journey towards Salta, a province I was far more excited to visit.

Mendoza is a fairly big city that actually is only a short bus ride from the Chilean capital of Santiago and the city itself is famous for one thing in particular, wine. Being more of a beer or rum kind of guy that was not a particularly strong draw for me, whilst the rest of the city resembled the less attractive parts of Buenos Aires.

Nevertheless we did do a bike tour around some of the wineries - for that I can recommend Maipu Bikes for a very enjoyable, and affordable, experience. Armed with a bike and map indicating seven different wineries in the area we spent an afternoon sampling wines and admiring views of traditional vineyards in the shadows of the pre-Andes. We were sensible (I promise) but I can certainly see it being a potentially risky experience with the potent combination of cheap wine and cycling on busy roads.

Having done the traditional Mendoza activity we had few ideas of what to do with the rest of our time there and sought some advice from our hostel. We had settled on doing some water-based activities nearby but found that option fully-booked. Indeed, only one option for the next day had any availability and so we found ourselves signed up to an evening of horse riding and asado, by no means a bad sounding option.

Having driven out of the city and down some gravel paths we were greeted by Javier who, like all of the people working there, was dressed in traditional Gaucho clothing. The most distinctive part of the get-up probably being the neck-tie and the bolero hat.

With little delay we were provided with our personal transport for the following ninety minutes or so and given very brief guidance on how to control our steeds. Before we had even left, my horse - which looked suspiciously like a donkey - was proving to be a stubborn character and decided to turn around and leave me facing the opposite way to everyone else, much to their amusement. As we set off I was a little anxious my journey would be a challenge if my horse was to be uncooperative, I quickly relaxed as we fell into line without any issues.

The experience itself was undoubtedly and memorably unique. I would normally expect such an experience to feel forced and inauthentic but the towering beauty of the looming pre-Andes and the connection with nature was powerful. To add to that sentiment, lightning regularly flashed in the distance over the city, creating an even more atmospheric backdrop. Ninety minutes flew by in what felt like fifteen and we were back at the ranch.

Here we expected little more than a quick meal and then to be sent on our way but instead we received the complete Argentinian experience. First one or our hosts pulled out his trusty guitar and we were treated to some traditional songs of the mountainous community. Two of our fellow guests added to the performance further by dancing in the traditional style, whilst we stood by and watched with unlimited, free local wine.

The asado - traditional Argentinian BBQ - was ready and we were called inside. This was not my first time sampling this particular cuisine but was undoubtedly the best. Endless trays of spectacularly flavoursome and juicy meat were brought in. Having built up quite an appetite throughout the day I failed to restrain myself and finished my first plate well before everyone else, upon seeing this one Gaucho loudly instructed another that ‘the gringo’ needed more.

Contentedly full of meat and wine, the evening still wasn’t over and the guitar was brought back out. The player was undoubtedly talented and alone would have been entertaining but the performance was made that bit more special thanks to audience participation.

Playing traditional songs that many of the Argentinian visitors knew allowed them to sing along. One man in particular often dominated the performer himself and by the end joined him at the front for one final encore - his wife retreating more and more into the shadows through embarrassment as the night went on.

Six hours after arriving we departed having enjoyed one of our best nights in Argentina. Having only signed up due to a lack of any other options, we hadn’t even had any expectations to exceed. The nature, the music, the food and the people had all contributed to a perfect evening that felt that extra bit special thanks to its unexpected nature.

Posted: 07/03/2022

Written by: Tom Taylor (@tomtayloor)