Biking by Day, Sunset Horseback Rides by Night
The closest wine producing region to the city of Mendoza is an area called Maipu. We seemed to constantly be stopping there throughout our time in Mendoza or passing through on our way to an activity further away.
We ended our time in Mendoza in the best way; a horseback ride at sunset through the foothills of the Andes. I grew up horseback riding weekly as a kid and our family usually went riding on yearly trips to Taos and even spent a week at a dude ranch in Colorado. It brought back fond memories of family time spent in the mountains. The ride ended with an absolutely stunning sunset and a family style asado dinner back at the ranch. Our guide played guitar and sang quite the range of old school Americana and popular Latin American songs for the perfect end to a perfect leg of the trip.
Earlier in the trip we spent an entire day bike riding and wine tasting in Maipu. Although I was skeptical of these two activities being a winning combination, it was actually much more successful than I anticipated. We rented bikes from Mr. Hugo (for about $7 for the entire day) and were pleasantly surprised by how well built bike paths and sidewalks were for us to winery hop. Maipu seemed to be much more of a backpacker/hostel mecca than many of the other areas we visited, and we saw quite a few groups of young people from all over the world while we were biking around.
The two wineries I’d recommend visiting in Maipu are Mevi and Trapiche. They appeared to be the most well established and popular and are both welcome detours from the summer sun. There are also a few olive oil tasting rooms along the different winery roads, so be sure to interrupt your wine tasting with one of those as well.
