Bikes and Wine
Monday
We rounded enough coins to catch the bus out to Maipu, the starting point of the 25K tour. We were outfitted with bikes and started off. They gave us a map, and we could proceed at our own pace. First a very old winery, Rural, with a museum of old equipment that was fascinating. Then a quick tour of the vines, vats and barrels, then tasting. Since it was only 10:30 am, and 24k plus many wineries to go, we went easy on the tasting. Next we biked 12k to the turnaround point. Their advice was to get to the furthest point, and taste your way back. Saves on sending out the sag wagon at the end of the day is my guess.
The ride started in a little town with new streets and a gread bike lane. Then there was a stretch of road construction = gravel and dirt. But the cars had to detour. Next was a hard portion of narrow 2 lane road, paved but no shoulder and a fair number of buses and trucks. But here the scenery reallyopened up. Beautiful vineyards, with Los Andes including Acongaga, snow covered, in the background. Then the last stretch of beautiful linden lined back road, smooth and no traffic.
At the end point, Sarah went to an olive grove and press, and I went to another winery across the road - Carinae. Old vines recently purchased by a French family who reopened the winery. The tasting cost ~$5 us but in exchange we got to taste their best wines, not the bulk stuff. It was very good wine. Back on the bikes, we headed for the lunch stop. A special deal at a local restaurant that came with the tour. A beautiful spot, with excellent food, but overall a kind of strange experience. We were one of everal tables of prepaid casual bikers, amidst some very well dressed folks eating off the full menu. And it seemed like the waitstaff and the other diners were trying to pretend that we didnt exist. Ah, well, we soaked up the scenery, enjoyed the birds, ate the prepaid, and got back on the bikes. A few more stops, a little more tasting, and were back at the start. to be continued
We rounded enough coins to catch the bus out to Maipu, the starting point of the 25K tour. We were outfitted with bikes and started off. They gave us a map, and we could proceed at our own pace. First a very old winery, Rural, with a museum of old equipment that was fascinating. Then a quick tour of the vines, vats and barrels, then tasting. Since it was only 10:30 am, and 24k plus many wineries to go, we went easy on the tasting. Next we biked 12k to the turnaround point. Their advice was to get to the furthest point, and taste your way back. Saves on sending out the sag wagon at the end of the day is my guess.
The ride started in a little town with new streets and a gread bike lane. Then there was a stretch of road construction = gravel and dirt. But the cars had to detour. Next was a hard portion of narrow 2 lane road, paved but no shoulder and a fair number of buses and trucks. But here the scenery reallyopened up. Beautiful vineyards, with Los Andes including Acongaga, snow covered, in the background. Then the last stretch of beautiful linden lined back road, smooth and no traffic.
At the end point, Sarah went to an olive grove and press, and I went to another winery across the road - Carinae. Old vines recently purchased by a French family who reopened the winery. The tasting cost ~$5 us but in exchange we got to taste their best wines, not the bulk stuff. It was very good wine. Back on the bikes, we headed for the lunch stop. A special deal at a local restaurant that came with the tour. A beautiful spot, with excellent food, but overall a kind of strange experience. We were one of everal tables of prepaid casual bikers, amidst some very well dressed folks eating off the full menu. And it seemed like the waitstaff and the other diners were trying to pretend that we didnt exist. Ah, well, we soaked up the scenery, enjoyed the birds, ate the prepaid, and got back on the bikes. A few more stops, a little more tasting, and were back at the start. to be continued
posted by Axolotl at 4:26 PM
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