Around-the-World with Drew & Erin: Argentina

Join The Blogging Post as we head around-the-world with our friends Drew & Erin. They’ll be sending us regular dispatches and updates from around, across, and all over the globe. This is their second post from Argentina…

Meat, Matè, and Malbec

Aside from exploring the astounding landscapes and undertaking the challenge of learning the language, one of the most rewarding aspects of our trip to South America has been getting to know the local people. Like many places, the best way to do this is often through food and drink. So far, Erin and I have spent the majority of our time on this continent in Argentina, owing primarily to its varied and beautiful landscapes but also to its high quality of travel for a very affordable price.

While traveling in this country, we have had many opportunities to get to know the people here. Argentina draws a strong influence from Italy, a country whose immigrants along with those of Spain, have had the largest impact on the country’s culture. Like Italy, food and drink play an essential role in the culture of the country. Understanding that, it is not surprising that our some of our most fruitful and memorable interactions have occurred at the dining room table or while sharing drinks.

First and foremost, Argentina is known the world over for the quality of its beef. I come from a family that thoroughly enjoys a good steak, and red meat is often a valued component of our family celebrations and get-togethers. In fact, when Erin and I were making a farewell tour of our family’s homes before departing for this journey, at each and every stop our families served us steak for our final evening send-off. With this heritage and taste, Erin and I have found ourselves right at home with this aspect of the Argentine menu.

Meat in its many forms is part of the national heritage and also a source of pride in this country. At the supermercado (supermarket) last night, I snickered when I saw the huge crowd gathered around the butcher counter, awaiting their cut for the evening’s meal. There must have been 25 or 30 people crowded around and jockeying for position. I have never witnessed such a line in the United States. I even spotted an older frail lady carrying away a huge armful of steaks – enough meat to feed a small army. On the street it’s a similar story. The street-side restaurants and food vendors advertise all manner of meaty meals – asados (a barbecue that is served at traditional Argentine celebrations and family gatherings), parillas (a meal consisting of assorted grilled meats), lomos (choice steaks), lomitos (steak sandwiches), panchos and choripans (types of hot dogs), and also chorizo (the name of both a cut of steak as well as a spicy sausage). Meat literally dominates the local cuisine.

Meals of steak have provided Erin and me with some of our fondest memories. I’ll provide one example amongst many. In the town of El Bolsòn in the Lakes District of northern Patagonia, Erin and I stayed for much longer than we initially anticipated. Part of the reason for extending our stay was that we had found a great hostel (El Pueblito) in a charming, outdoorsy, and artsy town, but another huge reason was simply the asados. At El Pueblito, the asados are legendary. Twice in the same week we were enticed to stay longer because of an upcoming asado. The asado consists of many courses of meat – up to seven or eight – cooked to perfection over a traditional charcoal fire. In addition to fresh salads and freshly baked bread served on the side, the courses started with beef empanadas (a stuffed pastry), then proceeded on to a pair of sausages – chorizo and morcilla (blood sausage), moved on to ribs, and finally culminated in various cuts of steak – each finer than the last. We were in heaven along with all of the other guests indulging in this feast.

In addition to eating meat and going crazy for football (or soccer), another Argentine national pastime is drinking matè (pronounced “mahtay”). Matè is a hot tea that’s prepared by steeping the yerba matè in hot water. The beverage is consumed out of a special hollow gourd called a matè through a metal straw called a bombilla. The drinking of matè is a social and communal endeavour. It can be drunk alone, but is more typically shared by a group of people. One person is generally responsible for the preparation and serving of the drink. The server prepares the matè by adding hot water to the herbs and then consumes the entire amount. The server then adds more water and passes the matè to the next person who finishes it and passes it back to the server without giving a thank you. This ritual continues in a circle until all of the participants have had their fill. Then each participant notifies the server that they are finished by thanking the server after their last desired turn.

It is this social and inclusive nature of drinking matè that was particularly appealing to me. The drink itself is enjoyable, albeit a touch bitter, and it also provides a bit of caffeine and some health benefits. However, I would say it is an acquired taste – much like coffee. Countless times while traveling in Argentina I was offered matè. I would not always accept, but when I did, it was as much to participate in the ritual and interact with the locals, as the taste itself. In that way, drinking matè provides a great window into the daily life of the people and provides a welcome opportunity to engage them in conversation. As well as the communal nature of the ritual itself, another special aspect of matè is that it is enjoyed by all aspects of Argentine society – men and women, young and old, rich and poor, city and country. For a country which sometime struggles with a divided society between classes, it is refreshing to see a common bond shared by all people.

A third key component of the Argentine culinary experience (that was such a highlight of our travels there) was the wine. Argentina produces a huge amount and wide assortment of wine that is of impressive quality. Personally, I favor red wines, and Argentina offers many common varietals such as cabernet sauvignon, merlot, syrah, and others. There is also a grape I discovered here that is particularly unique to Argentina – malbec. Malbec is a smooth, easy-drinking red that has flourished more in the local soils and climates here than anywhere else in the world, even more than in more traditional wine regions such as Europe and North America. Argentina also produces a variety of typical whites, such as chardonnay and sauvignon blanc, but also a less well known white wine called torrontes. Torrontes is a less common grape that originated elsewhere but has succeeded in Argentina like nowhere else in the world. It has become a distinctive offering of the national wine industry and features a unique blend of fruity sweetness and dryness that is certainly worth a try, especially on a hot summer day. Erin and I had the opportunity to sample a number of local vintages at the wineries themselves when we rented bikes and rode to bodegas on two different day-trips, once in Mendoza and once in San Juan.

Alongside the quality and variety, one of the most endearing attributes of Argentine wine is its price. To say it plainly, it is very cheap. It is possible to buy a decent 750ml bottle for 8-10 Argentine pesos (about US$2-3), a good bottle for 15-20 pesos (US$5-7), and a great bottle for 40 pesos and up (US$13 and up). And as budget backpacker, I am not afraid to admit that you can even buy a tolerable 1L box of wine for 3 pesos – that’s right, just one buck. This accessible and affordable price structure has allowed us to drink more than our share of wine – and led to many a wonderful conversation with Argentines and other travelers. It is clear that when Erin and I look back on our trip to Argentina, we will have fond memories of meat, matè, and malbec and the opportunities they presented to experience the local culture.

PHOTOS

Photo #1 – An asado at El Pueblito
Photo #2 – The best of both worlds – steak and malbec
Photo #3 – Biking to bodegas near San Juan