Alta Vista opens restored bodega

Mendoza winery Alta Vista has just opened its newly-restored bodega - the end of a three-year restoration project for the highly-regarded Argentinian producer.

As well as preserving the original c19th building, the US$2m investment aims to attract Argentina’s growing number of wine tourists – they are expecting 5000 visitors in the first year of opening, they say.

Alta Vista was founded in 1997 by winemaker Jean-Michel Arcaute, who claimed it was the small concrete tanks used by the bodega that existed on the site that attracted him. These have been preserved, with larger tanks being converted into cellars.

French and American barriques have replaced the huge original barrels which have found a new lease of life providing the wood for new floors and furniture, while the barrel hoops have been welded into signs and doors.

With plots of land around the winery being snapped up for housing, Alta Vista has ensured against future expansion by buying an additional 6000 square metres of land around the existing boundaries.

Written by Catherine Woods