A' visiting we go.

Lunches and dinners with our neighbors in the Calchaqui Valley.

May 30, 2026

San Martín, Calchaqui Valley, Argentina

May 30th, 2026

“When I got married and moved here, I was 18 and I was a city girl. There was no electricity, and the only way to communicate with my family was by letter. I learned to cook from my grandmother since my mother died when I was 16 years old.

But there were two women who lived in the house so I didn’t have to worry about that. One cooked and the other cleaned. We had a kerosene lamp I could light if I needed to get up in the night.”.

We were having dinner at the home of our neighbors, also the former owners of the ranch.

The meal, cooked by our hostess, was simple and very good. There was beef stewed in a creamy mushroom sauce, oven roasted pork, and roasted root vegetables. For dessert there was flan, a type of pudding cooked in a round cake dish, and served with a dollop of dulce de leche.

All this was accompanied by our own wine which we’d brought.

Our hostess and host met and married almost 54 years ago. He ran the farms he’d inherited from his father until about 20 years ago when he sold several of them off. My father bought one in 2004, and then another in 2017.

A man from Buenos Aires took on another, and our neighbor bought a smaller parcel of land in between two of the ranches for himself. He raises cattle and keeps a herd of Peruvian horses.

He and his wife built a house on a hilltop looking out over the mountains. It is graciously appointed and comfortably furnished, in keeping with the style of the Calchaqui valley.

My parents are only here for a short time this year so we’re packing in the social engagements. The next day, we were invited to lunch with a winemaker, Matias Etchart, at his home about an hour outside of Cafayate.

Matias has been at this for many years, and produces about 30,000 bottles of wine a year some of which are sold through my brother’s wine club.

To get to his place you have to drive along a very rudimentary road, splashing through a river, and rumbling over heavy rocks. You can’t get there without four wheel drive. His bodega and private home sit on top of a mountain.

First we had a tour of the bodega where the wine is made and stored, and then we went over to the house for lunch. We sat down at a table made from an oak wine barrel.

Over a grill on an outdoor fire sizzled several pieces of meat: sausages, beef, and pork. The cook cut the meat and served it. She also passed around a large earthenware bowl of potatoes, onions, carrots, and squash.

At lunch with Matias (center), me Mom, and Dad. Taken by Adrien.

We tried all of Matias’s wines: rosé, Malbec, and Cabernet Sauvignon, and toured his house.

Following lunch we took a little tour.

Up at Gualfín, we spent a pleasant couple of days; the wind did not blow and the temps were pleasant.

Each day we took a long horseback ride. On one ride we went over to visit a woman who keeps goats and makes cheese. Here’s my mom standing on a stool to choose a cheese.