The Vines of Mendoza: Adventures in Winemaking

Darnell Strom is a private vineyard owner from California. We speak about his wines, his former life in politics, and now working as an agent in the entertainment industry. We discuss the parallels between wine, politics and entertainment and how a honeymoon trip to The Vines let to the purchase of a vineyard and the creation of his wines named “Luna de Miel” – honeymoon in Spanish.

Carol & Wayne Tamarelli are private vineyard owners from New Jersey who have become great friends of ours over the years. They are truly great adventurers, traveling literally all over the world. In fact, they found The Vines on one of their many trips to Antarctica. We talk about travel, their 53 years of marriage and their philosophy on winemaking. Their wines are available at tamarellivineyards.com

This week we speak with Perry Boyle, who planted his vineyard in 2011 and has made three vintages of wine — but is unique in that he is our only private vineyard owner that has never visited the property!

This week we speak with Cody Milch, one of our youngest, most passionate and most knowledgeable private vineyard owners. Among other ideas, Cody offers some great tips on how you can drink like the pro sommeliers around the world and thoughts on the trend of natural wines.

This week we talk with Mariana Onofri, a private vineyard owner who is also the amazing wine director of The Vines, guiding all of our owners through the winemaking and blending process. Mariana talks about her philosophy on winemaking and how it has developed by working with our diverse group of owners. She also shares stories about the wine she makes and sells, two wonderful white blends.

James Codling​ shares his experiences selling ​his Carmelita wine​ with his wife Nikki, including ​developing the name and marketing strategies for their wine, and ​getting 18 international awards so far. ​James​ offers some advice for owners interested in running their vineyard as a business​ and some travel tips for wine lovers traveling to Asia.

Jacqueline is a private vineyard owner who lives in Knoxville, Tennessee. We discuss how her falling in love with wine in Tuscany led to her vineyard in Mendoza, which is called Integrity -- and how that concept plays into her life and wines

Bryan started with The Vines for what he expected to be a two-year stint to get some international experience. 10 years later, Byran is a partner at the company and makes wines from his private vineyard that he owns with his family. We talk his favorite Mendoza experiences and his love of Boston sports.

Chani Wiggins and Paul Steinhauer recount how just one perfect day in Mendoza at our old cabins got them started on a winemaking adventure that has led to travels to wine regions around the world and the creation of their "TBD" wine.

Pablo Co-founded The Vines in 2004 and has his own private vineyard and makes wines with his wife, 2 sons and daughter. We discuss our first visit to what is now The Vines, his love for white wines and his philosophy on the intersection of wine and life.

Adolfo and his two sons Mikhail and Tobias live in Canada. Both Adolfo and Mikhail are engineers and they discuss applying that background to making their wines together. As Adolfo says, "winemaking is an extension of who you are". We talk about the different levels of wine they are making, the Uco Valley terroir and how Cab Franc and Petit Verdot are starting to really shine as single varietals.

Randy and Marguerite live in Miami and purchased their private vineyard in 2014 and discuss the experience of tasting their first wine - a white Rhone-style blend. Marguerite also talks about her journey to become a certified sommelier and how that has helped her create and blend their wines.

Sergio is a private vineyard owner from Argentina, who has lived in Houston for many years. Sergio and his family make and sell Serca wines from their six acres of private vineyards, featuring Malbec, Merlot and Cabernet Franc. You can check out his wines at www.sercawines.com

Kim and Phil purchased a vineyard with The Vines in 2007 and during their first visits to Mendoza realized that the climate and terroir in Mendoza is strikingly similar to their home in Tucson, Arizona. So they decided to expand their winemaking beyond Argentina, creating a Malbec and other wines in Tuscon. We talk about the differences in terroir between their northern and southern vineyards and how the process of learning about winemaking and farming has inspired them during their retirement.

My guest this week is Michael Simon, part of the Consenso group of private vineyard owners. Michael is a data analytics consultant and lives in NY. We discuss how he bought his vineyard sight unseen and how he applies his professional expertise as a data analyst to make his wines. He also offers some interesting advice for new private vineyard owners.

The first 10 years at The Vines of Mendoza as told by our management team.

A discussion of 2014 vineyard activities and what's expected in 2015 with The Vines of Mendoza's CEO, Michael Evans and Francisco Evangelista, Chief Agronomist.

A discussion of grape growing, winemaking, and the Uco Valley with The Vines' Co-Founder Michael Evans, Consulting Winemaker Santiago Achaval, and Chief Agronomist Francisco Evangelista.

2013 Harvest outlook from The Vines founders Michael Evans and Pablo Gimenez Riili, plus Mendoza wine legends Santiago Achaval and Marcelo Pelleriti. With a special guest appearance by Pedro Aznar.

Listen here to The Vines Resort & Spa's live discussion with Santiago Achaval and our winemaking team. Santiago, consulting winemaker for The Vines, has wines that consistently rank among the best in Argentina by Robert Parker's Wine Advocate and Wine Spectator, who called Santiago the "master of Malbec". Learn all about: - Santiago Achaval's experiences and view on what makes the terroir in the Uco Valley ideal for producing world class wine - The wine experience at The Vines Resort & Spa -- all about making your own wine, blending, palate development and sensory classes.