One of the first foreign investors in Argentina was French champagne maker Chandon, who saw great potential for sparkling wines after a visit in the 1950s. They deserve credit for the increase in foreign interest in the region, since the fact that one of the most important sparkling wines labels in the world invested in Argentina attracted hundreds of investments.
The winery, which is an hour south of the city of Mendoza, in the Alto Agrelo wine district, Luján de Cuyo, and shows the different methods of making sparkling wines, such as the champenoise or traditional method, more artisanal, and the charmat, through which the sparkling wines are produced in larger tanks.
Different lines of bubbles can be savored in the tasting room, including Blanc de Blanc (white made from white grapes) and Blanc de Noir (white made from red grapes).
MoreThe history of Chandon Argentina began with the vision of Count Robert-Jean de Vogüé, President of the Maison de champagne Moët & Chandon, who intuited that the world would go global and the production of the Champagne region would not be enough to supply bubbles to all. He assumed that there were other regions, with extraordinary potential for making sparkling wines outside of France.
In 1957 he sent the technical director of the Maison Moët & Chandon, Renaud Poirier, to explore new latitudes for the development of sparkling wines. Poirier found, after studying soils and climates in countries such as the United States, Peru, Brazil, Chile and Argentina, that the province of Mendoza and specifically the region of Luján de Cuyo, was the best high altitude place to obtain wines of the highest quality.
This is how in 1959 the Comte de Vogüé decided to create the first Moët & Chandon subsidiary outside of France. In this way, Chandon was born, a brand that for almost 60 years maintains the leadership of sparkling wines in Argentina and that today is also present in Brazil, the United States, China, India and Australia.
In tune with its history as an innovative and avant-garde brand, Chandon Argentina created the Extra Brut category in 1960, today the most consumed product in Argentina, until then only the Brut and Demi Sec varieties existed. In addition, it created in the 80s the first Brut Nature on the market; Délice presented in 2012 the first sparkling wine to drink with ice, in a glass and with a touch of flavor; In 2015 it redefined the Brut Nature category by presenting a product made with vineyards over 1500 meters high and with 18 months of contact with yeasts and unveiled its first Brut Nature Rosé. In 2019, it once again showed its pioneering spirit, presenting Chandon Apéritif, the first bitter sparkling wine macerated by hand with oranges and spices.
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