Trout & Wine

What It Is and Where It Operates

Trout & Wine is a tour operator in Mendoza, Argentina, that runs its own small-group and private wine tours, plus fly fishing, horseback riding and mountain days in the Andes. It describes itself as "a small, passionate team offering personalized wine tours and fly fishing adventures in Mendoza," with "no mass tourism." Everything on the site is in the Mendoza area, organized under four regions: Luján de Cuyo, just south of Mendoza City; Valle de Uco, about 90 minutes' drive south; Maipú, 40 minutes southeast of the city; and the Andes, reached through Potrerillos, which the site places an hour from Mendoza City. Tours start with a pick-up at the guest's hotel, and prices are shown in US dollars. One review on the homepage adds that the main office is easy to reach from Independence Plaza.

Small-Group Tours

The small-group tours are listed with a group size of 9 people. Luján de Cuyo: A Classic Wine Experience in Mendoza runs 8 hours for USD $210, in the region the site calls "the land of Malbec," with "century-old vineyards, cutting-edge cellars, and the mighty Andes." A Wine Tour Of Valle De Uco also runs 8 hours, for USD $220, focused on high-altitude wines. A Tour of The Andes runs 9 hours for USD $190 along the High Mountain Circuit, which the Andes page says takes in Aconcagua, "the highest mountain in the Americas," Puente del Inca, and the villages of Uspallata and Las Cuevas. In Maipú there are two horseback rides, Horseriding Through The Vineyards and Horseriding At Sunset, each 5 hours for USD $200. Also on the homepage, the Bodega Salentein Experience, 6 hours for USD $320, is a transfer to the Salentein winery with a tour and a gourmet lunch paired with its wines.

Private Tours

Private tours are listed with the duration "As you wish" and the group size "Unlimited." The Luján De Cuyo (Deluxe Experience) costs USD $360: the guide picks guests up at 8.50 AM and, in the page's words, "Our English-speaking guide will escort you around three premium wineries, old and modern." The Valle De Uco (Deluxe Experience) costs USD $370, and Uco Valley Not to be Missed, focused on architecture, art and unusual wines, costs USD $480 with a pick-up between 9:00 and 9:30 a.m. at a hotel or home. The Malbec & Mountain tour, a full-day private trip through the Uco Valley and the Cordon del Plata range, costs USD $330 with an 8:30 AM pick-up. CatenaMania, USD $440, starts at CA.RO, which the page describes as "established in the late 19th century and now guided by Nicolás Catena and Baron de Rothschild (Lafite)." To the Enemy with your Friends, USD $380, is a Maipú day built around the legend of Chachingo, with a 10:00 am pick-up.

In the mountains, the Private Andes tour costs USD $270, picks up at 8.15 am and follows the old Trans-Andean railway through three mountain ranges, past the Cordón del Plata and the turquoise Potrerillos lake. The Fly Fishing Experience, USD $460, promises wild brook trout "from a high Andean stream," and the page calls it "Perfect for beginners." The Gaucho & Asado Day costs USD $530: a private driver and guide collect guests at 08:30 AM for a 1.5-hour drive to La Carrera, a high mountain valley, where coffee and homemade pastries are served on arrival at 10:00 AM. The Andean Safari: Birds & Wildlife, USD $470, is a private 4x4 trip on a working ranch that the site says runs year-round, and The Andes Chronicles follows the disused Provincial Route 52 toward Chile, with an 8.15am pick-up and a drive of 50 minutes north of the city. A horseback ride in the Andes of the Valle de Uco, with an 8.20 am pick-up, is also on the menu.

How It Works on the Day

The tour pages describe a pick-up at the hotel by the guide, a drive to the region, and visits to wineries the site names by region: in Luján de Cuyo these include Kaiken, Ruca Malen, Achaval Ferrer, Norton, Terrazas de los Andes and Alta Vista; in Valle de Uco, Andeluna, Domaine Bousquet, Zorzal, Salentein and Piedra Infinita (Familia Zuccardi); in Maipú, Casa Vigil, Trapiche, Santa Julia and Luigi Bosca. The reviews the homepage shows describe the rest: air-conditioned vans with bottles of water, guides named Clarita, Diego, Ricardo, Ivan, Gabriela, Valeria and Flor among others, lunch included on the Luján and Uco wine tours, and one airport pick-up. One reviewer says the company confirmed pick-up times the evening before, and another describes a small-group day that felt almost private, with the booking handled clearly from the first message. Reviews also mention a tour run in Spanish, a bilingual tour, and a guide who spoke Portuguese, and the site itself is in English, Portuguese and Spanish. One guest describes a 4-day itinerary the company built for them with wine lunches, a cooking class and visits to local artists' studios.

Booking and Terms

Tours are booked online through Book Now, or by phone on (+54 9) 261 578-1616 and by email at ask@troutandwine.com; reviewers mention arranging their tours by WhatsApp. The footer links to a Cancellation Policy page and an FAQs page, and the menu lists a MICE page, a Fleet page and an About Us page. A reviewer mentions paying a deposit weeks before the trip.

What Isn't Settled and Who This Suits

The cancellation terms themselves, the deposit amount, and whether the private prices are per person or per group are not stated on the tour cards. The site does not give a timetable of which days each small-group tour departs, and outside the Luján deluxe tour it does not say which language a given tour is guided in. The site does not address dietary needs, children or accessibility.

Trout & Wine suits travelers based in Mendoza who want a set-price day among the wineries in a group capped at 9, and those who want a private itinerary, a fly fishing day, a horseback ride or an asado in the mountains. Its mix of wine, fishing and Andes trips gives it range beyond a standard winery shuttle.