An unbridled passion for fine winemaking and artisanal foods live and breathe in the Argentine Andes.

Buenos Aires, like other world capitals, boasts great restaurants, ranging from sophisticated little museum cafes to award-winning fine dining spots, such as Cabernet, flanked with its own prolific—and Argentina-dominated—wine shop.  However, if you want to experience the future of Argentina’s food and wine culture, make the trek across Argentina to Mendoza.

If Buenos Aires reveals the art of fine living like a tasting menu, Mendoza puts its sensory delights out there, family style and in generous homespun portions. An hour outside the city, you can not only commune with nature or ski the Andes, but indulge your senses at other great Estancias and Bodegas that bring gastronomy to life beyond the table, and with an emphasis on environmentally friendly production techniques.

A great way to discover Mendoza’s bounty is literally from the ground up, and Almacen del Sur is a great place to do just that. Though its web site (www.almacendelsur.com) humbly portrays it as a fancy food shop with an adjoining deli, visitors will get a crash course in organic farming and gourmet condiment preparation as part of the deal.  The Almacen’s host, Ivana, demonstrates that even in the winter, their farming plots still yield a variety of vegetables thanks to a mild climate similar to California’s Napa Valley.  Opposite the growing area, she points out a sprawling “oven” harnessing the power of the sun to dry their organic tomatoes and other vegetables for their prolific line of pastes, tapenades, jellies, jams and dips.  After the tour, she summons guests inside the restaurant, which resembles a golf lodge, with open kitchen and picnic-y seating on one extreme of the hall and a condensed “pro-shop” of neatly-arranged jars on the other.  Like a clubhouse, the room has its own crest, bearing the motto “Food 4 Wine.”

Dining at Almacen del Sur brings the casual, educational and sampling experience of a farmer’s market into a more refined context. The prep area for the dishes is not only generous, but encourages up-close viewing. A tasting of the Almacen’s best-selling products (including the stunning, pungent grilled early harvest eggplant, arugula pesto, black olives and fire-roasted assorted vegetables) replaces the familiar amuse bouche.

An unusual onion soup arrives that is everything Parisian soup a l’oignon is not—creamy, with earthy flavors and a perky egg yolk waiting to be blended in. This is paired with Trapiche 2005 Fond de Cave Chardonnay, whose unusual creamy/citrusy mouth mirrors soup’s richness. The main course is a beef roulade that is delicate in texture and flavor, and therefore, surprisingly good with Trapiche 2007 Fond de Cave Sauvignon Blanc. Dessert--cheese/pineapple raviolis adorned with their own grape preserves and a hit of chocolate soup--especially when matched with the blackberry and cherry flavors and spicy cinnamon bouquet of 2006 Trapiche Late Harvest Malbec is a revelation.