There’s just nothing like drinking wine in the region where it’s made. Having a lunch in the vineyard or taking a tour of the winery, smelling the air or touching the dirt, you come to experience wine in a way that’s just not possible at home. That’s why my husband and I reserve time each year to visit a wine-growing location. Last year we spent a few weeks in the vineyards of Cahors and Bordeaux. This year we chose Mendoza, Argentina.

I’ll be completely honest. I wasn’t such a fan of Argentine malbec before this trip. I considered it a simple, crowd-pleasing kind of wine, something to open at a casual party.. Sure, I’d tasted a few quality bottles here and there, but for the most part, I didn’t see the point in going over the $15 mark.

But sometimes, I’m wrong (just don’t tell my husband). The trip opened my eyes to a whole new caliber of Argentine wine. Here are some of my highlights:

Fresh off an overnight flight, our first stop in Mendoza was a small, family-owned winery named Melipal. Located about an hour south of Mendoza in Agrelo, the small and modernistic structure is the perfect contrast to its peaceful vineyard setting. It was here that I quickly realized my notion of malbec as a simple sipper was inherently flawed. The second red of the tasting, the 2009 Melipal Malbec ($18.99, request special order from ABC) offered up the classic malbec character of red and dark fruits with a strong whiff of spice. But I also got hints of everything from minerals to unsweetened dark chocolate. It was still slightly rustic, but utterly charming.

The 2007 Melipal Malbec Reserve Nazarenas Vineyard ($35 online) totally shattered all pre-conceived notions. The grapes are sourced from an old-vine malbec vineyard planted in 1923. It’s a complex wine of ripe, concentrated black cherry, black currant, leather and spice with a hint of roses. There are no rough edges on this super-smooth sipper.

Early the next morning we were on the road again, heading further south and west to the high-altitude region of Tupungato, in the shadow of Andean peaks. The best pieces of a trip tend to be those happy surprises we stumble upon between planned events, as was the case at Bodega la Azul. We were on the way to another appointment when we saw a few colorful lunch tables outside the small winery. The clear blue skies and surrounding vineyards offered an idyllic setting that was impossible to pass up. After ordering lunch, I popped around back to see our cuts of meat placed over an open flame next to a small, wild pig. It was the culinary highlight of the trip, and though their wines aren’t yet available in Florida, I managed to spirit one bottle of the 2007 Azul Gran Reserva home in my luggage.

The following morning we headed further south to La Consulta in the Valle de Uco, to another small treasure of a winery called Altocedro. Owner Karim Mussi Saffie purchased an old and run-down winery in 1998. The property looked more like a collection of ramshackle barns than a winery, and I immediately fell in love with its rustic charm. It reminded me of the garage wineries of France, focused solely on the quality of wine in the bottle, rather than the grandeur of the surroundings.

Winemaker Eduardo Lanati gave us a quick tour of the property which included sampling a few vintages straight from the barrels. Particularly impressive was the 2011 Altocedro Malbec Reserva (earlier vintages available for $34.99 at Hampton Wine & Spirits, Palm Beach). It had an extremely aromatic nose of red and dark cherry, raspberries and blackberries, red flowers and caramel with underlying earth and minerality. On the palate, the wine was elegant and smooth but with firm tannins. It was a truly beautiful wine and a highlight of our trip.

From those humble surroundings, we travelled just a few minutes up the road to what may be the most beautiful collective of wineries in the region, those of Clos de los Siete. Brainchild of famed French enologist Michel Rolland, Clos de los Siete is a collaboration of seven French partners. Together, the group invested in a large swath of land in the district of Vista Flores, Tunuyán. The property is now home to four different wineries that all produce individual lines, along with one collective wine. The 2009 Clos de los Siete ($18 Crown, $20 ABC and Total Wine) is a deep ruby color in the glass with a ripe and lush nose of black cherry, blackberry and plum. On the palate, the wine is big and juicy with ripe dark fruit and a slightly smoky/grilled element. This is the perfect step-up for a casual backyard barbeque.

Bertrand and Jean-Guy Cuvelier may be more famous as the owners of Château Léoville-Poyferré and Château Le Crock in Bordeaux, but their Clos de los Siete property, Cuvelier Los Andes should not be overlooked. Quite Old World in style, the 2008 Cuvelier Los Andes ($22.99 at Virginia Philip Wine Shop & Academy) has a nose of deep black cherry, blackcurrant, leather, earth and spice. On the palate, the wine is medium/full-bodied and dry with a good acidity to balance the fruit. A well-integrated and elegant wine.

One of the newest members to the group, Bodega DiamAndes is not only an impressive architectural feat, but it too is producing a serious quality wine in just a few short years. The 2008 DiamAndes Gran Reserva ($32 online) is a deep, inky purple color in the glass with an aromatic nose of black cherry, plum and blackcurrant, red flowers, and vanilla, with an underlying minerality. On the palate, this is a full-bodied wine with firm tannins. Decant and drink it now or save in the cellar for a few years.

Leaving Clos de los Siete, we circled back north to Bodega Catena Zapata in Agrelo. If there was a Godfather figure of the Argentine wine industry, Nicolás Catena would be it. A third-generation immigrant of Italian descent, Catena grew up in his family’s wine business. But his discovery of quality Napa wines during a temporary stay in California in the early 1980’s left a lasting impression. In the decades that followed, Catena was instrumental in revolutionizing the wine industry in Mendoza, taking the wines from a barely quaffable product little known outside the country’s borders to one of the top five suppliers of quality wine to the U.S. market.

The 2010 Aruma Malbec ($16 Total Wine) is a collaboration between Domaines Barons de Rothschild and Nicolas Catena. A deep purple color in the glass, this wine definitely showed its Old World influence with a mix of red and dark fruit on the nose and strong earthy elements. On the palate, the wine was medium-bodied and smooth with red fruit flavors and soft tannins. Not an extremely complex wine, but still interesting and enjoyable.

The 2008 Catena Alta Malbec ($43 Total Wine) comes from a selection of high-altitude estate vineyards. It has a nose of candied red fruit, grilled cherry, red apple skin and raspberry with hints of toasted oak, smoke and spice. On the palate, the wine is medium-bodied, well balanced and smooth with ripe red fruit flavors, spice and sweet, toasted vanilla. An elegant wine.

Another top producer in the region, Terrazas de los Andes, partnered with famed French Chateau Cheval Blanc to produce a wine that’s worth saving for a special occasion. The 2007 Cheval des Andes ($80 Total Wine) is a powerhouse of black fruit, black pepper, anise and earth. It’s an incredibly complex and concentrated wine with a full-body and firm tannins for great ageing potential. This is the quintessential Marlboro Man wine to be served with a savory cut of beef, grilled on an open flame and seasoned with salt and black pepper.