We rolled in to the cold air of El Calafate twenty four hours after leaving Puerto Madryn. We were approached at the bus station by a lovely girl who took us to her hostel. I Keu Ken was a wonderful hostel situated up a hill overlooking the town and the lake. It was a cool friendly place with a roaring fire and constant central heating in the rooms which was going to be needed in the freezing temperatures. The place was also spotless and only 38 Pesos a night for a dorm including a good breakfast and they even had a toaster. The little things make all the difference.
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| Probably the nicest Guest House/Hostel/Hotel we have stayed in to date... |
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| Authentic Patagonian style with burning fireplace made for a warm & inviting place |
Arriving in the early evening we were famished and in need of a feed. The guys at the hostel recommended a place with no name which turned out to be fabulous. Fresh bread with amazing homemade dips and the dish of the day was pork steak and sweet potato mash, again washed down with a glass of Argentinean Malbec. A great start for El Calafate.
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| The place with 'No Name' ended up being just what we needed after 24hrs of travelling |
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| To start homemade dips and bread... |
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| ...followed by carne empanada (The Red had arrived)... |
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| ...for main the dish of the day. Fresh pork steaks with sweet potato mash. It was all divine including the Malbec and it is worth noting that portions are so large 2 can share! |
We explored the quaint little town with our tour guide the house lion (dog) who protected us for the day. It was a lovely place with tree lined boulevards, little historic parks and log cabin style local artisan shops.
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| Time to explore but where first? |
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| Quaint downtown El Calafate |
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| Log cabin Artisan shops, a feeling of the great outdoors |
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| Historical park about the glaciers |
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| Kate's protector the I Keu Ken Lion on the look out for dodgy looking characters |
Making sure we were wrapped up during the days we ventured out to Lago Argentina to spot the flamingos, the lake was incredible with a perfect snow capped mountain background. We also visited the Laguna Nimez which was an ecological reserve.
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| Lago Argentina |
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| Look very closely to spot the Flamingos |
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| Laguna Nimez |
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| The ecological site full of wildlife |
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| Views looking out over El Calafate |
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| Our Lion was still with us. Guarding the cafe as we ate lunch! |
It was a great town with awesome views and the evening was spent socializing with other guests, cooking homemade beef burgers, drinking wine and sampling more beers which included Iguana Cerveza and Patagonia Bohemian Pilsener.
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| I Keu Ken's fully equiped kitchen for cooking up a storm on a budget |
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| Homemade Beef Burger & Chips |
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| Plenty of time for Connect 4 against the master hustler that is Kate! |
IGUANA CERVEZA, BLONDE LAGER, ARGENTINA, 4.9%ABV, 970ML BTL
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| A frothy Cerveza Iguana |
Iguana is another blonde lager brewed by Cerveceria y Malteria Quilmes/Grupo Bemberg in Buenos Aires.
The beer caught my eye upon the supermarket shelves for the quite distinct bottle. The bottle had a small information label only around the neck with the main bulk of the glass being moulded with the Iguana logo. A little different and one that I liked, reminding me of the Spanish beer Alhambra Reserva 1925, which I am a fan of.
Iguana pours a pale yellow colour, with a big white head and a little lace. The aroma is somewhat beery with very sweet malt, sweet corn and little hop. The taste was like the smell. Predominantly sweet flavours from the malt and no sign of any hop bitterness which was a shame. The mouth feel was light with what you could call a forced carbonation.
The bottle was much better than the brew that it held.
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| The Iguana engraved bottle enjoying the warmth from the fire! |
http://www.cerveceriaymalteriaquilmes.com/index.php?page=nota&id=44
PATAGONIA BOHEMIAN, PILSENER STYLE, ARGENTINA, 5.2%ABV, 740ML BTL
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| Next up one from the Patagonian beer range. The Bohemian Pilsener |
Again and I will have to start apologising but the Patagonia beer range is also brewed by Quilmes (InBev). This I found as a shock with seeing it for the first time down in Patagonia and with a range that included a Bohemian Pilsener, Weisse Beer and an Amber Lager. I thought I had struck gold but maybe not.
I went initially and in the end only for the Pilsener style. The beer poured a light golden colour with a small white head and with little retention. The beer had a rich aroma of pilsner grain and caramel malt with a citrus hoppy note. The taste was of subtle fruit and grassy hops. The mouth feel was light to medium so not too thin with quite a lot of carbonation, where the sweetness was very apparent but with a hoppy bitter finish, overall not a bad beer with slightly more intensity than other beers tasted in Argentina so far. Things look like they are starting to pick up on the beer front.
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| Patagonian Bohemian Pilsener |
http://www.cervezapatagonia.com.ar/
It was our five year anniversary in El Calafate and it was time for our trip to Parque Nacional Los Glaciares a UNESCO declared World Heritage Site and home to some thirteen glaciers. We would be seeing just the one, Glacier Perito Moreno that stretches 5km wide. The glacier is one of the planets most extraordinary but accessible ice fields. The whole day was perfect with clear skies and perfect mountain views. We got to board a boat heading out onto the water amongst giant icebergs to get up close and personal with the glacier where you can marvel at the giant ice blocks detaching and plunging into the calm waters. Freezing doesn’t come close to how we were feeling but it was just breath-taking staring up at the giant rock-like cliffs of ice.
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| Passing through the entrance to Parque Nacional Los Glaciares |
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| The boat that will take us out to the glacier and the pictures speak for what we saw... |
The afternoon was spent at the glacier look out which had different walk ways and levels where you could stare across the sea of ice. By far the best natural wonder I have ever seen. It was one of the most amazing things we have both seen and a perfect day for it as it was our anniversary. This is a must do if you are ever in Argentina, even if it is a long journey. It’s worth every minute to see this amazing spectacle.
This day wasn’t over yet as for dinner we were heading out to the Sholken Artisanal Brewery Restaurant. The place was packed with people watching Argentina in the Copa America whilst dining. We had an amazing tender steak cooked with beer sauce made in their very own back room brewery. I enjoyed trying the Sholken Negra which is a powerful dark beer that worked amazingly well with the caramelised char-grilled slab of red meat.
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| Good evening Sholken |
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| We're in Argentina rude not to have another fat amazing steak! (Especially with a dark beer gravy) |
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| Nice sauce. I did think about pouring it into a glass but the beef seemed a much better pairing |
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| Mwah xxx |
We had a great night at the brewery even though Argentina were knocked out and we even had a stroke of luck managing to organise a brewery tour before we had to leave town.
The Sholken Brewery was born from friends and Master Brewer David Frederick Marpegan brewing for their own personal pleasure around five years ago. It was originally served in the restaurant La Matera but they ended up having to increase production due to popular demand.
This was accomplished with the development of a small brewery now behind the scenes at the Sholken Brewpub, which can be found at Libertador 1630, El Calafate. Three specially crafted brews are now produced a blonde, red and black beer. For all the brews the hops are locally sourced from El Bolson the hop capital and craft brewing capital of Argentina and what differentiates the Sholken beers is that it is made with meltwater (water released from the melting of snow or ice).
Of the three beers out of habit the Rubia (Blonde) is the most popular but we were informed that once customers tried the red they never seemed to go back. The beers are even incorporated into the food menu which we had the pleasure of sampling. A couple of examples; a lager based cheese fondue or the local Patagonian lamb made with a Sholken Negra sauce. Still produced in relative small volumes the Sholken range is available in selected hotels, restaurants and hostels around El Calafate. This included our hostel I Keu Ken.
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| The hostel fridge stocked with the local Sholken beer range |
So on the morning of our departure from El Calafate, we headed down to a closed Sholken Brewpub, where Juan Pablo Lazo a trainee brewer gave us a tour and an education about Sholken. Through the kitchen we went, before stumbling across the most humble brewery I had ever seen. It was like walking into a science classroom at school or maybe somebody’s garage where they were a passionate home brewer.
We were showed the sacks of Argentinean malt where the malting took place, the kettle, fermentation tanks as well as the bottling. Large steel pans and gas cooker hobs were burning a blue flame as well as a number of rubber horses that are attached together to help bind the whole process together. I found it quite heart warming and amazing that these craft beers were produced in such a simple fashion with regards to equipment and machinery.
I was expecting a mini brewery with copper pots etc like we have seen along the journey at the fashionable well financed brew houses. I suppose this adds to my beer education.
It was definitely an eye opener and I can’t thank Juan enough for his patience and answering of a million questions even if the communication was in Spanish. It was a good job that I had my interpreter Kate by my side. Juan was even kind enough to present us with a parting gift. A small box set that included a bottle of Rubia, Roja and Black. Let’s see if these can make it back to England with me in one piece to try with friends, or if the temptation to consume them ends up too great!
Libertador 1630, El CalafateSHOLKEN RUBIA, BLONDE STYLE, ARGENTINA, 5%ABV APROX
The Sholken Rubia was a classic blonde lager. It poured a pale golden colour with a nice thick white head and good long lasting cling. The aroma was of crystal malt and floral hops with a slight hint of citrus. The taste was mainly of sweet malt with citrus fruity elements. The mouth feel was light with a nice low carbonation, with a crisp clean finish. Very easy drinking and perfect refreshment after you have been hiking around the local glaciers for a day. My only drawback was that it lacked a hop bitterness to balance out the sweetness, a little too sweet for me but a very nice blonde lager none the less.
SHOLKEN ROJA, RED, ARGENTINA, 5%ABV APROX
The Roja poured a deep copper red colour, which came from the roasting of the malts. The beer was very interesting and the liberal use of caramel malt gave the style a very distinct taste. It reminded me of Dulce De Leche which is a sweet caramel spread that is used a lot in Argentina, a little like Nutella. The aroma was of roasted malt with caramel and chocolate. The taste was pretty much caramel from start to finish. Again maybe the beer lacked hops for bitterness but it was delicious with a creamy smoothness and a long finish.
SHOLKEN NEGRA, BLACK, ARGENTINA, 6%ABV APROX
Rather than a black beer the Sholken Negra poured a deep dark brown colour with a nice white head that gave a great contrast in the glass like a pint of good old Irish stuff Guinness. The aroma was of dark roasted malt, caramelised sugar and coffee with a nice smoky element. Expecting maybe a Porter style the body was medium with a great selection of flavours from coffee to caramel and dark chocolate. It did have sweetness about it but unlike the other two brews there was a great balance of powerful hops with the bitterness bringing it back down to earth. I was happily impressed with the Negra and it worked extremely well in the gravy for our barbequed Argentinean steak. One thing to point out was after a litre bottle with a meal that was enough, great for a tasty beer but maybe not too many in any one session.
Overall a great range from an atmospheric family micro-brewery in the depths of Argentina. Massive thanks for their hospitality and we move on with great affection for our experience. Sholken is quite possibly the best beer we have tried to date on the World Adventure. Let’s pray that we see it again one day outside of Patagonia. The guys at Sholken are looking to expand in the near future maybe north towards El Bolson and then more widely in Argentina. This is likely to be a slow process, for other parts of the world who knows when or if ever.
http://www.facebook.com/#!/cerveza.sholken
With plenty of days in El Calafate we had time to relax and make sure we sampled more local specialities like the lamb stew at Cambalache Resto Bar which was pretty special. Down here in Patagonia there are more sheep than cows and the lamb is superb.
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| Cambalache. Great local food and some nice beers all at great backpacker prices |
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| The Patagonian Lamb Strew so so tender and delicious |
We have had the most amazing time in the depths of Patagonia where sitting next to the fire looking at the amazing views of the lake and mountains never got boring. The place was an overdose of great people, food, beer, wine, dogs & of course the glacier. I Keu Ken was by far the best hostel I have ever stayed in and just over a year old. It’s a must for everyone who travels down there especially the budget ridden backpackers.
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| Breakfast time sunrise and couldn't resist getting the I Keu Ken VW in |
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| Cheers Patagonia and El Calafate, amazing part of the planet |
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| I Keu Ken Voted Best Atmosphere 2010 and now 2011. We agree great hostel |
All great things must come to an end and it was time for us to head to Bariloche. A twenty eight hour journey awaited us with yet another £200 bus fare tag which we nearly missed sorting out a 30th birthday card on Moonpig for Mr. Ellis! We arrived at the bus station with seconds to spare but we made it. Four hours to Rio Gallegos where we had a quick bus change onto our direct Taqsa bus to Bariloche.
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| Cama Time!!! |
This however was going to be awesome as we had to travel cama style. Unlike semi cama which is good, on cama you have all the services while sat in your very own lazy boy. It was going to be a good journey. On board meals that included dinner and breakfast and lots of great movies in English to help the time flow by while taking in the bypassing landscapes.
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| Next stop Bariloche... |
Goodbye Patagonia and hello to the Lake District region of Argentina.
