Feedback August 2007 to July 2008

I had a marvellous time on both of my wines tours with your company! The guides were excellent; very knowledgeable and friendly. I travelled throughout South America for 6 weeks, taking many tours along the way and I can honestly say the two wines tours provided by your company were the best! They were well organized and interesting. They perfectly balanced visits to both large and small wineries to give an excellent overview of boutique wineries in Mendoza.

Ann Devine, San Francisco, CA

I can't say enough about how great an experience this was. I came to Mendoza to learn more about the wines and wineries of the region. I couldn't have picked an itinerary myself that would have given me the same knowledge I gained with this one day tour that led me from early historical wineries to the present state of the art facilities. I learned lots just from the tour guide while I was on the bus which prepared me for the tours. And each of the stops had warm enthusiastic winery staff giving us personal attention. The lunch was fantastic. It was so much better to have a wine and food pairing rather than to just stop at a local restaurant. It is easy to see why this would attract very interesting participants from all over the world. I had so much fun talking to them also.

Sandra Long, Santa Cruz, CA

My wife Suzanne and I really enjoyed our visit to Mendoza. Your company provides first-rate service and this was very comforting. Making arrangements for a holiday in a foreign location can be challenging and the enjoyment of a vacation depends to a large extent on how smoothly everything goes. We were thrilled with all aspects so please accept our thanks for all your help.

Daniel Cohen, Portsmouth, VA

Easy to book, well-planned tour, well-chosen wineries, great tour guide. And we hope to take your other tour next time we come to Mendoza - and, god-willing, we will definitely be back! All in all a thoroughly professional job - never would have realized you are a new company. Feels like you have been doing this for many years. Especially liked seeing wineries of different sizes and styles - Carinae and Clos de Chacras were awesome - and the luncheon was a wonderful interlude with a chance to talk, share, get to know fellow tour participants. Oh! And the wines: wonderful. We have purchased half a dozen Argentinean wines since returning including two from wineries we visited! Thank you so much.

Walter Jablonski, Poughkeepsie, NY

The planning of the tour was very good! Selection of the wineries was excellent as well as the transportation, the pick up at the hotel and lunch. Without the guide though, the wine tour wouldn't have been as good. The guide was really excellent and could answer any questions one of us had. Thank you for the great experience in wine tasting.

Julia Günther, München, Germany

Our original plan was to try several different tour wine tour companies since I was planning on writing an article about my trip. But, after our first day, we couldn't imagine touring with any other organization. I was extremely impressed with the knowledge that both of our guides, Maria and Connie, displayed about the wineries we toured and wine-making in general. Their personalities, though, were what made the information they shared interesting and fun. The 2 winery lunches we had were some of the best meals of our trip. Your winery tours were far superior to anything I've experienced anywhere else (e.g. U.S., Australia, or New Zealand). The wine makers shared intimate information about their wine-making processes and details that I'd not heard before. Everything from the pick-up to the guides, to the wineries selected, to the winery tours themselves, were top rate. Even the booking of the tour was extremely easy and customer friendly. We were able to pay in a combination of U.S. dollars and Argentinean pesos which greatly helped us out. Web site is user-friendly as well. Your wine tours were highlights of our trip! Thanks much!

Christie Ross, Topeka, KS

I was on the tour in October and it was a highlight of the trip. The guide was outstanding and so sweet- she seemed more like a really knowledgeable, fun friend who was along for the day with us. We just happened to walk by the shop in Mendoza, and I'm so glad we did!

Leslie Mallman, Chicago, IL

I booked online with no problem and even had several communications afterwards. The tour was great. The vineyards that were selected were excellent as well as the tours. We enjoyed visiting the small wineries as opposed to the large ones which we have done in Chile and Tuscany. Martin was our guide and I am going to recommend him to any friend who may want to go to Mendoza. He was so knowledgeable and so pleasant to be with. We loved the lunch. We were in the middle of vineyards and it was like a picture postcard.

Deborah Gilula, St. Louis, MO

Very easy to book. On-time pick up from hotel. We loved the array of wineries visited- from the simple family oriented winery to the larger international type. Tastings were excellent; guides friendly, excited and informative. Lunch was very tasty and the views from the restaurant were beautiful. Guide was great - perfect English.

Heather Magnan, New York, NY

The wine tour was well organized and had a very personal feel to it. Pick up in the morning from our hotel was prompt, and was exactly the arrangements that were discussed on arranging the tour. The wineries we visited had a lovely arrear of wines for us to try including their best wines, staff at the wineries were also very helpful and attentive to any questions we had about their winery and wine making process. The food, wine and company were also excellent and added to a very delightful day. Our tour guide Marie was wonderful explaining every aspect from the wine making process to the business aspect. Our experience on an Ampora wine tour was one of the highlights of our trip to Argentina, we are already recommending them to other friends who visit Mendoza.

Nick Davies, Milton Keynes, UK

In my opinion, solving problems at the last minute provides a more accurate indication of the quality of customer service than when everything runs smoothly. The only problem we encountered, was missing the beginning of the first tour due to the recent time change decision in Argentina. We consider that to be one of those 'hiccups' that's bound to happen sometimes when traveling, and we were extremely impressed by how quickly and efficiently you sorted out the problem by finding transport to catch up with the tour group.
It was very easy to book the tour. Myfanwy was very efficient at communicating with me (all done by email), providing the requested information, making suggestions, and booking our bus tickets.
It was great to get an overview of the Mendoza area and history during the drive to the first winery. As for the tours themselves, they were absolutely terrific. Some of the aspects we particularly appreciated were the highly varied nature (size, processes) of the wineries we visited, the great guides at the wineries and how there was a somewhat different focus on what we learned at each winery. We loved learning the "stories" behind the winemakers and the wines, which for us makes the bottles we purchased that much more meaningful. One of the aspects we both enjoyed was that we were NOT on a private tour; on both days part of the fun of the tour was meeting the other guests and socializing with them for the day. Lastly, but most importantly, we cannot say thanks enough to Leticia - she was an extraordinary guide. She was warm and cheerful, organized, extroverted, full of information, obviously proud of and wanted to share her love of Mendoza.
We are planning to return to Mendoza, and we would not hesitate to book our wine tours with you again, and we would certainly recommend Ampora to anyone looking for high quality, interesting, varied wine tours at excellent prices.

Robin and Michelle Brulotte, Ottawa, Canada

We both thought your wine tour was one of the highlights of our trip both to Mendoza and Argentina. Excellent and knowledgeable guides (this is coming from a grapegrower - winemaker). The lunch spot was excellent out in the vineyard. I would recommend this trip! Thanks.

Stephen Honeychurch, Amador County, CA

Excellent service from the time I responded to your short questionnaire online. Received a personal phone call asking what we were expecting. Your company was very patient in our booking our tour due to a complete change in our original itinerary, changes of dates etc. Our guide Majo Peroni Galli was an excellent host and guide, very informative and personable. We were well informed on all aspects of the each of the vineyards as well as the area history. A pleasure to spend the day together, lots of fun. Lunch was excellent...too much food but beautifully presented and it was delicious. We look forward to being able to return and enjoy another outstanding wine tour. Thank you.”

Len and Laurie Anfindsen, Edmonton, Canada

We had a fantastic wine tour with Ampora. The quality of the wineries was great and we loved our tour guide. The lunch was fantastic! Hard to believe that we had the whole place to ourselves and I appreciated that the tour at each winery was targeted to our questions.

Laura Rooklin, New York, NY

All I can say is everything was just great. It was easy to book and your selection of wineries in the Uco Valley gave a very good representation of the wide spectrum of methods used by different wineries. The wines were very good and the lunch we had at O'Fournier was the best meal we had the entire six weeks we spent in South America. Our guide was very knowledgeable and she went out of her way to help us plan our next day. We would certainly book with you again should we find ourselves in Mendoza and will recommend you to anybody we know coming your way. Thank you for a great day in the Uco Valley.

Janet and Marc Revell, Calgary, Canada

I can't say enough good things about this company! It was very easy to make reservations - I heard back from a representative right after I contacted Ampora through their website. I was given all of the information I needed and everything was straightforward. I think its a great idea to keep the groups small - it adds to the experience and makes it more enjoyable. My tour guide, Maria, was an absolute delight. She was very friendly, knowledgeable, and answered every question the group had. You can tell she enjoys her job! The selection of the wineries were perfect. We got to see everything that goes on "behind the scenes." All of the winery owners we met couldn't be more gracious and made us feel at ease. The variety of the wines I tasted that day were more than I could have imagined. There were enough wines to satisfy every type of palate in addition to being quite affordable. The lunch was absolutely delicious - I ate every single morsel. The chef did an excellent job of pairing the food with the wines that were offered. I keep comparing the Uco Valley tour that my friends and I did with those tours in the United States. Ampora Wine Tours is #1 hands down.

Ann Marie Abt, New York, NY

Everything was very straightforward, and our requests were accommodated nicely. Our tour guide, Luciana, was wonderful and knowledgeable. We very much enjoyed having the three very different types of wineries to visit. The wine tastings were of exceptionally high quality, and we very much appreciated that we were able to taste the 'reserve' vintage wines. Overall, our best day in Argentina, by far! Also very affordable, in comparison to the other tours.

Caye Thomas, Murrysville, PA

I just wanted to send you a note to tell you what a great time I had on the wine tours I did with your company. The sales girl in your office did a great job explaining the tours, she was very helpful. Luli, our guide was a very big part of making that such a great tour. She has the perfect personality, a great knowledge of the city and its history, the specific wineries, and wines in general. Her English is exceptional. I was so impressed with her, that she is the main reason I signed up for the Luján de Cuyo Tour. Both were fabulous. You have a great product, and exceptional people. Thank you for organizing such a wonderful experience.

Craig Torrence, London, UK

We have become unofficial spokespersons for Ampora! We have several friends who are planning travels to Argentina and we have given them your contact information in hopes that they will consider Mendoza and Ampora in their itinerary. We loved every minute of our time with Ampora, our fellow travelers were fantastic, we enjoyed our time getting to know others while we experienced personal tours through a wide range of wine houses.

Tom and Michelle Doers, Tampa, FL

I thought the tours were generally excellent. The trip to Luján de Cuyo was wonderful. Maria was a stunning guide. Then we went to Aconcagua and Cesar was also the most wonderful guide and Leo, our driver, was great - a great driver and very helpful as well. And when the ATM ate our debit card, it was very easy to come back to the office and use your phone to cancel the card immediately. Crisis averted! We then went to Maipú with Martin whose knowledge of wine was just incredible. I thought that everything was extremely well handled, the lunches were spectacular, and the guides and drivers were outstanding. We had the most wonderful experiences, including running into Señor Ortega of O'Fournier at the airport, where he recognized us and came over and said hello. Such graciousness on the part of a winery owner says a lot about the general graciousness of Mendoza and Argentina. Thank you very much for the most wonderful time.

Elizabeth Uprichard, San Francisco, CA

I have to say I couldn't fault the way you looked after me during my stay in Mendoza. My guide Luli was an excellent guide, knowledgeable about wine, Mendoza and Argentina in general. I thoroughly enjoyed my first day tour to Luján de Cuyo, the highlight of my trip was my day in the Uco Valley. I particularly appreciated the fact that even though I was the only guest on that day, my tour was not cancelled and I had what felt like a VIP tour with car, driver and guide. The wineries visited on both tours were all fascinating, from the architecturally impressive O'Fournier, to the small boutique La Azul winery, and although I was a complete novice about red wines before my trip Mendoza, I am now a true aficionado and have been recommending Argentinean wines to friends since I got home. Additionally both the lunches were excellent, accompanied by fantastic wines! Thanks again for such great hospitality. I will definitely be back and wouldn't hesitate to recommend your company to anyone visiting Mendoza.

David Viner, London, UK

The tours were excellent. Both Luli and Miguel were very enthusiastic and knowledgeable. The lunches we had at Ruca Malen and Andeluna were amazing. We will definitely be back to Mendoza, and without question will do more tours with Ampora. Thanks for everything!! The experience from start to finish was great!!

Steve and Jodi Wimmer, Calgary, Canada

Not only was it easy to book the tour online, but you also made dinner reservations on my behalf. Luli was awesome! She taught us a lot about wine but was also a delight to spend the day with. The wineries were a perfect mixture of small and large and the lunch at O'Fournier was delicious!

Nancy Saulson, Scottsdale, AZ

My tour with Ampora Wine Tours surpassed my expectation. Communicating on the web was fast and easy. The selection of the wineries was interesting and high quality, and showed us the side of Mendoza wine country that would be difficult to see without the help of the local people. The guides were terrific; knowledgeable, helpful and gave answers to often difficult questions about vine growing and wine making practices. The late lunch was very good - food and wine matching, with a splendid view of the mountains. I can highly recommend these wine tours/tastings to everybody wanting to expand their wine experience.

Thors Skulason, Brookfield, WY

Feedback November 2006 to July 2007

I just wanted to let you know how great the wine tour was. It was a great balance between several different types of wineries. And, possibly most importantly, I wanted to comment on how wonderful Maria was. She was quite possibly the best tour guide of any sort that I have ever had.

Keron Lenz, San Francisco, CA

I wanted to send my sincere “thanks” for such a wonderful and well thought out winery tour through Mendoza. Maria was outstanding and so very knowledgeable of the wine industry and of the region as well. We had so much fun!

Lisa Pavageau, St. Helena, Napa Valley, CA

Everything about the day was delightful, from the initial booking to stopping by afterwards to say hello. We loved it. Our trip was with other English speakers and the guide was excellent. The wineries were great, both regarding the wines we tasted and the overviews they gave of their sectors of the market.

Bob Greenberg, Knoxville, TN

My friends and I went on one of your wine tours in the Uco Valley last week. I was just writing to say what a great day out all of us had.
Our tour guide, Maria, was fantastic. She was very informative about the wines we tasted and the areas we visited. She made us all feel so welcome and fitted in well within our group.
Lunch was great, it went on I think for at least 2 hours and the wine kept flowing, pretty soon we were all giggling and having a great time. I really did lose count of how many bottles we had. The food was great, I and one of my friends were vegetarian, quite often you find that you just get given a bad salad. However they really made us great veggie food and my friends really enjoyed their meat too. It really was one of the nicest relaxing lunches I've ever had.
The staff at all the wineries made us feel so welcome, something we noticed throughout Argentina, and the tours and tastings were great. The scenery was breathtaking!!!!!
They say that you judge a country by the people you meet, well Maria was a great ambassador for your country and your company.
I would also say that the trip was fantastic value for money.
I will definitely be recommending the following to all of my friends:
A. Visit Argentina
B. Visit Mendoza
C. Use your company.
Thanks for a great day out.

Mark Davis, London, UK

We were privileged to spend three days touring in three different regions in the Mendoza area conducted by Ampora Wine Tours. From the initial contact made by phone from the United States, followed by detailed itineraries for our consideration by e-mail, and culminating in a group tour one day, and two days of private touring, the experience was seamless. A very high accolade from a couple who live in Sonoma, CA, a number of vintners among our friends.

Gae Shulman, Sonoma, CA

The wineries selected offered a fine range and keeping the number to three was correct. The lunches were excellent too: Lucas is a superb chef. But the real star was our guide, Martin. He was courteous and efficient with a detailed knowledge put at our disposal. I feel that the guide is critical to these tours. ... To put it in a nutshell, you will be my first point of contact the next time I visit Mendoza, and I cannot wait!!

Jonathan Sparke, Cotignac, Var, France

Everything was absolutely fabulous. We usually don't sign up for tours, preferring to explore on our own, but we were so glad we took the tour with Maria as our guide. It was money well spent. Maria was a lot of fun and had so much great information. We already know a lot about wine and the grape growing process from winery/vineyard tours all over the US, but Maria and the hosts at the wineries we visited gave us more in-depth answers to our questions than we are used to.

Allory Bauer, Seattle, WA

We had a fabulous time on both days of our wine tours. We like the idea of going to different size wineries. Your guides were great. Constanza was really fun. Both lunches at Ruca Malen and at O'Fournier were exquisite. Hopefully we can visit again with friends and do another winery tour. Thanks for the good time.

Bernd Kornow, Rocklin, CA

We booked directly in the office after we arrived in Mendoza. Our guide both days, Maria, was excellent! The choice of wineries (though they weren't ones we'd been familiar with previously) was varied and great choices, as were the lunches. We thoroughly enjoyed our two days and would highly recommend your tours to others.

Jim and Marty Fulton, Grants Pass, OR

I can't think of any way to improve. It was an outstanding tour. Our tour guide was excellent. She really knew a lot about wines and fit in with our group like she was our friend from way back. The lunch was phenomenal! Five courses that just kept coming along with delicious pairings of wine in a serene setting. It was Utopia. Kai was a very patient and accommodating tour planner. Everything just came together perfectly! For me, this was the highlight of our trip to Argentina.

Brian Niemiec, Takoma Park, MD