Algodon Mansion Update!

Gerhard Heusch's recent email to me regarding Algodon Mansion’s construction was enlightening and exciting. Here’s a brief summary of the latest accomplishments; the marble in the bathrooms and dressing rooms are almost complete; all of the kitchen equipment has been delivered and has been positioned. Diego Coll Benegas will visit the site this week to check the equipment and oversee its installation; the contractor began the installation of the balcony floors earlier this week; he will begin installing the basement wood flooring next week; a notable, specialized carpenter was recently hired for some intricate woodwork needed on the ground floor, his reputation precedes him and we’re all excited about his addition to the team; our glass contractor has begun work on the light shaft; the rooftop pool is being prepared for tiling; and our stucco/molder contractor is continuing work on the main foyer and has recently begun work on the ground floor elevator hall.

--Scott Mathis

Algodon Wine Estates - Tennis Complex Update

José Luis Clerc is very enthusiastic about the prospect of bringing a challenger tournament and tennis clinics to Algodon Wine Estates in the fall, which of course would be welcomed publicity for us as well. An updated preliminary layout of the courts has been designed and includes the following; the tribunes of the sunken center court will be on all four sides in order to accommodate more people, and a row of six tennis courts in the south will be constructed first. José Luis wants to use the two on the west side as training courts, one set of double courts shall ideally have lights, and we need to provide access pathways to the courts. José Luis thinks that the grass court would be a big attraction and will lend a lot of credence to Algodon Wine Estates, and since we have the experts and machines to do a grass court, he recommends doing this right away. This is going to be a very busy summer. I’m impressed with how quickly construction has moved at Algodon Wine Estates; new construction seems to get done almost overnight sometimes. Big changes are literally right around the corner. -Scott Mathis

Golf & Tennis Clubhouse Update

I’ve been in recent conversations with Gerhard Heusch and José Luis Clerc, and we’ve made some preliminary decisions regarding our new clubhouse facilities and the direction we want to move in. They include changing rooms for both golf and tennis players which feature 10 showers each as well as lockers. We also want to include separate locker-room areas, steam showers, sauna, massage room, and a lounge with a television, Wi-Fi, telephone, and bar, etc. In terms of the Pro shops, we would like to have one for tennis and a separate one for golf. We’re eager to finish construction by the fall in order to be ready for a challenger tournament that we’d like to host later this year. Jose Luis has emphasized that the locker rooms and lounge areas should be of exceptional quality and design, because this is what sways players to come and play there often, and perhaps make a change from the local club that they already belong to. I’m in total agreement with this. -Scott Mathis

AWE in USA Today & Argentine Wine Imports Are Up!

In case you missed the announcement in our newsletter, we made a recent appearance in USA Today and a few others notable publications including DailyCandy.com, The Buenos Aires Times, MSNBC.com, and The Tampa Tribune. I try my best to keep this online journal as updated as I can regarding these media mentions, and it pleases me to say that some months it’s difficult to keep up because there are so many to report. A great article was forwarded to me recently, in which a California wine importer has reported a 34% increase in Argentine wine imports; “For the last 10 years, we’ve watched the demand for Argentine wines grow year after year…” You can read the full article here. I find articles like this almost on a daily basis. They all seem to say the same thing over and over; which is that despite the global economic slowdown, the Argentine wine industry is booming in the U.S.

Congratulations AWE staff on a job well done!

I am very pleased and excited to announce our progress on Algodon Wine Estate’s 18 hole golf course. Our staff in San Rafael has been doing an incredibly commendable job, and the work is now officially complete! Pumping stations, sprinklers, and irrigation are fully operational and in precise working and automatic order, and the seeding was completed yesterday. We also acquired three brand-new John Deere tractors for use in our vineyards and for our golf course maintenance. Once again, congratulations all, and a special thanks to Rubén Barsamian - Algodon Wine Estates’ Director of Finance & Administration. See you all on the golf course - Fore! -Scott Mathis