Fundada en 1896
Juan Giol and Bautista Gargantini
With asado, with fútbol or just hanging out with friends...
in Argentina we drink Toro.
OUR WINES
VARIETAL WINES
Created more than 120 years ago to brighten the dinner tables of Argentina’s European immigrants, Toro Centenario offers a versatile collection of varietal wines, led by its deep, fruit-forward Malbec. Each of these wines expresses the authenticity, sophistication and value of the Mendoza wine region.
LOS LABURANTES
Dedicated to the workers for whom the Toro founders created their original wine blend in 1896, Los Laburantes offers two iconic red varietals, Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon, delivering impressive terroir transparency and quality in the glass for discriminating consumers from every walk of life.
The Origins of Modern Winemaking in Argentina
TORO: FIRST WINE OF ARGENTINA
In 1890, Bautista Gerónimo Gargantini and Juan Giol rented a small winery in the town of Maipú, Argentina. They could only afford three oak barrels, having recently immigrated from Europe with limited means.
After years of trial and error, in 1896 the two partners found their perfect blend: a wine they first called «Cabeza de Toro,» then simply «Vino Toro.”
By 1910 annual production had grown to 43 million liters, making their winery the largest in the world. Demand for Toro was so great, the partners constructed a pipeline to carry the wine it to a nearby railway station, where it was loaded into tank-cars and shipped to Buenos Aires.
Today, well over a century after Bautista Gargantini and Juan Giol developed their beloved Toro formula, Bodega Toro continues to bring enjoyment to millions of wine lovers throughout the world. In its home market of Argentina, the brand is by far the country’s most popular wine with 20% market share of all wine consumed there.
THE YIN AND YANG OF A WORLD-CLASS WINE
Terroir Soul Mates
The evolution of high-quality winemaking in Argentina truly began when agronomist Michel Aimé Pouguet brought vine cuttings to Mendoza from France. These included a unique clone of Malbec.
The Malbec grape adapted effortlessly to the dry highland terroir of Mendoza, providing ample yields and a generous, flavor-intensive wine style.
While the wealthy set of Mendoza in the late 1800’s focused on wheat and cattle, it was common people that cared about wine. By the end of the 19th century, they had come to love Malbec. This “peasant rebellion” eventually made Malbec Argentina’s wine of choice.
Malbec found its destiny in Argentina, now universally recognized as one of the world’s great terroirs. Thanks to M. Pouget and wineries like Bodega Toro, Malbec remains an accessible wine enjoyed throughout the world to this day, wherever families and good friends get together.
Bodega Toro’s winegrowers work their own family vineyards passed on from generation to generation.
A Grower-Owned Winery
Having created the style of wine they were seeking, the founders of Bodega Toro also articulated a vision and sense of purpose for their new winery. Bautista Gargantini and Juan Giol wanted to produce wine that their own neighbors and friends could enjoy any day of the week: a wine “por laburantes para laburantes”.
This same goal has somehow remained intact over the years. Since 1980 Bodega Toro winery has operated as a fair-trade cooperative business model, with 100% of grape supply coming from a dedicated community of several thousand small to mid-sized winegrowers spread throughout the Mendoza wine region.
These grower-owners participate directly in the winery’s governance through a democratic system that provides fair market prices for their grapes.
Although they eventually returned to lands of their birth, the two old companions and partners established a 125-year legacy of full-flavored Argentine wine crafted by and for people in the workplace.
Contact
Stay in touch.
