Good Stuff From Jumbo

[Redpossum]

Pinot de la Loire is Chenin Blanc, which is not the same as a Pinot Grigio.

Oho, I stand corrected, thank you, Lamb!
I'm not an oenophile by any means. In truth I have only a waiter's knowledge of wine.

So which grape is it made with, the Pinot Grigio or the Pinot Noir?

 

[Lamb]

Oho, I stand corrected, thank you, Lamb!
I'm not an oenophile by any means. In truth I have only a waiter's knowledge of wine.

So which grape is it made with, the Pinot Grigio or the Pinot Noir?

Neither, its made with Chenin Blanc that is known under many names, like the Pinot de la Loire as it says on your bottle. Thats the confusing part, as its not the same grape as the Pinot Noir/Blanc/Gris types, although similar.

 

[Redpossum]

Neither, its made with Chenin Blanc that is known under many names, like the Pinot de la Loire as it says on your bottle. Thats the confusing part, as its not the same grape as the Pinot Noir/Blanc/Gris types, although similar.

Thanks again for the info! I've had European chenin blanc, and it definitely had even more fruit than this. So, judged as a chenin blanc, this is actually a bit on the dry side, rather than being a slightly-too-sweet Pinot Grigio.

So what else can you tell me about Argentine white wines? I mean, I love the reds with some foods, but not with everything.

 

[scotttswan]

I wonder if the international chains have as shitty customer service abroad as they do here. They can't have though, how would they have been able to grow so big if they did. It's like they came here saw the competition and went fuck it no need to bother.

 

[Redpossum]

I wonder if the international chains have as shitty customer service abroad as they do here. They can't have though, how would they have been able to grow so big if they did. It's like they came here saw the competition and went fuck it no need to bother.

Interesting question. I know it is possible to achieve something very close to US expectations of customer service here in Argentina, (without meaning to say whether this is reasonable or not), because I saw it at a hotel on Rivadavia called Uno Suites. The staff there were truly "on the bounce". Everything worked, and worked right the first time. Things happened on schedule. When I had a problem figuring out the security box in my room, I called the front desk, and a young lady who spoke near-fluent English came right up to my room to show me how it worked. I have no idea what wages they were paying or what standards of internal discipline they enforced, but something certainly worked. I was impressed then, and even more so now that I have had a few months to see what average standards of customer service are like.

 

[Gringoboy]

Perhaps it's got something to do with the wages they pay them here? I don't know.
I find supermarket shopping here to be a nauseating and depressing experience and whilst I realise that there are far more important things to worry about, it's a pretty major chunk of of our lives.
The Coto near us is a disorganised and filthy mess and the overpriced Disco on Maipu, Olivos is staffed by surly staff who are determined not to be charming and aren't the slightest bit interested.
I can just about manage to get in and out of one by myself without losing it completely.

 

[Redpossum]

Perhaps it's got something to do with the wages they pay them here? I don't know.
I find supermarket shopping here to be a nauseating and depressing experience and whilst I realise that there are far more important things to worry about, it's a pretty major chunk of of our lives.
The Coto near us is a disorganised and filthy mess and the overpriced Disco on Maipu, Olivos is staffed by surly staff who are determined not to be charming and aren't the slightest bit interested.
I can just about manage to get in and out of one by myself without losing it completely.

I've been quite happy with Jumbo Almagro, even by US standards.

 

[argsteve]

my guess on the lack of customer service or even wanting to work or help customers is the whole argentina labor system.....

When you get the job..... once you get in full time... really nobody is going to fire you since they dont want to pay you the extra money required to fire someone.....

Unless you are just deep down care and are a hard worker and someone who just wants to provide superior customer service ( and you do see this sometimes... but rare) ... then you end up like you average service worker... basically - why are you bothering me to come into the store and buy something!

So if you cant or will never get fired and are making crappy money and even if you do work your ass off it is not noticed, welcomed or rewarded...then you just become your average Coto employee.....

 

[jantango]

Rather than making comparisons to USA stores and standards, here is a comparison of those available in Argentina.

Jumbo's history:

En 1960 en la ciudad de Temuco, al sur de Chile una familia fundó un supermercado que luego sería pionero en la historia de los supermercados. Siguiendo estelegado, en 1976 nace en Santiago de Chile, Jumbo Kennedy, el primer Hipermercado Jumbo en éste país. Siempre apuntando a crear un nuevo concepto comercial, caracterizado por ofrecer mayor variedad, calidad y comodidad logrando una mejor experiencia de compra. Con la visión vanguardista de crecimiento permanente que caracteriza a la Compañía, en el año 1982 se inauguró el primer Hipermercado Jumbo en Capital Federal, Jumbo Parque Brown.
Hoy contamos con 24 sucursales en distribuidas en Buenos Aires, Rosario, Mendoza, Salta, Neuquén y Tucumán. En Jumbo nos encontramos en constante expansión, acompañado por un plan de capacitación del grupo humano que lo conforma, ya que el constante desarrollo e incorporación de personal local es una clave fundamental para asegurar el éxito de la organización. Es por esto que el desafío para enfrentar el futuro corresponde a toda la organización en su conjunto y de esta manera, sigue afirmando a nuestros clientes que siempre: "Jumbo te da más". [Jumbo gives you more.]

CARREFOUR S.A. - A French multinational retailer and one of the largest hypermarket chains in the world.

DISCO S.A. - An Argentine company started in 1961; 120 stores.

COTO S.A. - began in 1970 (Argentina) when Alfredo Coto was the first meat producer to sell directly to consumers. Their moto is: always the best prices.

DIA began in 1979 in Spain with its first store in Madrid. Commitment to quality, price and customer satisfaction. They have stores in France, Portugal, China, Spain and China.

My preference is the local Chinese-owned grocery a block from my front door that doesn't play loud music, doesn't change the location of products every other week, and that doesn't add any advertising/marketing cost to their prices because they don't do any. I can get in and out of the store in 15-20 minutes, less than the minimum time waiting in line at COTO (unless shopping at midday).

 

[Lamb]

Thanks again for the info! I've had European chenin blanc, and it definitely had even more fruit than this. So, judged as a chenin blanc, this is actually a bit on the dry side, rather than being a slightly-too-sweet Pinot Grigio.

So what else can you tell me about Argentine white wines? I mean, I love the reds with some foods, but not with everything.

Im not an expert on wines either, some of my family works with wines so ive heard quite a lot of talks about it and learned a bit from them but not in a very structured manner. I really like a lot of Pinot Grigio wine and until recently never enjoyed much red wine, but im starting to like it more. I suppose Argentinas Torrontés wouldnt please you too much if you find Pinot Grigio too sweet, as far as ive tasted them theyve always been much sweeter. They do make a lot of Chardonnay though, or have you gotten a bit tired of those? Sometimes i think that the country where it was grown says more than the type of wine, as i find myself often enjoying very different wines from the same place, but not liking the same grape grown elsewhere. It just a matter of trying and tasting in the end i suppose. Im not sure how much you do or dont know, but this is one infographic i find useful:
http://winefolly.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Different-Types-of-Wine-v2.jpg#fullsize