Caminos y Sabores 2018 - July 6-9th

As usual, the fair Caminos y Sabores returns at La Rural also this year. For those who have never attended, it is a fair showcasing mainly national produce (75%), plus some artisanal goods made of wood, wool or leather (20%) and generic touristic booths (5%).

• Food: dulce de leche, alfajores, marmalade, honey, dulces en almibar, cheese, cured meat, wine, spirits, beer, algae (yes! from Patagonia), cured fish, oil, olives, mate, spices
• Products: artisanal beauty products, decorations, clothing
• Tourism booths: usually the province of Salta, LA Rioja, Tucumán, Buenos Aires have touristic booths with handouts.

For now, only the dates have been announced, but it usually has an entry fee, free samplings inside (if you make it to the booths) and various discount options on the admission (such as with certain cable providers, if subscribed to main newspaper, or if elder).

The first day is a Thursday afternoon, and it is quieter. On Friday it start getting buzzing, and in the weekend is quite impossible to reach the booths during peak hours (from 1PM to 7PM). Will post more as soon as info are made public.

Last year I arrived on Thursday morning by plane (from my European tour) and made it to the fair in the afternoon. Totally worth it! The sellers were still patient and chatting with the little crowd of early birds. I guess that by Sunday night they are burnt out!

We buy our olive oil there, from a producer from La Rioja. It is called Petrus and there is also a reseller in Capital, however the price you can get at the fair is unbeatable.

Quote from Rice

I'm so envious that we can't be there, after enjoying your delicious Petrus recently.

Besides the foods and wines, are the artisan offerings interesting? At Mataderos, I love the bracelets made of cattle horns, the cutting boards, the rustic furniture. Do they have these things at La Rural for this fería?

YES, some booths offer 'pampeana' art crafts (silver, leather, wood, horn) and slightly a bigger number offer artisanal product from the North, such as lama-wool sweaters and blanket (VERY WARM!), caps, gloves, small wooden statues of animals, masks colored with bright paint, braided baskets and carpets, etc.

My favorites of the feria are:

• arrope de tuna: marmalade made of Indian fig, delicious

• quesillo: a plain, long strip of white cheese typical of the Salta province, served as a dessert together with something sweet (arrope de tuna, batatas en almibar, quaresmillos, etc.)

• Algae from ArgenVITA. They cultivate various kind of alga and they sell both dried algae and product made with algae. I am using their body soap and cream and it is very gentle on the skin! They also produce agar agar (which is vegetal jelly)