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San Carlos is a wine subregion of the Uco Valley in Mendoza, Argentina. Malbec is the region's star grape variety; red wines produced in San Carlos tend to be bright and bold, with characteristic floral aromas.

While Malbec is by far the dominant grape variety in San Carlos, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay and Syrah can be found planted throughout the region as well.

The region is located in the southernmost part of the valley, and is centered on the small towns of San Carlos and Eugenio Bustos. The vineyard area of San Carlos lies between the imposing Andes Mountains in the west and a much lower set of infertile hills that separate the Uco Valley from lower-lying parts of Mendoza in the east.

As in most of the Uco Valley, the high altitude of San Carlos – around 1000m (3300ft) above sea level – has the most profound effect on the region's terroir. Intense sunlight during the day is cooled in the evening by winds from the Andes, and it is this diurnal temperature variation that extends the growing season in San Carlos, leading to grapes with a balance of ripeness and acidity.

The alluvial terrain is made up of a clay and rock base with a stony, sandy surface, and is perfect for viticulture. Dry and free-draining, the soils force the vines to work hard for hydration and nutrients, leading to healthier, stronger plants that produce higher-quality grapes.

Mendoza's position in the rain shadow of the Andes allows viticulturists a great deal of control over the growth of the vines through the use of drip and flood irrigation. High-quality Andean meltwater for this comes from the nearby Tunuyan River.

The neighboring La Consulta wine sub-region lies only ten kilometers (six miles) to the west of San Carlos town, so the distinctions between these regions are sometimes very fine-grained. Administratively speaking, La Consulta is actually an area within San Carlos, but they are independently distinguished in viticultural definitions.

The first Malbec vines from France are said to have been planted in San Carlos in the 1880s by a landowner named Eugenio Bustos, who lends his name to the town mentioned earlier. Despite this historical claim to fame, viticulture in the wider Uco Valley didn't really begin to take off until the 1980s.

Now, some of Argentina's most famous wine estates have vineyards in San Carlos. These include Catena Zapata and Finca la Celia.