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| by Tina Caputo |
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The first time I tried Mexican wine I pretty much expected it to suck. After all, who ever heard of a good wine from the land of tequila? But there I was, faced with the wine list at an upscale-ish restaurant in Mexico, and it just seemed weird to order a wine from, say, France.
Instead, I chose a sauvignon blanc from Mexico's Baja Peninsula and hoped I'd be able to choke it down. To my delighted amazement the wine was good -- and not just in a "this-ain't-so-bad-for-Mexican-wine" way. In fact, the wine was good in an "I-would-actually-buy-this" way! I figured it had to be a fluke, but on further investigation I learned that there are actually quite a few tasty wines coming out of that region. Who knew? And, more importantly, why didn't anybody bother tellin' me? Just how long had I been missing out on the fine vino of an entire nation? The answer was worse than I thought: Folks have been making wine in Baja for almost 300 years! A Brief History of Vino Mexicano According to legend, a Jesuit priest named Father Juan de Ugarge planted the Baja Peninsula's first grapevines in 1701, when he took over the Loreto mission. The early Mexican wines weren't exactly renowned for their quality, which might explain why cerveza and tequila became the beverages of choice. It wasn't until a mere decade ago that things began to improve in the wine arena. Although the potential was always there, people just weren't interested in making fine wine in Mexico. This is hardly surprising when you consider that, until recently, only about four people in Mexico were actually drinking the stuff. According to U.S. Department of Agriculture statistics, annual per capita wine consumption in Mexico is a mere eighth of a gallon, as compared to about two gallons in the United States. Those who did enjoy wine tended to go for French or California labels because it wasn't considered "cool" to drink Mexican wine. |
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So what changed?
In the late 1980s, a new crop of wineries arrived on the scene, touching off a Mexican wine renaissance. Not content to continue the industrial winemaking practices of their predecessors, these new kids on the block were out to make world-class wines in Mexico. Not only that, they were willing to invest the time and dinero to make it happen. Mexico's first boutique wineries were born as producers built state-of-the-art wineries and hired French-trained winemakers. Wineries like Monte Xanic and Chateau Camou were soon achieving levels of quality that blew other producers away. Not wanting to miss the boat, older companies, like Santo Tomas and L.A. Cetto, began making fine wines and insisting on higher levels of quality. Luckily, these improvements didn't go unnoticed by the rest of the world. Today, a number of Mexican wineries are exporting their fine vinos to the United States, Europe and even France. I'll bet Father Juan would drink to that! |
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Baja California: Mexico's answer to the Napa Valley
The heart of the Mexican wine country lies near Ensenada on the Baja Peninsula, about 75 miles south of San Diego. Baja is divided into three winegrowing regions: San Antonio de las Minas, San Vincente Valley and Santo Tomas Valley. San Antonio de las Minas is home to the Valley of Guadalupe, Mexico's most important wine region. Baja's climate and soil have been compared to those of Napa and France's Rhone Valley. The climate is Mediterranean, with rainy winters, followed by dry springs and summers. Thanks to a variety of additional microclimates, a wide range of grape varieties is grown, including chardonnay, chenin blanc, sauvignon blanc, barbera, cabernet, syrah, tempranillo, merlot and cabernet franc. |
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Meet the Wineries
There are nearly a dozen wineries in Baja today, with more popping up each year. Just thinking about it makes a gal thirsty! But before we get to the tasting part, let's get to know a few of Mexico's most important (and tastiest) wine producers.
BODEGAS SANTO TOMAS Founded in 1882, Santo Tomas is Mexico's oldest continuously operating winery and its best-known producer. Most of the winery's vineyards are located in the Santo Tomas Valley, with a small amount of acreage in San Antonio de las Minas and the San Vincente Valley. French-trained winemaker Hugo D'Acosa produces about 200,000 cases a year, including chenin blanc, chardonnay, merlot, cabernet sauvignon, barbera and tempranillo. Santo Tomas is also known for producing an acclaimed wine in conjunction with California's Wente Vineyards. Known as Dueto, the wine is a 50-50 blend of Santo Tomas and Wente wines.
CHATEAU CAMOU Located in Ca-ada del Trigo, Chateau Camou was founded in 1995. Although a relative newcomer to the Baja wine scene, this ultra-modern winery is considered one of Mexico's finest. (If you don't believe me, ask Robert Mondavi. On a recent visit to Camou he reportedly said, "You make your wines like I make Opus One.") Chateau Camou's winemaker, Victor Manuel Torres Alegre, studied enology at the University of Bordeaux, in France, and has 15 years of winemaking experience under his belt. Along with a particularly successful barrel-fermented fume blanc, the winery is known for its exhaustive vineyard maintenance techniques, sophisticated gravity pressing system and state-of-the-art equipment.
L.A. CETTO Located in the famous Valley of Guadalupe, L.A. Cetto is owned by a large spirits producer whose main focus is brandy. The company began making tasty and reasonably Špriced table wines in 1926. Highly praised for its nebbiolo, Cetto also makes cabernet sauvignon, petite sirah, fume blanc, chardonnay and zinfandel.
MONTE XANIC Founded in 1988, Monte Xanic was one of the first Mexican wineries to aim for top quality. Its vineyards are cultivated using both traditional and modern techniques, and yields are deliberately kept low to produce more concentrated grapes. Winemaker Hans Backhoff uses cutting-edge winemaking techniques and advanced technology to produce Mexican wines in the style of Bordeaux. The winery produces chardonnay, merlot-cabernet, cabernet franc, cabernet sauvignon, merlot and a sauvignon blanc-semillon blend called Vi-a Kristel. All wines are aged in French oak. |
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Baja Wine Reviews
Whites:
Chateau Camou
Chateau Camou
L.A. Cetto
Monte Xanic
Monte Xanic
Santo Tomas Reds:
Chateau Camou
Chateau Camou
L.A. Cetto
L.A. Cetto
Monte Xanic
Monte Xanic
Monte Xanic
Santo Tomas
Santo Tomas |
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