Tasting Mexican Wines, Granvas © Spaswinefood
Before sharing the wines we tasted below is a brief overview of Mexico's wine regions.
Wine Regions of Mexico
Baja California is where the majority of Mexican wine is produced (80-90% depending on the source). Other Mexican wine regions are Sonora, Cohauila, Durango, Zucatecas, Aguascalientes area, and Querétaro. Baja, located just north of 30° latitude, is a region that benefits from the cooling breezes off the Pacific Ocean. Its major wine-making sub-regions include: Valle de Guadalupe, Valle de Calafia, Valle de San Vincente, and Valle de Santo Tomás. Valle de Guadalupe, Mexico's wine-making center, is where most of the wines are produced. Sonora on the northwest coast of the Mexican mainland, is the other northerly Mexican wine area. Mexico's La Laguna wine region straddles the states, Durango and Coahuila. While Durango grapes are primarily used for brandy production, Coahuila has a prized wine growing area, Valle de Parras. Valle de Parras is home to the oldest winery in North America, Casa Madero, founded in 1597. Originally planted by the Spaniards its vineyards are located at nearly 5000 feet altitude, providing a much cooler microclimate suitable than the surrounding areas, and hence ideal for wine grape growing. Central Mexico's Zacatecas, Aguascalientes, Guanajuato and Querétaro also produce wine.
Some have described Mexico as a melting pot of French, Spanish, and Italian grapes. Mexico is where you will from Nebbiolo to Chenin Blanc on list. Wine blends are quite popular however, recently single varietal wines are also gaining in popularity.
What follows is my into to some Mexican wines.
This wine is a blend of Chardonnay, Macabeo, and Moscatel.
I would need to taste more Tempranillos from Valle de Guadalupe to better judge this wine.
The majority of us like this Coahuila Zapa wine blend.
The second Baja red wine from Valle de San Vincente was another red wine blend (Cabernet Sauvignon, Niebbolo and Tempranillo).
By the end of the tasting we sampled a wide range of wines and conversed with our Granvas host, Maurico Cervera.
This Alxima wine was a bit hit with us on February 14th. I am glad we selected it to try. Amongst the white wines we tasted it is my top pick.
For us February 14th, celebrating Valentines Day 2023 and 11th Winelover Anniversary was a great day of Mexican Wines.
Vidanta's Bistro Bleu
One of our last outings was to Vidanta's Bistro Bleu.
Here we took in the views, enjoy the food and engaged in wonderful conversations with friends.
Dinner with Mexican Wine was a great way to finish our wine travels.
Now is time to checkout Mexican wines. Indeed if our travels take you to Puerto Vallarta there are wine opportunities to explore. Special thanks to our friends Norma and Leo for being the most fabulous host during our visit. Hats off to Maurico Cervera, Granvas for a great introduction to Mexican Wines. I invite you to join me in our wine travels in Mexico and elsewhere at Wine Travels with Dr. Sharon, and at Spaswinefood on Twitter and Facebook. I am so looking forward to continuing future Mexican vine-filled explorations.
1. Wine Folly’s overview of Mexican wine regions: https://winefolly.com/deep-dive/an-overview-of-mexican-wine-country/
2. Wine Enthusiast Mexican Wine Regions: https://www.winemag.com/2020/08/18/mexico-best-wine-guide/
3. Valle de Guadalupe produces 80% of the wines in Mexico https://www.wine-searcher.com/regions-valle+de+guadalupe
4. Award winning wines: https://uncorkmexico.com/blog/award-winning-mexican-wines/
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