Indeed, I do not. During a week-long family vacation to Mexico City over Christmas last year, we drank a range of intriguing and excellent wines from Mexico, along with Tequila, Mezcal and beer, of course. My takeaway message, in addition to finding some surprisingly good Sauvignon Blancs, Nebbiolos, and orange wines, was the seeming attitude of “let’s see what works.” Although the availability of Mexican wines in general is limited in the U.S., I am writing about them because many of the ones I tasted show the promise of what that country can produce. So, consumers should be aware of Mexican wines because we’re likely to see many more of them in the future.
At first glance it might seem that Mexico has too hot a climate for making fine wine. It’s true that too much heat is detrimental to making invigorating wine because the grapes lose their acidity as they get too ripe. The resulting wine is flabby and lacks energy. But look at Sicily or Greece, areas that produce plenty of terrific wines despite being famously southerly and hot in the European context. The way to mitigate the heat, be it in Sicily, Greece or Mexico, is to plant vines at higher—hence cooler—elevations or near the sea to take advantage of its cooling influences.
Mexico has both. Mexico City itself sits at over 7,000 feet above sea level and the wine-producing states sit at 10,000 feet above sea (asl), comparable to Mendoza in Argentina, where producers like Catena have refined the art of making sensational wine at high elevation. Mexico’s Guadeloupe Valley, the most well-known winemaking area in Baja California, sits about 20 miles from the Pacific Ocean, making it closer to the ocean than the Napa Valley. (More on those wines in the future from Michael Franz, my friend and colleague here at WRO).
So, if Mexico has the requisite geography, and some fine wines, as I discovered, why does it not have a thriving wine industry like Chile and Argentina, two other countries with Spanish influences? For a country to have a strong wine industry it either needs a robust domestic market, like Argentina, or a powerful export mentality, like Chile. Manuel Negrete, Wine Director, Wine Bar by Concours Mondiale de Bruxelles (CMB), explains that Mexico has neither. Even after Mexico achieved independence from Spain in 1821, the Mexicans maintained great animosity towards Spain, according to Negrete. Since drinking wine was associated with Spanish culture, it fell out of favor with the populace, who then turned to and embraced indigenous beverages, tequila and mezcal, in addition to beer. Unlike many European countries today, there is no government support for the wine industry in Mexico. High taxes on wine further discourage a robust domestic market.
Acreage devoted to grapes tells the story. When Cortez conquered Mexico in 1521, a decree required every person to plant 10 vines, which added up to more than a quarter of million acres. Acreage has since fallen to just over 20,000 acres planted to wine grapes, or about half the acreage devoted to grapes in the Napa Valley. Negrete explains that the situation is rapidly changing with great outside investment in vineyards. Over 5,000 acres have been planted in just the last two or three years. Next on the horizon will be designation of appellations, as in Europe and the U.S.
Wine drinking is becoming “cool,” as Manuel puts it, with per capita consumption up at least 5-fold over the last decade. In contrast to Europe, wine consumption in Mexico is rising, according to Negrete. He notes with a smile, “low alcohol [beverages] are not a trend here.”
Although Mexico claims the oldest functioning winery in the Americas, Casa Madero founded in 1597, Negrete notes that the modern Mexican wine industry dates only from the mid-1980s. Despite the absence of precise numbers, in part because of the lack of significant governmental help, according to Negrete, growers seem to have planted more Sauvignon Blanc than Chardonnay. Not surprisingly, Cabernet Sauvignon is the most planted red variety. As is common in a young industry, some producers still fall into the trap of thinking that oak aging equates with serious wine, so more than a few wines I tasted had a signature of oak. That said, the number of energetic, vibrant whites coming from a “hot” country was striking.
Since an appellation system has yet to be established, for now, consumers would benefit from a working knowledge of Mexican geography. Most importantly, of course, as always, is the mark of the producer. But let’s first start with an overview of where Mexican wines are produced.
Baja California, with its just over 11,000 acres of vines, is Mexico’s largest wine producing area. Within Baja, the Valle de Guadalupe accounts for two-thirds of the vines. Although many of Mexico’s wine-producing areas label themselves as a “valley” because of ease of marketing, Valle de Guadalupe actually is one, according to Manuel. He says it is rapidly becoming “Napafied,” with skyrocketing land prices, fancy hotels, and wine tourism. He notes that water scarcity remains an enormous problem there.
The state of Coahuila has poor limestone-rich soils ideal for vines and vineyards that sit at some 9,000 feet asl. Diurnal swings in temperature there can reach an astounding 77 degrees, which is perfect for preserving acidity in the grapes which translates into vibrancy in the wines. The soil and elevation likely explain why this state, bordering Texas with its 2,300 acres under vine, ranks as Mexico’s second most important area for fine wine. Manuel believes Coahuila will continue to grow and thrive because of its proximity to the city of Monterey, an important commercial hub, in the neighboring state of Nuevo León.
Querétaro, one of the high-altitude states in central Mexico, about 130 miles northwest of Mexico City, focuses on sparkling wine. Its challenge seems to be hail and unpredictable weather, according to Manuel.
Chihuahua, a state adjacent to and west of Coahuila, with barely 600 acres under vine, is poised to be a major player in the Mexican wine industry because 40 percent of its vines are less than five years old.
The state of Sonora, just to the west of Chihuahua and bordering Arizona, should be a good place for vines because, thanks to its location, there’s adequate water. However, Manuel explains that the narcotics business in that state makes people reluctant to invest there.
On to the wines.
Negrete set up a diverse tasting for me that showed the potential of the Mexican wine industry. Where available, I’ve listed the stated alcohol content in parenthesis (all but one under 14%), showing that a country with blazing sunshine can avoid overly alcoholic wines.
Sauvignon Blanc in Mexico has the same wide profile that it has around the world. Vinaltura, a winery in Querétaro founded by a German, Hans Duer, who moved to the area two decades ago, fashioned a ripe and chunky 2021 Sauvignon Blanc (13.3%) while G&G’s 2020 Sauvignon Blanc (12.7%) named for Gina Sommelier and Gusto Ortega, highlighted the zippy and fresh side of the varietal from their Baja-grown grapes.
Cava Quintanilla’s refined and delicate 2021 Gewürztraminer, “Laberinto” from San Luis Potosí, another high-altitude central Mexican state, shows the experimental, “let’s try anything mentality” attitude characteristic of the industry.
Full disclosure, I am not a fan of orange wines in general. That said, Rivero Gonzalez crafted one, the 2021 Naranja, from Riesling and Palomino grown in Coahuila and bottled it under his RG MX (Rivero Gonzalez Mexico) label. Despite a whopping 18.4 percent stated alcohol, it was graceful, with tannic funkiness left behind. Gonzalez also has a winery on the North Fork of Long Island, RG NY, where he makes an excellent array of wines.
The 2020 fruit-focused Pinot Noir, “Aristoteles,” by El Cielo (13%), G&G’s private label, is a good effort and shows the promise of Valle de Guadalupe.
Negrete tells me that Nebbiolo is popular in Mexico, although on closer inspection most of it is really Lambrusco, according to him. That said, the tarry and floral 2020 Nebbiolo “Sophie,” from Vinacola Santa Elena de Aguascalientes (13.3%) came across as the real thing.
Unsurprisingly, Tempranillo has found a home in Mexico and, like Sauvignon Blanc, comes in a range of styles, from the simple and quaffable 2020 Tempranillo Riserva from Hacienda San Miguel (13.5%) in Coahuila, to El Cielo’s more serious and complex 2019 “Galileo” (13.6%) from Baja.
Of course, any nascent wine industry will try their hand at the big-time reds, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Malbec, and Syrah. In Mexico there’s a range from the fruity and slightly sweet finishing 2021 Cavall 5 (13.6%), a blend of Merlot, Malbec, and Cabernet Sauvignon grown in Chihuahua, to Parvada’s well balanced and alluring 2020 “Selección del Enólogo” (13.8%) made from Cabernet Sauvignon grown in the Valle de Parras, a real valley, in Coahuila.
From the Valle de Guadalupe, the juicy, vanilla-tinged 2018 Merlot from Ruber Cardinal (13.2%) shows the lingering effect of aging in American oak barrels, while the big and bold 2015 Tierra Adentro Grand Reserva 50/50 blend of Malbec and Syrah shows the potential of these varieties grown in Zacatecas, a state in north central Mexico that sits at just over 8,000 feet ASL.
For wine enthusiasts or for those who just want to learn about wines, Mexican wines included, head to Wine Bar by Concours Mondiale de Bruxelles, located a minute’s walk from the Marriott Reforma in the center of Mexico City at Copenhague 23, Juarez. CMB, founded in 1994, organizes and runs a series of wine competitions that are among the most prestigious in the world. In addition to attracting thousands of entrants from all over the world, one of the unique aspects of CMB’s competitions is that they judge the judges. Let me explain. A panel of five judges, each from a different country, assess a group of 10 or so wines “blind,” that is, no one knows the label, and assigns each wine a score and a tasting note. The CMB organizers will sometimes, unannounced, insert the same wine twice in a flight of wines and assess how the individual judges score and describe it. Those judges who don’t score and describe the two wines similarly won’t be invited back. Let me assure you, it keeps the judges focused on all the wines all the time! And helps explain why the awards are coveted by producers.
Wine Bar by CMB, their new endeavor and established in Mexico City in 2020, highlights the award-winning wines from their competitions. It’s an extremely comfortable setting in which guests can taste, casually or intensively, a range of top-quality wines, mingle, and eat. My thanks to Manuel Negrete and Wine Bar CMB in Mexico City for putting together this tasting and educating me about the wines of Mexico.
E-mail me at [email protected] if you’ve ever had a Mexican wine and follow me on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram @MichaelApstein.
September 11, 2024