Baja Wines

Out of Ensenada, we head east along Route 3, the Ruta del Vino.  There are 16 wineries through here.  I knew I wanted to go to Santo Tomas and Monte  Xanic because we’d experienced some of their fine wines.  But we were out to explore,  so we passed up Santo Tomas planning to retrace our steps and stop there on our way back to Ensenada.

We find ourselves at L. A. Cetto, #8 on our wine map and almost at the end of the route.  L.A. Cetto is Luis A. Cetto, an Italian immigrant who started his winery in 1928.  The present winemaker at L.A. Cetto, Carillo Magoni, was selected as the top winemaker in the world this year by the Dutch wine magazine, Vinbladet.

Here’s what we tried:

Chenin Blanc.  It was fruity with hints of peach and honey.

2012 Chardonnay.  Not too fruity, a little dry, some body.  It was aged in steel barrels.

BUT their 2011 Private Reserve Chardonnay was something special indeed.  Aged in French oak for 7 months and treated to the malolac tic transformation, a process used much more frequently in red wines.The process creates complexity and this wine was complex and full of body.  My favorite white.

L. A. Cetto Chardonnay

Zinfindel.  Clearer in color than some Zins, nonetheless, full of cherry and red pepper, spice in the mouth.  I caught a hint of, I swear, cilantro. Interesting

2008 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve:  17 months in French Oak, hints of chocolate, spice and cinnamon.

Their most prized wine is 2009 Don Luis. The best of 4 grapes: cab, merlot, malbec and petit verdot.  I preferred the Cab but this was a complex, interesting wine with some of the pepper and spice I found in the cab.

We loaded up a case and a half of our favorites and with the assurance that we could travel with them across the border (more about our adventures at the border later), we headed on to look for Monte Xanic. Alas, we looked for Monte Xanic down dusty trails and green valleys but we never found it.  And by the time we headed back toward town we were too tired to stop at Santo Tomas.  What we wanted most was a nap before dinner.

Afterward:  I think all enologists and wine lovers are romantics with a love of the land and a belief in magic and alchemy.  Rene pointed out to us that in all of L.A. Cetto’s wines one can taste the salt from the sea only a few miles away.  And it was true.  There was salt on the tongue.  Even after I returned to dry New Mexico,  tasting one of the Baja wines brought back a little brine from the Pacific.

Just a hint.  Just enough.

For more information about Baja Mexico wines and for information about the region in general, take a look at: www.bajatimes.com, July 16-31^st issue.