This place is located in the Valle de Guadalupe, Baja Mexico. I wasn't always a fan of the wine…read morefrom this area. But over the last two decades they have made large strides in quality with new modernization techniques. Besides all of the wine makers that have been here for generations, others (Spain, France, and Italy) from around the world have joined in wine making in the area. The area has all of the basic ingredients (proper climate and soil) needed to make great wine. The area sits in the same latitude as the great wine making areas of the Mediterranean. As a result, now I am a big fan of the area's wine. Now many compare the area to Tuscany Italia before the big tourist rush occurred. The greater area is also home to many Michelin rated restaurants with a great ocean/farm to table menu (carta). Organic and sustainability are fully represented in restaurants as well. If you love seafood, then this place is heaven because of the abundance of fresh seafood from both the Sea of Cortez and the Pacific. I predict that once the new airport in Ensenada is built then this place is going to explode with tourism. Currently, having to fly into Tijuana then take a bus or private transport has been the only way to reach this area from most places in the US with the exception of southern California. People in southern California are lucky enough to drive down for a weekend because it's just that close to them. It's the equivalent of people from Chicago spending a weekend in wine country in Michigan, Indiana, or Wisconsin. In all honesty there is no comparison because most wine in the Midwest is mediocre at best. The problem in the Midwest is the climate extremes which are not suitable to most popular wine varietals. Even when I do find wine from the Midwest that I like, it usually has at least $50-$60 price tag. At a typical grocery store in Spain or Portugal very good bottle of wine is sometimes cheaper than a bottle of water! Under $10 a bottle pricing gets you very good wine, above that you can have even better quality.
The winery is beautiful even in the winter. I like to visit in the winter because although it's not super warm here, I go from wearing a winter jacket to wearing a light jacket or sweater. The nights can drop into the 40s which is still much better than a winter polar vortex back home. There is a lot less people, therefore, I can also get into the best restaurants in the area. My rental flat had absolutely no neighbors until the last day when it was time to leave. The isolation was very nice because the grounds are beautiful and very full of life. A huge assortment of birds make this their winter getaway from the harsh winters up north. Citrus fruit was in season down here and the neighboring property had an orchard of trees filled with oranges. The property has a few nice pathways to walk after mealtimes.
I also enjoyed the outdoor wine tour which explores the different varietals fields with an enthusiastic guide that was quick witted with jokes. The wine pourings that accommodate the tour were delicious and wisely chosen. I also opted to take the wine cave tour right after the outside tour. How was the cave tour? It was disappointing and frustrating. First of all, as I patiently waited to be taken down to the cave from their gift shop area they forgot about me. They have a list of who is supposed to go down and yet they still went down without everyone?!? Finally a cashier notices that I'm just walking around not shopping and asked me if I was waiting for someone. I told him that I was waiting for the cave tour to begin. He got a hold of the tour guide who had already gone down with some of the group and he came up to retrieve us. Those that were already in the cave, already had been served food that was optional to order with the tasting. After several pourings in the previous tour, yes, I was ready to have some food to lessen the impact of more pourings. Also, they had a nice selection of items that would complement the pourings. Somehow, they forgot about me again, and I noticed others were getting a different presentation than I was on the same tour. Okay, now a sense of frustration is overcoming me and I mention the oversights to the guide. He lied to me and told me that the others had a different level of wine tasting. This disorganized tour was also set up backwards because there should have been a walking tour of the fermentation area first then tastings afterwards.
Besides the bad cave tour that I definitely don't recommend. Everything else was great with the exception of the cold washroom on cold nights. They have very nice employees, beautiful grounds, very good breakfast, and a great dinner restaurant called Latitude on the property. Would I come back? Yes, because besides a few frustrating moments the rest was great.