the original vineyards of the Valle de Guadalupe because the original NAPA stock originated from there. The Guadalupe Valley is one of the few places in the world where premium wine grapes can still be grown today. The Guadalupe, Calafia and San Antonio de las Minas Valleys are filled with rolling lush vineyards of every size and sport dozens of boutique vineyards and a handful of industrial size vineyards. They are the heart of the Baja Wine Route, “Ruta del Vino Baja California”. Baja’s Wine Country also offers a diverse array of other attractions and services from countryside and unique cuisine restaurants, arts & crafts studios, art galleries, elegant B&B’s, community museums and a newly opened Wine Museum a short drive south from Sordo Mudo. L.A. Cetto is one of the most
(Clockwise from top left) Domecq private tasting room, Winery entrance, La Cetto brandy storage and Jorge Martinez at Domecq
renowned and oldest wineries in Mexico, founded by an Italian, Angelo Cetto who leſt for Mexico in 1926 and started the wine business in 1930. In 1963 Don Luis Augustin Cetto spearheaded a rapid modernization and vast transformation of the winery including the purchase of a number of small wineries in the 1980s. Currently, Luis Alberto is the third generation of this wine craſting tradition. Today L.A. Cetto is now responsible for more than half of the country’s wine. Cetto cultivates 2,500 acres of vineyards in Baja California; also tequila and olive oil. L.A. Cetto produces approximately 1,000,000 cases of wine each year in three facilities and has become the largest wine producer in the country, not to mention one of the largest wineries in all of Latin America. Te Valle de Guadalupe tasting room is spacious and elegant, served by friendly and competent winery staff, most of whom speak both Spanish and English fluently. We are oſten hosted by our
friend Mariana Gutierrez. Casa Pedro Domecq is the oldest
commercial winery in the Valley of Guadalupe, owned by the same company that produces El Presidente Brandy. Domecq is the second largest wine producer in Mexico aſter L.A. Cetto, with current production of 3.4 million liters per annum. Located across Highway 3 from L.A. Cetto, this winery is oſten simply referred to as just Domecq. Domecq has been a driving force behind the modernization of the wine industry in Spain, and is doing the same in Mexico. Visitors to the winery will be immediately struck by its elegant white walls, mission style warehouse, beautifully maintained rows of vines and serene atmosphere. Domecq’s tasting room (stunning view), underground wine cellars (really cool) and endless fields of vines can be enjoyed on a reservation basis. For a small fee bilingual tours are offered for both visitors and wine connoisseurs, they offer a very reasonably priced tasting of three exquisite reds and two whites. Te dark caves and antique barrels still on display provide a sense of the
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