Valle de Guadalupe, a 90-minute drive south of San Diego, California, has winemaking roots in the 17th century and accounts for about 80% of Mexico’s total wine production. The region is still on the rise internationally. Today, the valley is home to more than 150 wineries.
One of its top names is tucked away amid vineyards and olive groves just off the dusty roads that lead through the heart of Valle de Guadalupe’s wine route.
Set against the dramatic desert landscape, with views of the Sierra Blanca mountain range, El Cielo, both a winery and luxury resort, boasts 95 modern villas and suites positioned around two reservoirs. The bucolic grounds are complete with a swimming pool and chapel with multiple gardens, all located in the middle of the estate’s vineyards.
Courtesy: El Cielo
Valle de Guadalupe
Mexico’s Valle de Guadalupe is located on the Baja Peninsula, a blend of desert landscape and Pacific Ocean-cooled evenings has created a vinous sweet-spot where many varieties can be found. While the region has ancient roots dating to Spanish missionaries and an influx of Russian immigrants in the early 1990s, the fine wine revival of the Valle de Guadalupe dates to the early 2000s, as by the late 1990s there were only a handful of wineries still in business.
The revival has resulted in a very diverse set of offerings. There’s long been a love of bigger, more robust red wines of the 1980s Napa Valley or Rioja style and today, the region also hangs its hat on a developing natural wine culture and plenty of youthful experimenting, along with wines of a lighter, fresher style that pair perfectly with Mexican cuisine.
A drive through the valley shows old gnarled bush vines, many of which are Chenin Blanc, one of the earliest signature varieties of Valle de Guadalupe and a variety that sits among the top, most classic expressions now being made by some of the valley’s wineries.
A brilliant food culture
Mexico has one of the world’s greatest food cultures, in my opinion.
There are three Michelin-starred restaurants in the Valle de Guadalupe. El Cielo boasts two fantastic restaurants of its own, which specialise in a Baja-Yucatan fusion cuisine with a hyper-modern twist. Latitud 32, at the winery, is Michelin Guide-recommended, and Polaris, above the resort offices, offers delicious and fresh Mexican cuisine.
The Baja-Yucatan menu blends the two peninsulas brilliantly. It offers ample seafood offerings like the Mayan ceviche – a mix of octopus, white fish and shrimp, served with perfect citrus and habanero spiced freshness – to the shaved oysters with the traditional fresh and spicy Yucatan salsa, xnipec. Slow-roasted short ribs and pork belly tacos are cooked patiently and balanced with fresh regional sauces and salsas.
Polaris is tucked into the resort’s office building, with a rooftop balcony and delightfully fresh Mexican breakfasts, including delicious eggs with chilaquiles, and is a great way to start your day of wine tasting on a full stomach.
Courtesy: El Cielo
Accommodation
Each of El Cielo’s villas offers two types of accommodation, or you can rent out an entire villa.
Enjoy modern luxury in the junior suites, on the upper floors with a furnished terrace complete with views of the mountains, lake and vineyards.
The master suite takes up the spacious ground floor, with one bedroom, a whirlpool tub in the spacious modern bathroom and a dining room and living room big enough to entertain up to eight guests. There’s a furnished patio with a gas fireplace to watch the sunset, and the El Cielo team delivers s’mores kits each evening.
The wines
Owner Gustavo Ortega Joaquín had initially planned to open a small bed and breakfast in wine country, inspired by his travels in the Loire Valley. A visit to Mexico’s top wine region turned his plans on their head, and Ortega Joaquín found himself opening a winery first, in 2013.
The wines are among Mexico’s finest. Winemaker Jesús Rivera melds his considerable talents with a spare-no-expense approach in the cellar. The result speaks for itself: Rivera is crafting Mexican-made wines with a global appeal. From a traditional method sparkling Chardonnay to a brilliantly crafted Nebbiolo, the wines have great balance and refreshingly low abvs, making them ideally suited for food pairing.
The winery has a tasting room, wine bar and private cellar, and guests can enjoy barrel room tours and vineyard exploration and tasting via golf carts. They can create their own wines in a blending class or meet the vineyard’s raptors, which are part of its sustainability programme.
Arrangements can be made via concierge to visit the rest of the Valle de Guadalupe, most of it within an hour’s drive, or the seaside town of Ensenada, 20km away.
For further information, see the El Cielo, Valle de Guadalupe website.
