Frida's Beach House &
BAJA WINE MAKERS
A TRADITION THAT STARTED IN MEXICO IN THE 1500'S,
making its way into the Island of Maui.
By Claudia Castillo.
SOME BAJA WINE HISTORY To really understand Baja and its wine tradition, we have to go back and see how it all began. The first vines in the Americas came with the Spanish conquers in the early 1500′s. Once their supply of wine ran out, they turned to planting grapes in the Parras Valley in the state of Coahuila in central Mexico. The first winery was established in 1597 by Lorenzo Garcia, and it was named Casa Madero. The main grape planted in those days was a red grape known today as the Mission Grape. It is said to be the same grape as Listan Negro in Spain, also k n o w n a s C r i o l l a a n d P a i ́s i n o t h e r areas of South America. This grape made light bodied wines intended
for brandy production. Just as Mexico began to produce its own wines, the Spanish crown put an end to it because they saw their wine trade suffering, and outlawed Mexico from producing wine. For many years, the production of wine in Mexico was limited to the missionaries’ wine for sacramental use. Two Jesuit padres (Priests), Juan Uguarte and Junipero Serra made their way into Baja and established the first mission in 1767, in Los Cabos. These were the first grapes planted in California. Junipero Serra was tasked to move north and build missions in Alta California while Juan Uguarte
Dolcetto, Sangiovese and Aglianico. The challenge he faced was Mexico’s warmer climate and lack of water. It was a very different climate from the mountainous cool region of Piedmont. Today some of the best single varieties come from these Italian varieties brought by Magoni. In the 1950-60′s winemakers started to look for fruitier, softer wines that could be enjoyed with pizza and tacos. They turned to California nurseries, and began to plant cuttings of Cabernet Franc.
built missions in Baja California. It was not until the 1880′s that Baja built its first commercial winery, Santo Tomas in the Santo Tomas Valley, 30 minutes south of Ensenada. The first European grapes to come into Baja were Grenache and Carignan. During the turn of the century they were the workhorses for Baja and Alta California. It was not until the 1930-40′s when we saw Italian varieties make their way into the valley. The man responsible was Camilo Magoni, who worked at L.A. Cetto for 50 years. He was an Italian immigrant from Northern Italy, and over many years he planted many Italian varieties such as Nebbiolo, Barbera,
These Bordeaux blends made more sense in the market place. People had just heard about the growth in California in the 1970′s. Their Cabernets and Chardonnays were winning competitions in France; the Mexican winemakers decide to follow in their northern neighbors’ footsteps. Back then; there were just a handful of wineries such as Santo Tomas, L.A.Cetto and Cavas Valmar. Fernando Martain founded Cavas Valmar in 1983, and he had worked at Santo Tomas from 197884 with the famous André Tchelistcheff. Fernando has since been a great inspiration and significant part of the Baja wine movement. His friend Hugo Acosta came on the scene in 1988, he also worked at Santo Tomas. Hugo Acosta studied at the School of Agronomy in Montpelier France and the Agricultural University of Turin. He returned to the valley and began teaching people how to make wine. There was plenty of fruit in the valley, but no one outside the major wineries knew what to do with it. Hugo started “La Escuelita”,
a wine making school for the people in the valley. He has inspired many of the wineries in the area and has been a crucial part of the valley’s success. Today he is regarded as the Godfather of the Guadalupe Valley. His brother, Alejandro has been an instrumental part as well. Alejandro is an architect, and has built many of the hotels and wineries that dot the valley. His creative designs give the valley a special character you can find nowhere else.
FERNANDO MARTAIN The story of Valmar begins in 1919 when he arrives in Ensenada, Don Federico Valentin. A native of the High Alps, France, who had decided to dedicate his time to look after his ranch. As a true Frenchman, he made his own wine and shared it with his friends. His c h i l d r e n , H e ́c t o r a n d G o n t r a ́n V a l e n t i ́n c o n t i n u e w i t h t h e f a m i l y tradition. They associated with Fernando Martain and founded Cavas Valmar in 1983, and began their activities in an old parking lot located in the ranch. They had
a small mill, a filler of four faucets, a manual stopper, a small basket press and 6 American oak barrels, for producing 300 boxes annually. Currently the production is 2,500 cases per year, and the grapes that are used come from t h e V a l l e y s o f S a n t o T o m a ́s , Guadalupe, San Vicente, and Las Palmas. Guaranteeing fruity wines in the case of the whites, and complexity in the reds. Eighty percent of our production is distributed in in Mexico, and the remaining 20% is exported to the United States (mainly California).
ALBERTO RUBIO
R a n c h o M a l a g o ́n i s a b e a u t i f u l l y Valle de Guadalupe.
First settled and planted with Grenache grapes in the early 1900s by Russian Molokan settlers, the 400 acre property has belonged for m a n y g e n e r a t i o n s t o t h e M a l a g o ́n F a m i l y . I n 2 0 0 0 J o s e L u i s M a l a g o ́n purchased the rancho from his relatives with the goal of revitalizing the old vines, and creating a world-class winery. S i n c e t h a t t i m e , M a l a g o ́n a n d h i s family have worked hard to produce memorable wines of the f i n e s t q u a l i t y . V i s i t o r s t o V i n ̃e d o s M a l a g o ́n m a y a r r a n g e p r i v a t e afternoon wine tastings for up to 8 people in the 110 year old reconstructed adobe tasting house. The property showcases a small
DANIEL LONNBERG Attentive service is provided by winery staff who serve guests with wine and cheese. V i n ̃e d o s M a l a g o ́n r e c e n t l y welcomed gifted winemaker Alberto Rubio to their team. Rubio, also currently known in wine circles for his work with Mogor-Badan and Fluxus, shares t h e M a l a g o ́n p a s s i o n a n d v i s i o n for their vineyards and wines. M a l a g o ́n w i n e s h a v e b e e n h i g h l y praised and reviewed in such international publications as Wine Spectator magazine, which awarded 92 points to their 2006 Reserva de Familia - an elegant blend of Cabernet- Sauvignon, Grenache, Merlot and Petite Syrah aged for 12 months in new French oak barrels.
It is a company that was born in 2008 with its first brand of wine, founded by Daniel Lonnberg Hume, Chilean Enologist, whose objective was to create a family business in which he would be able to create quality wines. Mr. Lonnberg comes from a family of doctors and lawyers, part of the reason on how his passion for wine came at a very early age. A curiosity that was born from a tradition, in which good wine had to be a part of every family and friends reunion held by his parents in their home. His country gave him the opportunity to work in the art of w i n e m a k i n g , f o r “ V i n ̃a s C o n c h a ” and “Toro” S.A. (worldwide acclaimed brands), where he was in charge of the production of
white wines and fine red wines. He also dedicates his time to giving consulting services to other wine houses of the region. The first brands he ever created w e r e C a n Ěƒa d a d e l o s E n c i n o s , a blend of Zinfandel / Petit Verdot, then later Literal a wine based Cabernet Sauvignon / Sirah. In the future, the creation of other wine lines is expected to continue to grow, and remain a company that is always within the framework of high quality wine production.
TOM BRACAMONTES Â A self made realtor, decided on 2009 to enter the exciting world of wines, bringing us closer to the best in agronomy and winemaking, and shaping our Corona del Valle project. In 2010, work began on the first phases for the installation and selection of Varietals. Taking into account the availability of water in the area, they decided to plant 14 hectares, considering future major expansion of the vineyard. The origin of their 8 Varietals is from Novavine, which were planted in March 2011. He understands people and how to approach situations with transparency. This has earned him trust among wineries in Napa Valley and wine Â
buyers in many states. He represented Mi Sueno winery for many years, and took a handful of Mexican-American owned Napa wineries under his wing, helping to bring their wines into a competitive market. He is a marketing all-star who up to this day has opened 5 new markets for Michelle Martain and the Baja Winemakers; California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas and Chicago. Together, Michelle and Tom will open the doors for these Baja wineries and our palates to new intriguing wines.
MICHELLE MARTAIN A woman like Michelle Martain, daughter of Fernando Martain, is an important part of the winemaking tradition. Her import company, La Mision Associates imports Baja wines into the US, and is going strong into 5 years of production. She goes door-to-door, winery-to-winery finding solutions and making it work.
She was raised in her father’s winery, and is determined to share her country’s wines with the World. After many worthy sacrifices, she has opened many doors for her wineries. She is also very intuitive, and a bright woman definitely. Michelle made the smart move to reach out toTomBracamontes of La Competencia Imports, a new Baja wine import company, and their collaboration has turned out wonderful.