The first time I recall ever encountering Mexican wines was on an excursion to Ensenda wine country while on a cruise to Baja Greg and I went on in our early 20s. It was one of the better memories I have of that particular cruise, but to be honest, it had less to do with the wine and more to do with the fact that a day in wine country is almost always lovely. This was way before I knew anything about wine, but of the three or four wineries the excursion took us to, only one (L.A. Cetto) stood out as being any good. Of course, this could have been due to the particular selection of wineries. I mentally cataloged the topic of Mexican wines as “interesting, but still needs work.” 

Flash forward more years than I’d like to admit. I’ve now seen more and more quality Mexican wines cross my path. One or two would make it onto the shelves while I was working in a wine shop. A friend would pour one for me at a tasting. I’d see a few more examples represented at trade tastings. Then one of my tasting groups (in the before times) dedicated a session to Mexican wines during which I was able to taste a full line-up that included a wide range of grapes and styles and got a sense of where their wine industry had progressed to, and it seemed like they’d come a long way. Of course, this is still a region in development, but one that’s definitely worth paying attention to. 

A Brief History of Wine in Mexico

Map borrowed from WineFolly.com

The funny thing is that while Mexico’s wine industry is still emerging and developing, it was actually the first place wine was made in the Americas. The Spanish conquistadors first brought over vitis vinifera vines in the 16th century – the species of grapes most commonly used to make wine is not indigenous to the Americas and required a lift getting over the ocean. The vines were planted, however, the breaks were pushed on the growth of the new industry when Spain realized it had a good thing going as the main supplier of wines to “New Spain.”  The trading was so profitable for Spain that King Carlos II went so far as to outlaw the commercial production of wine in 1699 so that the new would have to keep on importing it. Most wine grapes that had been planted were used to make brandy.

Wine production continued – albeit at a trickle – thanks to the Catholic Church, as it was legal for them to continue to make it for ceremonial purposes. Therefore, while the industry hung on by a thread, it did hold on. Things essentially remained this way until Mexico gained its independence from Spain in the 19th Century. 

The very first vineyards in Mexico were planted around the town of Parras de la Fuente which translates as 'vineyards of the spring. ' This region is located in north-central Mexico in Coahuila. Since Mexico’s climate overall is very hot – much hotter than is normal for a grape-growing region – it’s necessary to find microclimates that offset the heat. The vineyards in Parras de la Fuente are located in the Sierra Madre Oriental mountains, at an altitude of around 5,000 feet (almost 1,525 meters), making it much cooler than the coastal regions. It also helps that it’s pretty arid – grapes definitely prefer a “dry heat.”

The wine industry was not destined to stay centered in the Parras Valley. The first grapes were planted in Baja  Today, the overwhelming majority of Mexican wine (85 to 90%) is made in Baja California. Baja benefits from being a little farther north and closer to the ocean, so cooling ocean breezes provide relief from the heat. It has a Mediterranean climate, but it’s fairly dry here as well, so the majority of vineyards do require irrigation. Overall, the region tends to have granitic alluvial soils similar to what you might find in France’s Northern Rhône Valley.  Ensenada is the center of the industry, but the region has developed to the point that there are major sub-regions including Valle de Guadalupe, Valle de Calafia, Valle de San Vincente, and Valle de Santo Tomás. 

As Mexico’s modern wine industry is still in development, it’s still pretty much the wild, wild west. There are no signature grapes as of yet – over 120 different varieties are grown. There also isn’t much in the way of regulation; the wineries basically have to self-regulate. The lack of rules also means that there is a lot of experimentation. You’ll find a lot of blends here, many of which might seem unusual and you won’t see in other places. Winemakers feel free to put things together to see if they taste good. The infrastructure is still building, but things are growing quickly. In 2006 (around the time we went to Ensenda, give or take a couple of years), there were less than 25 wineries in the whole country. Now, there are over 120 in Baja alone. There are a few big producers (like L.A. Cetto, which I mentioned earlier), but the majority of wineries are pretty small. 

The Food

Birria has been all the rage in recent years. While I don’t necessarily mean to feed the hype for the sake of it, I do really love the stuff. It’s got sooooooo much flavor and it’s 100% comfort food at the same time. It’s a very traditional dish that originally came from the state of Jalisco that involves stewing meat in a very flavorful broth flavored with chili peppers and lots of herbs and spices. Goat is the meat most traditionally associated with birria, but lamb and beef are also commonly used. There are even plenty of vegetarian versions out there. The meat and the resulting stew, or consomé, can then be served in different ways. The two can be served together with a side of tortillas, or the meat can be used to fill tacos or tortas, probably with a side of the consomé for dipping on the side. 

We fell in love with the quesabirria (basically a birria quesadilla) at Nido Backyard, a restaurant here in Oakland, and we can’t help but get it pretty much every time we go. On our last trip to San Diego, some friends introduced us to Tuetano Taqueria, which serves it up a slew of different delicious ways. 

Birria quesadilla with beans

Birria Torta

Birria taco with a side of bone marrow.

At some point last year, I decided to try making Birria de Res (beef) at home. I worked with a few different recipes I found online, but predominantly crossed this recipe from the NYT Cooking and this one from GimmeSomeOven.com to help me adjust things for prep in my Instant Pot. (I believe I used a combination of chuck roast and oxtail for the meat.) It turned out deliciously and yielded lots of leftovers, so I was able to store quite a bit in the freezer and doled out the goodness over a few months. 

In the process, I was also able to play around with serving it in different ways. In addition to eating it as a stew and in tacos etc., one day I brought home a bunch of tamales from a vendor at my local farmer’s market. I ended up marrying the two together, and now this might be my absolute favorite way to eat a tamale. 

Having lots of leftovers also gave me the chance to try the dish with different wines, and on two occasions, we paired the birria with Mexican wines. It was an easy match for both bottles, although each worked well in different ways. 

The Wines: Two Very Different Representatives

The two wines we’ll be looking at today represent different facets and extremes of what you might find. The first is from the Parras Valley from a historical winery and is made in the international style. The second is a natural wine from a young winery in Baja.

Casa Madero 3V Red Blend Parras Valley, Coahuila 2018 

Blend: Equal Parts Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Tempranillo |  ABV: 13.7% |  Average Price: $27 (Sample) | Find additional details here and here.

Casa Madero is the oldest winery in the Americas. Its history goes back to 1597 when King Felipe II of Spain awarded Don Lorenzo Garcia a land grant, along with the right to produce wine and brandy for the crown. The winery was born under the name Hacienda de San Lorenzo. It would then go on to change hands several times and was eventually purchased by Evaristo Madero in 1893, giving the winery its current name. 

It’s located in the Parras Valley in the Sierra Madre Mountains (as discussed above), and thanks to the high elevation of the vineyards at 5000 feet, the grapes enjoy warm days and cool nights. The winey has continued modernizing and moving forward. It was also the first Mexican winery to have organically certified vineyards and now has several certified sites. 

Tasting Notes: Warm, ripe fruit notes strawberry fruit leather, blackberry, black cherry, and red plum sauce. Dusty earth notes are mixed in, along with white pepper, pencil lead, hints of cocoa, and tobacco. The palate mixes Old World earthiness with the ripe fruit of the new world. The wine was medium+ to full-bodied with smooth but grippy tannins. I decanted this wine in advance. 

Pairing: It was excellent with birria tacos. The depth of the wine matched the depth of flavors in the food beautifully, and it became silkier alongside the food as the meatiness helped to further smooth out the tannins.

This wine was sent to me as part of a collaboration with Big Hammer Wines. They offer fine wines at discounted prices. While this particular bottle is sold out, you can find the 2019 bottling here. You can also find a curated list of my selections here. Use the discount code NICOLE15 for $15 off any purchase. (Limit to 1 use per customer.)

Bichi No Sapiens Baja California 2019

Blend: Unknown. Possibly Dolcetto, possibly Carrignan. | Average Price: $34 | Find additional details here.

Established in 2014, Bichi is at the much younger end of the spectrum. Nonetheless, they’ve made a splash in a very short period of time. This is a winery that gets natural wine fans very excited. Located in Tecate, the winery was started by Noel Téllez and his brother, chef Jair Téllez, who moved to Baja from neighboring Sonora. Noel, who left his job as a lawyer to work on the winery, is now the sole proprietor. The name Bichi means “naked” in the Sonoran Yaqui dialect and it reflects a hands-off approach to their winemaking. It’s also captured in the (literally) cheeky labels picturing luchadores and luchadoras wearing nothing but their birthday suits.

Bichi farms 10 hectares of their own Tecate vineyards biodynamically and they collaborate with organic farmers in Tecate and around San Antonio de las Minas in the Valle de Guadalupe. They seek out interesting vineyards to source from. In the case of the No Sapiens, the dry-farmed, own-rooted source vineyard is planted with a mysterious grape variety that remains unidentified. The farmer thinks it could possibly be Dolcetto from plantings brought over from Italy in the 1940s, while the Téllez family thinks it could be Carignan from Spain. In the winery, grapes are destemmed by hand and gently foot stomped, and fermentations are carried out by wild yeast. 

I first came in contact with Bichi’s wines several years ago, and I think the No Sapiens was the first one I tried. The first versions I tasted were at the "natty AF" end of the natural wines – too funky for my personal tastes. On top of that, I remember the necks of the bottles being clogged up with sediment. I don’t mind some sediment, but this was a bit much. I didn’t get the hype. But things have come a long way in just a few vintages,  as more recent tastings were much, much nicer. The wines were still a bit funky, but pleasantly so, and those elements blended in with the pretty fruit notes. 

Tasting Notes: Fruity and funky. Black cherries, pepper, licorice, flowers petals, and dusty barnyard notes on the nose. On the palate, it was bright, juicy, and generous up front, moving into more gamey notes towards the finish. There was a bit of brett, but it was integrated with the other flavors. The wine was medium to medium + in body, with fine tannins, and lots of freshness. I recommend decanting.

Pairing: This was another great pairing for the birria, although this wine brought out the gamier side of the stew. The wine’s gamey side blended into the food and became less pronounced in the combination. A delicious combo!

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Other Possibilities 

More Mexican Wines

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The Wine Pairing Weekend (#WinePW) Blogging Group is exploring the wines of Mexico. Check out the rest of their posts:

• Wendy from A Day in the Life on the Farm will share “Mexican Foods and Wines always provide for a Perfect Fiesta”
• Susannah from Avvinare is “Discovering Mexican Wine”
• Jen from Vino Travels is taking “A First Look at Mexican Wines Including Italian Grapes”
• Carlos from Carlos’ Food & Wine is serving up “Mexican wines featuring sparkling wine risotto & grilled hanger steak with mushroom-red wine sauce”
• Camilla from Culinary Adventures with Camilla is sharing "Outside the Pigeon-Hole: Pairing Mexican Wine with Thai Cuisine"
• Gwendolyn from Wine Predator Gwendolyn Alley features Sparkling Wine from Mexico For #TacoTuesday”
• Robin of Crushed Grape Chronicles shares “Mexican Wines – 2 wines from the central Mexican highlands of Querétaro #WinePW"
• Linda from My Full Wine Glass is “Saying ‘hola’ to Mexican Tempranillo and sparkling wine”
• Martin from ENOFLZ Wine Blog will share “Exploring Mexican Wine Beyond Baja”
• Liz at What’s in that Bottle posted “Salud a Los Vinos de Mexico!”
• Terri from Our Good Life pairs "Grassfed Ribeye with Steak Butter and Grilled Oyster Mushrooms Paired with Monte Xanic Cabernet Sauvignon"
• Cooking Chat  paired “Roasted Beet Pesto Pasta with Mexican Merlot”

Let’s enjoy the last days of summer with a glass of Verdicchio di Matelica Riserva, a wonderful white wine from Italy’s Marche region, and a simple seafood dish from the same region.

I’m not quite ready to let go of summer. I never am. I’m a summer baby, crave sunshine, and want to hold onto every last bit of the season’s carefree vibes. So let’s hold onto it a bit longer, and let’s take a trip to Italy’s Adriatic coast. We’ll pick up a bottle of wine in the hilly terrain of Marche in central Italy, then we’ll jump in the car and drive about an hour to the port town of Recanati, and have a bowl of the local seafood dish with whatever’d been freshly caught that day. So maybe this is just a virtual trip for now, but sounds good right?

Verdicchio

We’ll be picking up our wine in the town of Matelica, which lies in a valley flanked on the east and west sides by sub-ranges of the Apennine Mountains. Here we’ll find our wine. The white of choice is Verdicchio, a very refreshing wine with lots of bright citrus and apple notes, hints of almonds, flowers, hints of herbs, and lots of minerality. It can also have a hint of bitterness, but usually in a pleasant way. It’s very food-friendly, and it comes in various styles – sparkling, dry, and dessert. It can also be made a simple everyday sipper, or as a more complex wine. 

Image borrowed from Wikipedia.

 In Native Wine Grapes of Italy, Ian D’Agata opines that it is “arguably Italy’s greatest native white grape variety,” due in part to the grape’s ability to adapt to and transmit different terroirs. 

He notes: 

Verdicchio’s trump cards are its tendency to ripen slowly and evenly (allowing for complex wines) and to always maintain high levels of tartaric acidity, meaning the wines can be both crisp and refreshing as well as very ageworthy.

We’ve tasted the “little green one” on this blog before. The last time we took an in-depth look at a bottle of Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi, which is also in the Marche, and you can read a bit more about the grape’s history in that post. We also sipped some Castelli di Jesi in A Sustainable Sampler Pack with Umani Ronchi.

Verdicchio di Matellica vs. Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi

So what’s the difference between these two areas? Well, for one thing, Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi is a much larger region. The Matelica zone is about a tenth of the size with about 120 hectares (296 acres) under vine. It’s tiny. Vineyards are also at a higher elevation, and farther from the coast. The soils in Matelica are richer in clay and limestone, while Castelli di Jesi’s are sandier.

Map borrowed from Cellartours.com

In terms of what you can expect to taste in the glass, Matelica’s wines are generally thought of as being fuller and more structured with more acidity and minerality. (This isn’t always a given anymore as Castelli di Jesi reduced its yields and quality has improved overall, but those are the generalizations.) The wines of Matelica are also thought to be more age-worthy and long-lived, while the wines of Castelli di Jesi are considered better for early drinking. 

In both cases, the wine must be made up of at least 85% Verdicchio, with up to 15% Trebbiano Toscana or Malvasia permitted. Both areas also have Riserva DOCG zones for aged wines – 2 years are required for Matelica, and 18 months for Castelli di Jesi.

The Wine: Cantine Ballisario Cambrugiano Verdicchio di Matelica Riserva 2016

Image borrowed from Belisario's website.

Our wine today comes from Cantine Belisario, a high-quality co-op founded in 1971. It’s the largest producer of Verdicchio di Matelica, but remember that this is a very small zone. They’re the biggest fish in a very small pond – and the pond only has about a dozen fish altogether. All of their vineyards are located within a ten-minute drive of the winery. 

Image borrowed from Belisario's website.

They make several Verdicchios, including one riserva named Cambrugiano. According to their website, it was the first Verdicchio in the “Riserva” category, which they have been making since 1988. 

On the day we opened the Cambrugiano Verdicchio di Matelica Riserva 2016, I picked up notes of ripe lemons, brine, stone, white flowers, and fresh herbs. Notes of grapefruit and tangerine skin joined in on the palate, as well as rounder fruit notes like peach and star fruit, and almond skin. It had a leesy texture on the midpalate, bright acidity, and lots of stony minerality on the finish. 

In one of his Wine School columns on the subject of Verdicchio di Matelica, Eric Asimov meditates on the uncanny ability of these wines to offer “uncomplicated refreshment,” and yet “express more complex aromas.” They’re somehow paradoxically uncomplicated and complex at the same time. I could totally see that in this wine. While it was good now and undeniably refreshing, I was definitely also curious as to where this wine would go in a few years. I certainly think it could age for a few more since it was tightly wound at its core, despite showing lovely fresh fruit notes now. 

The Pairing: Brodetto alla Recanatese

I went in search of a dish from the Marche to try with this wine, and I found one that had a similar spirit of uncomplicated complexity – Brodetto alla Recanatese (or brodetto di pesce di Porto Recanati), or fish broth in the style of the port of Recanati, which is located about an hour and twenty away from Matelica driving east to the coast. Brodetto (spelled in various different ways depending on the dialect) are brothy fish stews that originated with fishermen who’d make it with whatever they’d caught that day. Many towns, especially along the Adriatic coast have their own particular versions. It’s not unlike bouillabaisse in Provence and other fish stews you find in coastal towns, but these are lighter in texture. 

Image borrowed from Wikipedia.

Most brodetto recipes use tomatoes in the broth, but Recanati’s is unique in that it has none, but it uses saffron to flavor the broth. Other than that, the broth is extremely simple – onions are sautéed in olive oil, water or broth are added, along with a dry white wine, and it’s seasoned with salt, pepper, and saffron. You can use whatever mix of seafood is local and fresh, and it’s eaten with toasted bread arranged in the serving bowls to soak up the broth, although I opted to keep the bread on the side so I could dunk it in. I opted for a mix of shellfish on this occasion with mussels, scallops, and shrimp. I’ve included a recipe at the end, but you might not really need one beyond what I just described.

All good things here! There’s such a lovely simplicity to the broth, but the onions and the saffron brought depth of flavor, and I have to admit that I couldn’t resist adding some garlic as well. It made for a lovely and satisfying light meal. It was a very easy match with the wine that had similar depth belied by its medium body and refreshing flavors, and each reflected the minerality of the other. 

OTHER POSSIBILITIES 

The producer recommends having this wine with elaborate seafood dishes, white meats, and

semi-aged cheeses.

By coincidence, I happened to have a bottle on hand of the Azienda Santa Barbara Verdicchio dei Casteli di Jesi 2019, the current vintage of the same wine that I explored the last time I looked at Verdicchio. I decided to use a little of that bottle for cooking, and then had the rest with the leftovers a couple of days later. It certainly worked as well, but I could definitely see the difference in price point and style. With the Matelica there was more of a conversation going on between the food and the wine, where the Casteli di Jesi was a simple accompaniment that went down easy. 

While this wine and dish come from the same region, white wines from many other areas of Italy would certainly work well – Soave Classico and Vermentino both come to mind. I think Chablis and Muscadet would also be excellent with the shellfish.

I also think Verdicchio is a good alternative for those who like Sauvignon Blanc, but are in the mood for something a little different. 

THE GEEKY DETAILS

Taken for the producer’s website:

Produced since 1988, and obtained only from Verdicchio grapes vinified by low-temperature maceration.

It is left to mature in steel and in toasted oak barrels for at least a year, and it ages for one more year in bottle.

MONEY TALK 

I picked this bottle up at K&L in San Fransisco for $21.99, which I found to be a Solid Value. As I said, I’d like to see how this wine ages, as I’d best it’ll get some added dimensions over time. 

Seafood, Mussels, Shellfish

Stew, Soups

Italian

Servings: 4 to 6

By: Nicole Ruiz Hudson

Print

With ImageWithout Image

Brodetto alla Recanatese with Shellfish

Prep Time: 20 MinCooking Time: 30 MinTotal Time: 50 Min

This recipe is very loosely based on this recipe from Cucina Italiana. Feel free to swap in whatever fish or shellfish you have on hand. No need to get too stuck on the quantities either. If you’re using fish, flour and lightly brown the fish before poaching in the broth.

Ingredients

• 1 large onion, diced
• 3 to 4 garlic cloves, minced
• Generous pinch of saffron
• ½ cup dry white wine
• Approximately 1 quart of broth or water, or as needed (I used a combination of lobster stock, fish stock, and water. Note: using only water will result in a more lightly flavored dish.)
• 5 to 2 lbs of mussels, cleaned and debearded (discard any that are broken or that don’t clamp shut when tapped)
• 1 cup large scallops
• 1 cup shrimp
• Olive oil
• Salt
• Pepper
• Parsley, chopped, for serving (optional)
• Toasted or grilled slices of bread for serving

Instructions

1. Sauté onions in olive oil ( about 2 tablespoons or as needed) with a little salt and pepper in a large pan or Dutch oven over medium to medium-high heat until the onions are soft and translucent. If needed, add a splash of water to the pan if the onions begin to brown. Add the garlic and saffron to the pan and continue to cook for another minute or so.
2. Add the white wine to the pan and stir to deglaze if necessary. Add the broth or water to the pan, bring to boil, then reduce to a simmer and stir. Allow the mixture to cook for 10 to 15 minutes to allow the flavors to combine and for the liquid to reduce a bit. Liquid should come up about an inch to an inch and a half in depth, add more liquid as needed. Taste and adjust seasoning.
3. Reduce the heat to medium-low, then add the mussels to the pan, and layer the scallops and shrimp on top. Cover and continue cooking for about 3 minutes, or just until the mussels open, the shrimp turns pink, and the scallops are no longer translucent. Remove the mussels as they open, uncovering the pot as needed, and discard any that do not open.
4. Serve shellfish in a bowl with broth poured on top. Garnish with parsley and serve toast on the side.

https://www.sommstable.com/2021/09/cantine-belisario-cambrugiano-verdicchio-di-matelica-riserva-with-brodetto.html

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For more posts related to Verdicchio check out:

• Cooking to the Wine: Azienda Santa Barbara Verdicchio and Tuna Melts  
• A Sustainable Sampler Pack with Umani Ronchi
•   Cooking to the Wine: Podere Selva Capuzza Lugana Riserva Menasasso with Veal Saltimboca and Sardine Toast Points
  

  
  
  

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