Vinisterra – The Art of Good Wine
The charming seaport of Ensenada lies 70 miles south of San Diego and is blessed with mild Mediterranean climate, fertile valleys, and is home to Mexico’s premier wine country.
Our wine region is located inland from the ocean between seven to fifteen miles which provides stable weather and constant maritime breezes. Cool evening winds give character to the fruit, and a long warm growing season provides for ripe, full -bodied premium grapes.
Ensenada has become the “wine and food” capital of Mexico and you’ll find many local and regional wines at our best culinary establishments.
Our winery has an interesting family history. Owner/partner Guillermo Rodriguez and his friends used to meet regularly to drink and blend wine while playing dominos. They soon became known for these “remarkable” blends which latter inspired them to get serious about making their own wines.
Guillermo was captured by “the passion and spirit” of winemaking and started his first label, Chateau Domino, in the kitchen of his summer home in San Antonio de las Minas, Valle de Guadalupe. Over the years the label has evolved into, Macouzet and Vinisterra and is home to some of Mexico’s best wine.
In 2000 Guillermo purchased 50,000 certified French Merlot vines and planted them on his estate at San Antonio de las Minas. These “estate” grown wines are now producing some amazing wines that are capturing international attention from serious wine lovers.
As Guillermo became more focused with the process of creating premium wine he met a passionate Swiss enologist, Christoph Gartner, who was then working at Bodegas Santo Tomas winery. Both men were in agreement that Mexico could produce high quality wine.
After six years of friendship and in-depth conversations, Guillermo and Christoph formed a business partnership in 2002 with the goal of creating premium wines crafted from grapes grown in the region.
Today, Vinisterra winery has the ability to produce 7,000 cases of premium wine from their “estate” vineyards and from selection vines in the region.
The first “estate” vineyards were planted at their San Antonio de las Minas facility in 2002, followed in 2003 with the establishment of an additional fifteen acres near Valle de Santo Tomas.
Prior to the fruit production from their “estate” vineyards, Vinisterra purchased grapes from “selected” blocks of vineyards in the region and transported the grapes to San Antonio de las Minas.
The philosophy of Vinisterra is to: “promote the fullest expression of the grape, focus on the distinct characters of fruit from specific valleys, and to represent the uniqueness and high quality of wine produced in Baja California Norte.”
Swiss enologist Christoph Gartner is a deeply focused wine artisan with the abilities to create “world class” wine in Mexico. In addition, he supervises fifteen people in the field, manages the vineyards, handcrafts award-winning wine and monitors office administration.
The marketing and sales are maintained by David Rivera; Mariela Lopez is the office administrator; Veronica Penelope Santiago performs the guided tours and operates the wine tasting room.
Vinisterra offers three distinct levels of quality marc by 3 labels:
- Domino” represents white, rose and red table wines similar to the original blends created during the domino games.
- “Macouzet” showcases two premium wines, 100% Tempranillo and a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot of superior quality.
- “Cascabel” & “Pedregal” highlights the best level of quality from the winery. These wines have great characters and complex qualities that express the best of each varietal, the land, and the touch of the wine artisan.The current “Cascabel” & ”Pedregal” premium blends are: Tempranillo with Grenache, and Syrah with Mourvedre.
Located in Valle De Guadalupe, you take Route 3 towards Tecate and turn right towards San Antonio de Las Minas on the only paved road to that Colonia. From there you will see signs to Vinisterra. It is a beautiful weekend home that was converted into a winery.
The information provided about is directly from their website at www.vinisterra.com.
Offices
Calle Sexta 984-3 Zona Centro
Ensenada, B.C. México
C.P. 22800
Phone: +52 (646) 178-3310 &
+52 (646) 178-33 50
Fax: +52 (646) 174-0181
contacto@vinisterra.comWineryCalle Miguel Lerdo de Tejada y
Riva Palacios y Vallarta # 466
Poblado de Villa de Juarez,
San Antonio de las Minas,
Ensenada B.C.
C.P. 22766
