In Tequila's Home, a Wine Region Comes of Age - The Guadalupe Valley
The first time I went to Mexican wine country, I found myself digging my car out of a muddy river bed at 11 at night. It speaks volumes about the area’s charm that this didn’t deter me from a second trip, four months later. This time, I destroyed one of my sedan’s axles in a pothole and popped a tire.
And yet, I still plan to visit again. Next time, I’ll bring an S.U.V.
Wine tasting in the Guadalupe Valley of Mexico is an adventure sport; not an endeavor for the weak of will. There is the matter of the roads. They are dirt-surfaced, they frequently require that you drive straight through riverbeds and, thanks to a winter of record storms, they currently resemble the pitted surface of the moon. Then there are the obstacles to actually tasting wines: many wineries require appointments, and a working knowledge of Spanish is definitely an asset.
Persevere, however, and you could find yourself at the bucolic ranch of Antonio Badán, sampling a generous glass of elegant Mogor-Badán Chasselas with the winemaker himself. Mr. Badán’s tasting room consists of a folding table in a corner of the small concrete building where he produces his wines. The chairs are wobbly; the walls are bare. From the tasting room, you can look over the vegetable gardens, the henhouse and the grazing cattle to the budding grapevines on the valley floor. read more »
