Wine and Mexico

I recently became interested in learning about the wine industry in Mexico. I have visited Mexico at least two dozen times throughout my life to visit family and see sites. I have been in Mexico City, Cuernavaca, Acapulco, Celaya, San Miguel de Allende, Guadalajara and Leon. In all of these cities I can recall Sangrias, Rums, Tequilas, Cervezas and Micheladas but, in all of my dining experiences in Mexico, I do not recall wines. 

With this in mind, I looked into the topic to see if there were some solid facts on wine consumption and trends in Mexico. The results look like China might not be the only market worth watching. 

According to the California Wine Export Program  "Currently 70% of the wine consumed in Mexico is imported from foreign countries." This was no surprise considering the hot climate but, what did generate interest was the following piece, " Nationwide wine consumption has increased in the last few years... some wine experts estimate an annual 12% growth rate in consumption in the next few years. Mexico’s transition to more wine consumption over other alcoholic beverages, increased interest among different consumer sectors including women and young adults, and growing interest among consumers in trying novel wines makes Mexico an excellent market for the promotion and sales of U.S. wines."

As for the other 30%  of consumed wine, the home-grown wine seems to be growing in stature and abilities. I even found a few sites promoting Mexican Wine Tours which I would otherwise consider to be a scam but, the majority are in Baja.

The wine growing regions do not  go below Mexico City. The regions include:
           Baja California, Sonora (Wine region North) 

           La Laguna- (Coahuila and Durango)

           Center- (Zacatecas, Aguascalientes and Queretaro) 

Though 70-75% on the grapes are used for distillation and 10-15% are used for table grapes, as you move North, the wine production increases. You will find Cariñena, Barbera, Chenin Blanc, Syrah, Malbec and many more. 


This is a brief tickler, stay tuned for a more in depth look into Mexican wine consumer's habits and the capabilities of the wineries. 

Some of the Best Websites for Wine Study

These are the sites that every wine student should visit regularly.

Guild of Sommeliers Website- it requires a membership fee but, the information is always as current as possible and you can drill down into every topic imaginable.

Court of Master Sommelier- Great resource for study guides, reading lists and inspiration (by reading about those who have achieved the "Master Sommelier" Designation.

Masters Of Wine- Incredible resource for study direction, practice exams and inspiration.

United States Bartenders Guild- It requires a membership fee but, offers great resources on all things beverage and local chapters usually coordinate great tasting events master distillers and sponsor mixology sessions and competitions.

Cicerone- This website offers great insight into the growing world of craft beers. It also certifies beer servers and stewards and offers a course of study to become a Cicerone (the beer worlds equivalent to a Sommelier)

Decanter- This is the best site for staying current on wine news and looking up vintage notes.

Wine-Pages- Great resources for vintage a region notes.

OperaWine- For Italian wines. Each week new articles on Italy's 100 Great Producers selected by WineSpectator. 

The Bubbly Professor- this site offers quizzes and regional information.

On the Wine Trail- Alfonso Cevola is one of the most passionate wine writers in the US. The site is not necessarily structured to be educational but, the information is always current and accurate and a fun read.

Vinography- This site has great research on vintage and regions.

Dr Vino- This site has some great info on regions and good interviews with winemakers.

Facing the Doppelgangers

It should be no surprise but, always shocks me how often I am left to consider the effect of foreign language on the wine industry in the US. Forget the European wine laws and confusing rules that go in the bottle. I am talking strictly about pronunciation. It is a relevant topic for me. If a server cannot pronounce a wine, they will likely avoid recommending it and thus, it will not sell as expected.

Living in the greatest nation on the planet, Americans do not focus on learning foreign languages the way Europeans do. (For my foreign friends, I mean no disrespect, your nations are great too!) Therefore, the average American is destined to fear or butcher any word that is not "American".

I often sit in meetings or attend tastings where the reps completely destroy the pronunciation of the wines they are presenting. Call it prejudice or call it snobbery but, when I hear the name butchered, I often ignore the rest. I realize that a rep may be able to describe the wine beautifully, call out all of its greatest attributes, name the winery's 5 generations of winemakers but, if you can't pronounce the wine, the rest loses credibility. 

I do not have a feasible answer to the issue. I do not know how to pull theses apparitions, these ghostly counterparts of the wineries, into fully representing the soul of their wines. I wish there was a polite way to correct a sales persons pronunciation without throwing their confidence for the remainder of their presentation. But, until sales people learn the full scope of their craft, wines and wineries can only hope that curiosity drives a buyer past the doppelganger and into the bottle.

Among Giants, Standing On My Tippy Toes...

There are times in life when you are humbled by the circumstances of your surroundings. This week, I was humbled by the people who made up my surroundings. I had the pleasure of spending a week amongst the giants of the wine world. I attended the annual Society of Wine Educators Conference and spent the week in aww of those in attendance. Amongst these giants were Masters of Wine; Debra Meiburg, Mark deVere, Roger Bohmrich, Peter Marks, Sheri Sauter Morano, Master Sommeliers; Guy Stout, David Glancy, Tim Gaiser, Serafin Alvaredo, Sheral Schowe and Doug Frost who rightly carries the two distinctions, notable writers; Gerald Asher, Alfonso Cevola, Matilde Parente, Debora Parker Wong and a multitude of other students, educators, enthusiasts and bloggers.

As I write this, I am watching the 2012 Summer Olympics and marveling at the years these olympians spend preparing for their day in the sun. I can't help making the comparison of the wine "olympians"  I have had the pleasure to meet who have also trained, practiced, sacrificed and prepared for the day when they too are called upon to display the mastery of their craft. I give both their due respect.

I benefited from every seminar that I attended but, in tribute to these great industry leaders, I would like to say a little about those who impacted me the most.

Tim Gaiser MS: I had the pleasure of sitting in on two of Tim Gaisers sessions; "Olfactory Memory & Submodalities" and "Discovering Dry German Rieslings". The former taught me how to read a students' and my own learning cues, the subtleties of the nuances of attention that when read correctly can be controlled and focused to maximize your performance, especially when the strongest of focus is needed. The latter, was an exquisite journey through the different expressions of dry German Rieslings beginning with Whittmann's 2010 "Morstein"Grosses Gewachs from the Rheinhessen with it's tropical fruits notes, sea shell minerality and citrus flower nose and ending with Franz Kunster's 2010 Erstes Gewachs "Hochheimer Holle" from the Rheingau with it's pineapple, tarragon, lemon grass nose that finished rich and concentrated on the palate. My wine lexicon and my tooth enamel will never forget this tasting. http://www.timgaiser.com/index.html

Doug Frost MS, MW: Doug hosted a very entertaining session on Wines of Greece. Along with an entertaining pronunciation guide of the terrifying to say Agiorgitiko and Xinomavro, he walked us through the food friendly varieties of Greece and it's islands, showing similar application to its wines as one might find in Italy and France. Doug has an approach to explaining the seemingly impossible that makes one feel they can build a battle ship after learning how super glue works. http://www.dougfrost.com/

Guy Stout MS: Guy spoke on the "Wines of the Medoc" and with his Texan swagger and charming southern attempt at french, he lulled the audience into his vision, passion and perception of what the multitude of terroirs have to offer within this relatively small growing area. The tasting was revealing at every swig from the 2008 Chateau Loudenne Blanc a 60/40 blend Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon, it was a beautiful expression from the region, rich acacia and vanilla notes, with crisp minerality highlighted by even more floral notes. Among my other favorties were Ch. Lannesan from Haut Medoc 2004 and Ch. Pichon Longuieville, Comtesse de Lalande from Pauillac. http://theblendblog.com

Alfonso Cevola: Alfonso spoke to the changes in DOCG classification that Italy put in place prior to the close of 2011. He began with a colorful history of Italian Wine and finished with a discussion on recommended wines that sprung from the question "what should we watch out for". Watching Alfonso lovingly discuss the wines of his heritage is nothing short of inspiring.On The Wine trail in Italy

"Teamwork Makes the Dreamwork"

It sounds corny, I know, maybe even a bit little-league-coach meets motivational speaker. Personally, I love this quote. In our world you HAVE to rely on a network of people to build from to be successful and to refer to this network as a "team" really rallies the troops and drives out the WIIFM people. (What's In It For Me) In 2010, I took the Advanced Exam with the Court of Master Sommeliers. At 8am on Day One I thought I was on a level playing field with all of the other candidates in the room. By 9am, in the first round of group blind tastings, I realized there were two distinct groups of people in the room. There was the group who studied on their own, read every wine book on the sugested reading list and tasted everything they could get their hands on. The second group added one essential element to their toolbelt beyond the first groups strategy that gave them the edge, they had formed a study network months, if not years, before the exam. This study network is essential for two very different reasons. 1. The group is a sounding board to be sure that you truly do understand the information. 2. The group will help you work out your nerves by helping you gain confidence performing in front of others. The second is the most important. I have tasted thousands of wines, I use the Court's tasting chart daily, I am confident in my palate and my theory. My problem was on a 25 minute timer, sitting alone on one side of a table with 6 wines waiting to be swirled, sniffed, tasted and identified all while 3 Master Sommeliers sat across from me, staring at me waiting to judge my abilities, I struggled to contain my nerves. Had I utilized a network of people prior to this event, I might have been more efficient, more confident, more rehearsed and more successful in passing the overall exam. Following a participating in blogs and belonging to on-line groups is great to help with #1. You need to have the live human interaction to achieve masteryin #2. This can be applied to our work world as well. Wouldn't it be nice if we could all benefit from not just eachothers work but, also from their support, their criticism and their point of view.