Mexico’s wine industry is booming and quickly becoming a contender on the global stage. Finca El Empecinado in Baja California’s Guadalupe Valley, produced a Grand Gold medal winner at the 2023 Concours Mondial de Bruxelles (CMB), one of wine’s biggest prizes. Selected as the 2023 Revelation White Wine, this canary colored beauty was the top choice out of 7,054 entrants, from 50 different nations. But what would this go well with? To find out more about the best Mexican wine pairings, I went in search of answers.
My friend and I could barely contain our excitement when we went to stay at the Conrad Tulum Riviera Maya. We were about to meet the Director of Wine for Hilton Tulum and Conrad Tulum, Aaron Alvarez, for a tasting of top Mexican wines, each paired with traditional dishes from the regions where the wines are grown. It was hands down the best tasting of my life. That includes tastings in Italy, the US, Australia’s top wine regions, and European nations (Slovenia, Bratislava, Slovenia). As I said, I enjoy a glass.
Starting with a white
Tres Raíces bright, light yellow 2023 Sauvignon Blanc was our first wine. It was fresh with hints of mango, pineapple, and citrus. This makes it the perfect white for a ceviche pairing. Mine was a little different though because I’m a vegetarian. So, instead of seafood, a traditional ceviche from the Dolores Hidalgo region of Guanajuato arrived.
Faced with the xoconostle (prickly pear) and mushroom ceviche, my taste buds sang. If it wasn’t rude to do so, I may have licked the bowl. Judging by the noises coming from my friend, I could tell the traditional seafood ceviche was every bit as amazing.
Aaron added that, in his opinion, Tres Raíces is “the best Sauvignon Blanc in Mexico.” I’m trusting that opinion, because it certainly was sublime.
Rosé all day, wine not?
Yes, we all giggled at the pun. Aaron introduced a special rosé from Casta de Vinos. From the Guadalupe Valley in Baja California. Pitaya, a Rosé Grenache, has some very special ingredients.
Passion, courage, feeling, and love are all essential parts of the wine. Each bottle is in remembrance of winemaker Claudia Horta’s mother, who lost her battle to cancer. Now, Pitaya, the special rosé grenache blend, has helped over 300 women with cancer by donating a portion of their profits to support medical costs.
This wine is bright and clean, a beautiful soft coral color with copper flecks. It tastes of berries and pink roses. Served alongside strawberries and dragonfruit, it was refreshing and lovely. With a touch of honey and wildflowers, it was a perfect pairing.
Onto my personal favorites, reds
I’ve been a red wine lover my whole life. So, I most looked forward to the part of the tasting where I tried a medium-bodied and then a full-bodied red. And I must say, I was not disappointed.
The first red was a medium-bodied cabernet sauvignon from Don Leo in the Parras Valley, Coahuila. Even while Aaron poured, I could smell the blackcurrant and berries. But there was something else. Do you ever have that sensation that something is on the tip of your tongue?
Raising the glass to my nose, I felt a hint of beautiful dark chocolate fill my senses. This was ticking all the boxes for me. I love blackcurrant and dark chocolate, so I couldn’t wait to take the first sip. At a medium-high acidity, I was impressed that it was so smooth.
Then came the perfect pairing: a traditional dish from Coahuila. My friend delighted in a chicken filled with sweet corn on a tomato and red pepper sauce. My veggie substitute was one of the best things I’ve ever eaten — so much so that I kissed the chef at the end of the tasting and asked for the recipe!
Saving the best for last
The Megacero is a full-bodied premium blend from Encinillas Winery in Chihuahua. Organic and sustainably farmed, this wine was magnificent. It may have skyrocketed to my all-time favourite Mexican wine in fact.
It was a deep carmine color, known as sangre (blood), Aaron explained. The smell of currant, mushroom, and earth was heavenly. It reminded me of my grandfather, who was a wine distributor and avid leather worker. His workshop always smelled of earthy fragrances and red wine so for me, it was home.
It paired beautifully with a regional specialty: Discada. Traditionally, discada is cooked on a hot plate over a fire in the field and usually contains meat. Mine was mushroom with blue cheese and bell pepper. It turned out to be the perfect mouthful of flavor to bring out the smoothness of the wine.
Honestly, I could eat that for the rest of my life. It was magic.
This was more than a wine tasting. As Aaron and his team said, “It was an activation of our soul and identity. The team of Tulum makes it a culinary tour around Mexico. We put our heart and soul into this experience.”
Mexico Correspondent for International Living, Bel is an experienced writer, author, photographer and videographer with 500+ articles published both in print and across digital platforms. Living in the Mexican Caribbean for over 7 years now she’s in love with Mexico and has no plans to go anywhere anytime soon.
