Friday, November 8, 2024

Baja California winemaker was industry pioneer

A pioneering winemaker in Baja California died on Friday aged 87.

Luis Cetto headed L.A. Cetto after taking over management of the company in 1983, representing the third generation of ownership. Cetto took the company’s wines to international markets and expanded their customer base in Mexico.

L.A. Cetto was started in 1928 by Angelo Cetto, an Italian who established the wine region now known as Valle de Guadalupe in Baja California.

Born on August 28, 1934 in Tijuana, Luis Cetto was the founder of the fruit juice company Jugos del Valle.

The national restaurant association Canirac posted on Twitter to pay tribute to Cetto. “At Canirac we lament the sad departure of Don Luis Cetto, a persevering man, visionary businessman and promoter of Mexican wine culture.”

“Mr. Cetto is a person that everyone loved. He and his family are very respected. He was a person who always supported restaurateurs a lot … and the people who are dedicated to wine,” the president of Canirac Tijuana, Juan José Plascencia Huerta, said.

The Mexican Wine Council (CMV) referred to Cetto as a pioneer of the wine industry who’d received international recognition.

The head of the Tijuana Tourism Committee Cotuco, José Arturo Gutiérrez, said wine production had helped the city promote tourism. “For the Tourism Committee [L.A. Cetto’s reputation] was a tool … to carry when we were going to present in exhibitions and congresses about Tijuana. The Cetto family supported us a lot in the promotion of the city,” he said.

L.A. Cetto received an award at the Vinalies Internationales 2022 wine competition in Paris alongside two other Mexican wineries, Casa Madero and Monte Xanic.

L.A. Cetto produces chardonnay, merlot, tempranillo, pinot noir and shiraz. Its wines are sold in Chile, Argentina, the United States, Canada, France, Italy and Spain.

With reports from Reforma and El Imparcial

Have something to say? Paid Subscribers get all access to make & read comments.
Donald Trump in a blue suit and red tie at a 2024 campaign rally, standing onstage in a stadium filled with people, smiling closemouthed as he points out into the audience

What will a second Donald Trump term mean for Mexico?

1
Peter Davies examines the challenges, pressures and leverage Mexico might have once Donald Trump again becomes president of the United States in 2025.
Multicolored weather map showing an image of Hurricane Rafael

Hurricane Rafael heads for Gulf of Mexico as Category 2 storm

0
The Yucatán Peninsula will see intense rainstorms Thursday as Hurricane Rafael comes for a lingering stay in the Gulf of Mexico.
A Mexican 20-peso bill and a U.S. 20-dollar bill on an abstract black background. The Mexican bill is laying over the U.S. bill.

Peso takes wild ride Wednesday in reaction to the US elections

1
Mexico's currency reacted strongly to Tuesday's U.S. elections on Wednesday, at one point plummeting to 20.81 pesos to the U.S. dollar.