Saturday, September 13, 2025

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.
A soldier records the passage of Armed Forces helicopters during rehearsals for the Military Air Parade marking the 215th anniversary of the start of the Mexican War of Independence

Mexico’s week in review: Market confidence, China tariff hikes and military scandal

0
Other headlines included a move by Peru to declare Mexico's president a persona non grata, a one-year high for the peso and fatal roadway accidents that left over 100 people wounded.
News quiz

The MND News Quiz of the Week: September 13th

0
Trash, tariffs and tourism: Have you been following the news this week?
presdent sheinbaum in Sept 2025

Sheinbaum on the defense after China charges Mexico with enacting tariffs under US coercion

31
While rejecting any "appeasement ... toward unilateral bullying” (a clear reference to Trump), the president indicated a willingness to negotiate.
BETA Version - Powered by Perplexity