The Valle Seco Estate
The Valle Seco Estate was founded in 2009 by Federico Lencioni & Francisco Sarabia who decided in that year to plant a vineyard in their vast highland ranch. They had noted for years that this parcel was consistently covered in fog and breezy throughout the morning, two traits that made it ideally suited for a vineyard site.
Since then it has been a bit of a fairytale success story for these ranchers turned winemakers whose grapes have been sold and used in wines that have consistently won top awards in every competition they entered. Selling grapes was never their plan A, and in 2018, when the vineyards had reached a level of maturity that they felt confident in, they started making their own wine.
In 18 they teamed up with the well-known winemaker/enologist Sergio Heras, who has been making wine Northern Baja for a decade and is one of its most well-respected winemakers, and stage two of the dream began.
Today they make 4 wines: A natural Cabernet Sauvignon, a traditional red blend, a rosé of Mourvedre and another blend called K3 that is not exported. They use certified organic yeast to make the Rosé and Tinto and the MI prima Vera is fermented on ambient yeast. Here are some of the details about their estate and vineyards:
- Their southeastern facing vineyard site is located 18 miles from the Pacific in Valle Seco at an elevation of 1,800 ft. Soil is composed of decomposed granite, sand, and some clay.
- Vineyards are completely isolated from any other wineries and farmed organically and sustainably.
- The vast highland plain where the winery is located has better water reserves that most of the viticultural regions of Northern Baja, and it is accessed by a pump powered by the wind. That’s right, the windmill that appears on their logo is an image of the windmill that was erected nearly 100 years ago and still serves to pump up the water from the underground aquifer for use in the winery.
Total production: 29 acres under vine, 4 wines, 1,200 cases
2021 Tinto - Valle Seco
Tasting Notes and Drinking Window:
A bold and rich red wine that graciously reveals the unique terroir of this high elevation valley that lies inland and above the well-known Valle de Guadalupe. An expressive nose of red fruits, chocolate and espresso undertones leads to a bright palate of well-integrated tannins, rich and silky texture and a beautiful lingering finish. Bravo.
only 165 cases made
Drinking window: Upon release - 8 years
Vintage:
2021
Blend:
34% Petite Sirah, 33% Mourvedre, 33% Cabernet Sauvignon
Producer:
Valle Seco
Winemaker:
Sergio Heras - Argentina (lives in Valle de Guadalupe)
Vineyards:
Valle Seco – From the only vineyard in a high elevation valley which lies up above Valle de Guadalupe where the Guadalupe river originates. Elevation is 1,800 ft, and the soil is largely granite with some clay. Vines planted in 2009 and 2016. All estate owned.
Winemaking:
Grapes are picked and final selected by hand in the night to maintain acidity, and then cold soaked before pressing. Fermentation was carried out in stainless steel tanks with organic certified yeast, seeds and skins, at low temperatures for a period of 3 weeks. Once fermentation was complete, the wine was racked off and aged in 1st use French Oak barrels for 12 months and then an additional 12 months after bottling.
Sulfites: 40 ppm
Farming:
Organic, sustainable
Alcohol:
14%
