BajaNomad

Great red blend at decent price

Santiago - 6-7-2017 at 07:01 AM


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We were in the valley last weekend and stopped in at Monte Xanic. Their tasting area is now down by the lake, they only open the tasting room for special occasions, the lake side is better anyway.
After tasting the lineup, our host said they were releasing a special blend today and she went and got a bottle. It was the best we had all weekend and only $12. It's in the 'easy drinking' category, which normally means not very interesting but this is an exception. Get some.

By the way, they have a white port from chenin blanc, go figure, and they sold 4 bottles in the 30 minutes we were there; all to groups of youngish Mexican women. Our host said it was very popular but not available for tasting.

Udo - 6-7-2017 at 08:37 AM

We had this a couple of weeks ago. Very nice!

Don Jorge - 6-7-2017 at 10:37 AM

Quote: Originally posted by Santiago  
We were in the valley last weekend and stopped in at Monte Xanic. Their tasting area is now down by the lake, they only open the tasting room for special occasions, the lake side is better anyway.

In the 80s when Monte Xanic first arrived in the Valley they were the first winery in the Valley to compete with Cetto and Domeq for ground, labor and market.

Santiago "Jim" Bibayoff owned the ground where Monte Xanic is today and sold it to Xanic to spite Cetto. Jim and Cetto did not get along at all. At the time, in the 80s, Cetto and Domeq were paying the local producers $40 a ton for their grapes, mostly Grenache and Muscat. Instead of giving away his grapes Jim yanked out his vines and rented his ground to a vegetable farmer.

Other local Russian grape growers followed his lead and many hectares of grapes were pulled out in the 80s to be rented out for cash in lieu of grape growing.

We used to hunt doves from that lakeside in the fall. The shooting was fast and fun as hundreds of doves would come in every evening to water.

After the hunts we would head over to Jim's or maybe Fernando's ranch in San Antonio de las Minas or perhaps Mustafas and feast.

When I visit the Valley today and see what has transpired since Jim Bibayoff sold the parcel to Monte Xanic I always think of Jim Bibayoff and his forward vision. Jim was quite the character and it was a pleasure to have been his friend.

Thanks for sharing and good to see Monte Xanic blending some decent wine. Now someone needs to grow some hops there and open a micro brewery.

El Jefe - 6-7-2017 at 01:24 PM

White Port! Those chicas must be listening to Frank Zappa.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fb3Cu_Xrt_g

Up in the tasting room years ago I got a taste of the smoothest tequila i ever had from a little barril. Sadly, not for sale.

Santiago - 6-7-2017 at 03:55 PM

Quote: Originally posted by Don Jorge  
Quote: Originally posted by Santiago  
We were in the valley last weekend and stopped in at Monte Xanic. Their tasting area is now down by the lake, they only open the tasting room for special occasions, the lake side is better anyway.

In the 80s when Monte Xanic first arrived in the Valley they were the first winery in the Valley to compete with Cetto and Domeq for ground, labor and market.

Santiago "Jim" Bibayoff owned the ground where Monte Xanic is today and sold it to Xanic to spite Cetto. Jim and Cetto did not get along at all. At the time, in the 80s, Cetto and Domeq were paying the local producers $40 a ton for their grapes, mostly Grenache and Muscat. Instead of giving away his grapes Jim yanked out his vines and rented his ground to a vegetable farmer.

Other local Russian grape growers followed his lead and many hectares of grapes were pulled out in the 80s to be rented out for cash in lieu of grape growing.

We used to hunt doves from that lakeside in the fall. The shooting was fast and fun as hundreds of doves would come in every evening to water.

After the hunts we would head over to Jim's or maybe Fernando's ranch in San Antonio de las Minas or perhaps Mustafas and feast.

When I visit the Valley today and see what has transpired since Jim Bibayoff sold the parcel to Monte Xanic I always think of Jim Bibayoff and his forward vision. Jim was quite the character and it was a pleasure to have been his friend.

Thanks for sharing and good to see Monte Xanic blending some decent wine. Now someone needs to grow some hops there and open a micro brewery.


Thanks DJ, very informative and interesting. I do not see any hops, but we see a few micro brews available at the wineries.

bajaguy - 6-7-2017 at 04:06 PM

Quote: Originally posted by Don Jorge  

Now someone needs to grow some hops there and open a micro brewery.





They are. Several craft brewers are growing a variety of hops in the Guadalupe Valle, mainly for personal use at this time.