Where to Eat
If it’s just a cappuccino or espresso you’re after, there’s no finer spot than Maglén Resort’s Aromas Coffee and Shop, which hand-selects Mexican arabica beans from top producers and roasts them on-site.
Start the day with a traditional breakfast at La Cocina de Doña Esthela, like homemade queso fresco with salsa and warm, handmade flour and corn tortillas; clay oven–roasted lamb; or machaca con huevo (shredded beef and scrambled eggs). Double-roasted lamb and beef served with luscious refried beans and flour tortillas toasted on a wood-fired comal are crowd-pleasers at the Kumiai-owned Wa Kumiai Tabita, in San Antonio Necua. Whether serving breakfast or lunch, Parador Mercedes has an approachable menu of regional fare: eggs cooked to order any way and savory Mexican stews like machaca de mantarraya.
This article appears in Issue 26 of Alta Journal.
SUBSCRIBE
Tasting menus at various levels of affordable luxury abound across the valley. Malva offers up to 10-course seasonal menus served on an elevated deck. Committed to hyperlocal ingredients, Deckman’s en el Mongor has a seven-course menu that includes oysters alongside a pink-peppercorn mignonette and fried soft-shell crab with a beer emulsion. Lunario’s six-course meals are updated monthly: a parsnip tamal over mole poblano, say, or slow-roasted lamb pavé with a salsa of chile strips and corn tortillas, all beautifully plated. Reservations are recommended for Animalón, which serves six or nine courses under a 100-year-old live oak tree: a Oaxacan clam coated with a hazelnut-and-tamarind butter, a decadent crab tallarín, or tender beef barbacoa. Arguably the best dish in Valle de Guadalupe? Butter-poached scallops over charred eggplant eaten with flour tortillas at Fauna.
Where to Drink
The best wineries in Valle de Guadalupe are working hard to maintain the integrity of Mexico’s premier grape-growing region. All of Mina Penélope’s nine expressions are estate wines, and the winemaker has adopted sustainable, organic practices to grow vines on decomposed granite and clay soil at a 1,000-foot elevation. The fruity Julio 14 grenache, syrah, and mourvèdre blend is a standout, as is a dry rosé made from a majority of montepulciano grapes. Rock star enologist Lourdes “Lulú” Martínez Ojeda is leading the next generation at Bruma, crafting fresh, crisp whites, rosé, and Ocho, a bold blend of cabernet sauvignon and petite sirah that’s fit for cellaring. Precious water resources are precisely managed for enologist Thomas Egli’s 10 wines at Clos de Tres Cantos (try the popular petite sirah Resilencia).
The area’s first certified-organic winery, Finca La Carrodilla, carries a fantastic line of single varietals, like a tempranillo bursting with red fruit that’s aged in French and American oak for 12 months, as well as blends. Meanwhile, influential winery Mogor Badan still offers one of the best tastings around, including a refreshingly dry Arrebol rosé and the eponymous Bordeaux blend that has been a classic since 1987.
Duoma is putting out highly rated wines such as syrah, nebbiolo, and a red blend. A pair of pét-nats are exciting new additions, including a memorable pét-nat rosé that’s 50-50 grenache and grenache blanc.
Other unique wineries include JC Bravo, which produces well-made monovarietals, a perfect food-friendly palomino with plenty of acidity, and a light red carignan, and Solar Fortún, which first garnered attention for sophisticated red blends, notably Noble Cru. You’ll find stellar sparkling wine at Casa de Piedra. And at Vinos Pijoan, a line of natural and carbonic wines are breathing new life into the tasting room.
Where to Stay
Sustainability is top of mind at Valle de Guadalupe’s new hotel Mira Earth Studios, with its cutting-edge water-recycling system, rammed-earth walls, and green roof. Origen 75’s elegant hillside lofts employ solar panels for rooms that overlook rows of vineyards, while Casa 8 has a coveted location on the grounds of Bruma (and its destination restaurant, Fauna).
Energy-efficient bubble tents next to grapevines might not sound like the height of romance, but look through their clear ceilings at the night sky and you’ll be hooked on Camper Hotel Burbuja. You’ll find other unusual accommodations at Villa Garven, an ultramodern private villa perched on a hillside whose five sleek residences fashioned from shipping containers are perfect for groups. And dog-friendly Maglén Resort consists of 60 rooms and four concepts, from remodeled Airstreams for glamping to upscale villas.
Other luxury options are Contemplación Hotel Boutique, a top-rated hotel in Valle de Guadalupe, and Casa Anlu, which offers 180-degree views from its elevated wooden deck and has a modern minimalist design that’s chic yet homey. Since 2002, La Villa del Valle has housed folks in six luxury suites surrounded by gardens and fragrant lavender on 70 acres; the uninterrupted views include acclaimed winery Vena Cava, located under ceilings crafted from recycled boats.
And If You Must…Where to Party
Skip the Valle nightlife and head to Ensenada instead. Before you hit the clubs, sample the tasting menu at Manzanilla; the restaurant helped create modern Baja California cuisine. Then go for craft cocktails and tacos at La Bête Noire. If you’re looking to cut loose and stay out late, head to Hussong’s Cantina for cold beers, margaritas, and live norteño or to Loca to sip artisanal mezcal. For those seeking to take it up a notch—sparklers, bottle service, a dance floor full of beautiful people, and good live music—
Ryerson 51 checks all the boxes for a wild night.•
Bill Esparza is a James Beard Award–winning food writer, a leading authority on Latin American cuisines, and the author of the book LA Mexicano.
