The Wines of Mexico
L A Cetto, Baja California
2005 Chenin Blanc, Baja
California, L.A. Cetto
A rich fruity nose. Good palate. Fairly rich with a touch of sweetness. Full and round, and very easy drinking. Very Good.
87/100
2005 Sauvignon Blanc, Baja
California, L.A. Cetto
Very, very pale appearance. Very slight,
almost imperceptible nose. There is some
vague sauvignon blanc character on the palate.
Easy and pleasant, but it’s dull, dull, dull. Good.
82/100
2005 Chardonnay, Valle de
Guadelupe, Baja California, L.A. Cetto
Fermented in stainless steel. Fresh and
very clean on the nose. Quite full
flavoured with some richness and a touch of acidity on the finish. Good.
83/100
2004 Chardonnay Private Reserve,
Valle de Guadelupe, Baja California, L.A. Cetto
Barrel fermented. A sweetish buttery
nose gives onto a round and full palate.
Good. 84/100
2005 Primavera, L.A. Cetto
This is a rosé made from cabernet sauvignon.
A deepish pink colour, this has sweet raspberry and blackcurrant fruit
on the nose. A bit disjointed on the
palate, but there are some good flavours.
There’s a rather harsh feel on the finish. Good-ish.
81/100
2004 Zinfandel, Baja California, L.A. Cetto
This has some scented, floral fruit on the nose, with lots of blackberry
notes. Very open, fresh and fruity on
the palate, this feels positively juicy.
Lovely and very easy for a zin.
Very Good Indeed. 92/100
2004 Petite Sirah, Baja
California, L.A. Cetto
Rather closed, green hedgerow nose. Rich
and full on the palate with a big structure and soft, yet hefty tannins on the
finish. Very Good Indeed. 89/100
2004 Cabernet Sauvignon, Baja
California, L.A. Cetto
Barrel aged for 12 months. This has a
very sweet, ripe nose with restrained blackcurrant fruit. Ripe and very fruity palate. Good finish.
Nice structure. Very Good
Indeed. 90/100
2003 Cabernet Sauvignon Private
Reserve, Baja California, L.A. Cetto
This was aged for 12 months in barrel and for a further 18 months in
bottle. It has a very attractive toasty
oaky cassis nose. Lovely attack. Nice silky texture in the mouth. Very smooth with really nice fruit. Very Good Indeed. 93/100
2001 Nebbiolo Private Reserve,
Baja California, L.A. Cetto
This was aged for 16 months in barrel and then a further two years in
bottle. The nose is rather closed with
some slight, sweet cherry fruit. Very
smooth and silky on the attack. Fills
out nicely on the palate. There are some
fairly big tannins, but it is well balanced.
Very Good. 88/100
Santo Tomas, Baja California
1999 Barbera, Baja California, Santo Tomas
A bright even ruby that has lost any youthful purple. Big fruity
nose - warm, cedary spiced cherries. Good attack; very mouthfilling.
Very full and with a lush mouthfeel. Lots of fruit. Big and hefty: by
no means a quaffing wine. Powerful stuff. Very big with good fruit, but
not all upfront fruit. Soft tannins on the finish. Impressive, though
possibly not quite showing all the characteristics of barbera. Very
Good Indeed (at the price - £3.53) 89/100
(29/7/02)
1999 Tempranillo, Baja California, Santo Tomas
A deep, slightly muddy, garnet colour with a hint of youth at the rim.
Fair nose, though there is not a great deal of fruit. Some alcohol
shows through on the nose too and it's a bit okay with green
leaves/hedgerows and a touch of mint. Quite big on the attack. Very
forward fruit and very mouthfilling. Fills even more as it remains in
the mouth. Very full on the palate, but not overly fruity and not
overly varietal. Bit, quite fat and notably alcoholic. Fair. 78/100
(26/8/02)
1999 Barbera, Baja California, Santo Tomas
Very attractive, bright cherry red. Big fruity nose with a sort
of bitter peach kernel scent. Very nice attack - rich and with bags of
fruit. Fruit develops in the mouth. Quite complex towards the finish
when some alcohol kicks in. Nice acid bitterness running throughout,
with soft, pleasing tannins on the finish. 88/100
(2/10/02)
1999 Tempranillo, Baja California, Santo Tomas
A second bottle of this: the first was corked. Very bright youthful
garnet in appearance. A warm, sour cherry nose with a hint of citrus
and of spice. Nice and inviting and almost Christmassy. Quite big and
fruity on the attack. A full-on, no messing wine. Very ripe fruit;
hefty and full; and very mouthfilling. Good length follows a clean
finish. Very Good Indeed, although you'd be hard pressed to guess it
was tempranillo. 89/100
(20/11/02)
1999 Barbera, Baja California, Santo Tomas
These Santo Tomas Barbera & Tempranillo wines from Bibendum
have been a really mixed lot, with huge bottle variation and a quite
high proportion of off bottles. This one's a good one.
Even, cherry red with very merest hint of youth. Restrained minty nose
with hedgerow, prunes and apricot kernels. Light attack with some body.
Fills ok, developing character. Big on middle and massive on finish.
Fairly simple and rustic, but with a nice character and interest to it.
Very spicy on finish with some soft tannins. Good. 83/100
(4/4/03)
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Last updated: 1 August 2007