La Casa Vieja Humberto Toscano
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Humberto Toscano was born and raised in the small town of San Antonio de las Miñas in an adobe ranch that dates back to the 1800s. After spending some time in the United States, Humberto decided to return to the ranch and the centenarian vines planted on the estate wishing for a calmer lifestyle. He spent time recuperating the family’s three hectares of vines that have never once seen chemicals. Humberto now makes four wines all from estate fruit where winemaking is direct and minimal. Macerations are long in the old-school style and aging takes place mostly in old barrels and tinajas. Everything is done by hand, including the labeling, and SO2 is never added at any point in the process. The vineyards are planted with ungrafted Misión, Rosa del Perú, and Palomino (many vines are likely older then 120 years), and he recently planted some new vines of Misión and Garnacha.

The Wines

Palomino is 100% Palomino from old, organically farmed ungrafted vines at the La Casa Vieja estate. These old own-rooted vines are particularly suited to the arid conditions in the area, and yields are low. The Palomino is harvested by hand in mid-September, then destemmed manually with a Zaranda. The destemmed grapes are foot-trodden and moved to neutral plastic and a 450-liter concrete for fermentation and two weeks of maceration on the skins. The wine rests in the same vessels and is bottled without fining, filtering or added SO2. 

Rosado is roughly 75% Misión (aka Mission, aka País) and 25% Palomino from old, organically farmed ungrafted vines at the La Casa Vieja estate. These old own-rooted vines are particularly suited to the arid conditions in the area, and yields are low. A blend of the estate’s two main grape varieties, the Palomino and Misión for the rosado are fermented separately and blended before bottling. The Palomino is destemmed, foot-trodden, and fermented in ceramic Tinajas, while the Misíon is destemmed, foot-trodden, and fermented in neutral barrels. The two wines are blended and bottled without fining, filtering, or added sulfur. 

Misión is 100% Misión (aka Mission, aka País) from old, organically farmed ungrafted vines at the La Casa Vieja estate. These old own-rooted vines are particularly suited to the arid conditions in the area, and yields are low. The Palomino is harvested by hand in mid-September, then destemmed manually with a Zaranda. The destemmed grapes are foot-trodden and moved to neutral barrels for fermentation and three to four weeks of maceration on the skins. The wine rests in the same vessels and is bottled without fining, filtering or added SO2. 

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Location

General Info

  • Founded: 2003
  • Region: Baja California, Mexico
  • Appellation: Valle de Guadalupe
  • Village: San Antonio de las Miñas
  • Elevation: ​325m
  • Vineyard Land: 3 hectares
  • Farming: Organic
  • Grower: Humberto Toscano

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