It may barely be June, but if you’re a wine lover in Mexico, it’s not too early to start planning your seasonal vineyard trip for this year. And if you’ve never visited one of Mexico’s emerging wine regions, you’re still on time to start planning your first trip. The good news is that there are more and more high-quality wine regions in Mexico to explore than ever.
While Baja California has long held the crown as the titan of Mexican wines, a dramatic shift is happening, with newer wine regions in other states like Guanajuato finally getting major attention on the world stage. And if you want to really go off the beaten path, some of Mexico’s most undervisited states are quickly turning into must-see wine regions that you can proudly say you discovered first.
The female leaders of Baja California winemaking
Baja California, of course, is Mexico’s most famous wine region — and deservedly so. So if you’re looking for a repeat tour here but with a new twist, did you know that there are several excellent wineries in the state’s popular Valle de Guadalupe region either owned or run by women?
Veteran winemaker Laura Zamora, arguably the matriarch of this movement, is one of them. She started in the industry nearly 50 years ago as a lab tech at Mexico’s second-largest winemaker, Bodegas de Santo Tomás winery in Ensenada, when she was only 17. She worked her way up to the position of head winemaker there in 2005, when Santo Tomás became the first winery in Mexico to appoint a woman as its head enologist. These days, Zamora has her own winery in Valle de Guadalupe: Casa Zamora.
Find out more about Casa Zamora and the other wineries in Valle de Guadalupe run by women in our article below.
Baja California’s women winemakers are redefining the craft: Here’s how
Jalisco’s emerging wine scene
Jalisco wines? Yes, it’s increasingly a thing. The area around Ribera de Chapala, for example, is an up-and-coming wine destination worth checking out, with a cluster of wineries on the southern shore of Lake Chapala. If you’re feeling more adventurous, look up Jalisco’s emerging Los Altos wine region, home to several vineyards that do tours and tastings.
Not long ago, MND reported on Altos Norte Vinícola, an award-winning newer vineyard in this region that is Mexico’s first certified-organic winery — a feat accomplished after years of preparing the land on a former livestock farm in owner José Miguel Vega’s family since the 1920s.
Altos Norte winery produces effervescent Pét-Nat and dry sparkling brut wines, working with varietal grapes like Albariño, Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec.
Find out about the family-run Altos Norte Vinícola, noted for its low-intervention, zero-waste and fair labor practices — and, of course, for its great wines — in the story below.
Young wineries like Altos Norte are changing how wine lovers see Jalisco
What’s old is new again: The renaissance in Coahuila wines
The colonial Spanish discovered Parras de la Fuente, Coahuila, when they arrived here at the end of the 16th century. While they declared the native grapes unsuitable for wine, they recognized that the climate was perfect for vineyards and encouraged the Catholic missions that established there to grow better wine grapes on their estates. Mexico’s first winery, Casa Madero, is located in Parras de la Fuente, as are several other newer great wineries.
While Parras de la Fuente has long been a wine-producing region, only recently has it been recognized outside Mexico. It’s also a stop on probably one of the quirkiest wine routes anywhere: the Vinos y Dinos (Wines and Dinos) route, where you tour vineyards while also visiting Coahuila’s famous dinosaur fossil sites.
Queretaro: Mexico’s sparkling wine capital
Querétaro has long been seen as one of Mexico’s more staid, historic — frankly, a bit boring — states, a rising manufacturing and data center economic powerhouse with beautiful nature reserves in the Sierra Gorda, but somehow not a big tourism or vacation destination. So state officials must have been pleasantly surprised when Querétaro was recently included on the New York Times’ list of the 52 best places to go in 2026.
“In recent years,” the newspaper wrote, “the city and its surrounding countryside have emerged as a surprising new destination for food and drink.”
A big reason for that is undoubtedly Querétaro’s multitude of wineries, located conveniently close to the capital city of Quéretaro and the Querétaro International Airport. Wineries on this route offer daily tours, tastings and wine pairing workshops. The state’s impressively organized wine route is actually called The Wine and Cheese route, since there are small artisan cheesemakers to be found along the way as well.
The Spanish sparkling wine producer Freixenet has had vineyards and a large winery here for decades, and it’s left its imprint on the region: Querétaro and its vineyard-friendly arid climate have quietly become the capital of sparkling and effervescent Mexican wines, producing over 3.5 million bottles annually.
Guanajuato: Giving Baja California a run for its money
Over the border, Guanajuato state has long been turning into a wine-producing powerhouse — one of the biggest contenders in the nation poised to steal Baja California’s winemaking crown.
A testament to the state’s growing international importance as a wine producer is the fact that when the gold standard of wine competitions, The Concours Mondial de Bruxelles, chose in 2024 to hold its main competition for the first time in the Americas, it held it in León, Guanajuato. For over a decade before that, Guanajuato’s wineries had already been taking home medals at the Concours Mondial México edition.
Located in central Mexico, a few hours from Mexico City, the state of Guanajuato is chock-full of award-winning wineries and boasts a wine route with several great options. For a roundup of seven of Guanajuato’s best wineries, all award-winners, check out Lydia Carey’s article below.
7 award-winning boutique wineries you should know in Guanajuato
Some tips for your first wine tourism getaway
If you’re a newbie to wine travel in Mexico, here are some thoughts to keep in mind:
- Choose your wine region based not only on the wines’ reputation, but on the activities available nearby. By their nature, vineyards are usually located in rural areas, so be clear on what you want to do on your trip once the wine part is over. Many of the wineries in Coahuila’s Parras de la Fuente wine region, for example, are located near the Magical Town of the same name. There, you can take carriage rides in the architecture-rich historic center and visit picturesque lakes, but not much else. But a wine-loving dinosaur buff may enjoy other parts of Coahuila’s Vinos y Dinos route.The wine regions of Guanajuato and Baja California may be a good fit for those who love outdoor adventure. Companies in the region provide hiking, nature exploration and extreme sports offerings. Find out the name of the nearest town or city to your vineyard of choice, and research the tourism activities available within reach. In other words, choose your region wisely.
- Don’t just show up. At the very least, check the winery’s website to see if you need a reservation to take a tour or do a wine tasting before you arrive. Also, winery staff can alert you to pitfalls to avoid in getting there and answer questions about tourism options nearby.
- Consider how you’ll get to your winery — and back to your hotel. It may make the most sense to drive yourself there, but there can be benefits to booking with a local reputable wine tourism company. Baja California has lots of them, and even less touristic cities like Querétaro do as well. You may also welcome the presence of a sober driver after indulging in a day of wine-tasting that surprises you with its alcoholic potency. Again, staff at the vineyard you’re visiting are often good sources of information on trustworthy companies for this type of service.Or, if your winery of choice has hotel rooms on-site, you can opt to turn your vineyard visit into a mini-getaway!
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