Wine Notes: Tinto and Blanco, Notes on Vinos Locales

By Randolph Rogers

To arrive at Dos Búhos is to find a bucolic setting with the much sought, tranquilo. This beautiful white hacienda setting, flowering bougainvillea, succulents, and sweeping Peruvian Pepper Trees - Los Pirules, provide ample shade. This is a place where the afternoon slips by without a hint of regret. I’ll let others rave about the wonderful food at Dos Búhos, as I will obsess about their wines. Both are best enjoyed in the marvelous outdoor setting which transports you to a time and place pueblos and haciendas were the rule not the exception.

This is not your corporate, money laundered, ostentatious winery. Dos Búhos is a family winery.

The property has been in the family for more than sixty years. Higinio Maycotte’s grandfather planted fruit trees prior to planting the vineyards. Their son, Eric Maycotte designed the buildings. Our host, Diane Maycotte, is the talented winemaker at Dos Búhos. Their wines are all made from estate-grown organic fruit. Her signature wines are dry, complex, and compelling. Their relatively small production of four thousand cases assures control and quality.

In 2024, Diane’s Garnacha Gran Reserve 2019 won a Grand Gold Medal at the Concours Mondial de Bruxelles. You must come here with an open mind, as many of her wines are drier than most wines produced in the Bajío region, and generally less fruity. This goes against the prevailing notion that the Mexican palate demands sweeter and fruit-forward wines.

Diane takes great pride in their estate vineyard, which is organic and follows the sustainability model. The vineyards are certified organic by Oregon Tilth. As a wine grape grower in California, I appreciate a healthy, well-managed vineyard. The vineyards at Dos Búhos are some of the handsomest in all of Bajío. They began harvesting their whites in July and their reds into autumn. The amount of labor, attention, and care that goes into these vineyards is a testament to their excellence.

In their wine production, Diane stays on course, using native yeasts and letting the minerality of the terroir and fruit fashion her wines. This expression will tease and spark your palate as the wines do not have the coziness of most large producers. You will immediately sense that these wines are unique. Dianne’s ‘orange wine’ (Moscato Giallo) is not to be confused with the much sweeter muscatel wines. They had sold out of their best-selling sparkling rosé, Espumoso Rosado, but we endured the lovely substitute, Espontáneo Vino Anaranjado, with bright effervescence.  Fellow contributor, Charles Woollett, is keen on their Chenin Blanc. The 2022 is blended with Chardonnay and, due to its acidity, would be excellent with pasta or fish.

Wines of the Month: Bodega Dos Búhos

Aglianico 2022, $1,150 mxn. Aglianico is a noble Italian black grape known for full-bodied, tannic, and acidic red wines. It is compared to Nebbiolo but with darker fruit. Our table thoroughly enjoyed this wine with comida. The flavor, though rich, is a little shy, suggesting that it will age well. But a wine this good never lasts long in my wine cellar. I’m new to this varietal, but as a fan of Nebbiolo and Sangiovese, I like the earthiness of Italian varietals.

Grenache 2021, $939 mxn. A lighter wine that is a perfect companion for a Sauvignon Blanc at brunch or a midday feast. The prevailing note of this wine was a distinct Bing cherry, which, like the Bing cherry, is not overly sweet.

Tempranillo, 2022, $697 mxn. Tempranillo is a favorite varietal in the Bajío Altiplano. I contend that this region is more akin to the La Rioja district in Spain, where Tempranillo reigns, than Tuscany. Most of the local wineries feature a Tempranillo, and Diane’s version is the driest in structure. You are not overpowered by fruit, but the essence of this noble grape prevails.

I said I wouldn’t comment on the food, but our guests from Santa Fe, and now San Miguel de Allende, were so pleased with the comida that they remarked that Dos Búhos would be an ideal place to celebrate her upcoming birthday. Their food, like their wines, is unexpected and delicious. I recommend sharing dishes as we did. We started with sauteed green beans and zucchini, mozzarella and edamame salad, continued with the marine pizza (shrimp), duck tacos, vegan risotto, and finished with a lemon tart.

I’m looking forward to returning to Bodega Dos Búhos after harvest, sampling their red wines, and letting another joyous afternoon slip away. Disfruta tu vida.

Randolph Rogers is an author, a food writer, and the owner/grower of Woodpecker Ranch Winery in Paso Robles, California