Punta Mita, Mexico. It’s become the home that I can’t afford away from home – at least on a sustained basis. Of course there is always a story behind the story. More than 10 years ago when I worked in a different position, I had to buy trip insurance because inevitably the company that I worked for would force me to cancel my vacations due to a crisis. In their defense, the company was going through a SEC investigation and communication was very important.
One New Year’s Eve, my husband made me resolve that I wouldn’t cancel vacations anymore. A few months later, we found ourselves at the Four Seasons Punta Mita. This was the first time we had gotten away in ages and the first time we left our daughter who may have been 12 weeks old at the time.
We had an amazing trip and after several bottles of wine, we decided we were curious about the Residence Clubs the Four Seasons were building. In the dark, we snuck under the fence, climbed into the unit and saw how amazing it was. My childhood trips involved driving many miles in a station wagon, all of us sleeping in one room at the Radisson Inn and nothing that remotely resembled a Four Seasons experience. Let’s just say that we made the decision to purchase and have not regretted it once.
But, wine is high on my Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs and prior to this visit, I found the lack of selection along with the cost to buy imported wine in Mexico to be a hindrance. I take a lot of care in selecting what we will take to dinner or drink watching the sun set.
Usually, I don’t take samples to Mexico, but in this case, I had great relationships with two wineries that I consider special and who happened to send wines that paired well with my happy experience.
The first is Cornerstone Cellars. Managing Partner Craig Camp has been a long-time friend of all wine bloggers and I have been lucky enough to be included on Cornerstone’s media samples list.
We tried five wines from Cornerstone. We began with three Sauvignon Blancs from 2009, 2010 and 2011 made in the Old World style that I love. It was surprising to taste the changes from year to year. This is a winery that highlights the terrior, the climate and the strengths of each vintage. There is no size fits all blueprint for this winery. Each wine tasted represents the spectrum from older to younger and what happens with a well-made wine with a little age. Before I tell you how much I enjoyed each of these, the 2009 and 2010 wines are currently available as library wines, which command a premium price from the $30 2011 offering. I loved each of them – from the complexity of the 2009 with notes of herbs, minerality and lemon peel to the freshness of the 2010 with pear, floral and oak notes. And then there’s the younger 2012 which is also delicious with great minerality, citrus and melon notes.
My next bottle was the 2012 Cornerstone Chardonnay from Oregon. This was a great mix of citrus, creamy textures and the steely notes of an Old World chardonnay. The depth and textures of this wine was like unwrapping a beautiful package and the contents did not disappoint.
The last Cornerstone selection was the 2011 Pinot Noir from Oregon. This was a great representation of Oregon Pinot with black cherry and herbal notes.
For those of you who have followed this blog, you know that I am a lover of sparkling wine and champagne. We started with the J Vineyards Cuvee 20 NV Brut, which was delicious with lots of green apple, creaminess and lots of tropical fruit. It was a perfect wine to sip on the patio while we watched the sun set.
Punta Mita
Our final wine was the J Vineyards Brut Rose NV. This is one of my favorite sparkling wines. I love the strawberry and cherries, baked French pastry and a silky texture.
Cornerstone Cellars and J Vineyards thank you for making my vacation experience greater and sharing your wonderful wines with me.
