The Valle Seco Estate
The Valle Seco Estate was founded in 2009 by Federico Lencioni & Francisco Sarabia who decided in that year to plant a vineyard in their vast highland ranch. They had noted for years that this parcel was consistently covered in fog and breezy throughout the morning, two traits that made it ideally suited for a vineyard site.
Since then it has been a bit of a fairytale success story for these ranchers turned winemakers whose grapes have been sold and used in wines that have consistently won top awards in every competition they entered. Selling grapes was never their plan A, and in 2018, when the vineyards had reached a level of maturity that they felt confident in, they started making their own wine.
In 18 they teamed up with the well-known winemaker/enologist Sergio Heras, who has been making wine Northern Baja for a decade and is one of its most well-respected winemakers, and stage two of the dream began.
Today they make 4 wines: A natural Cabernet Sauvignon, a traditional red blend, a rosé of Mourvedre and another blend called K3 that is not exported. They use certified organic yeast to make the Rosé and Tinto and the MI prima Vera is fermented on ambient yeast. Here are some of the details about their estate and vineyards:
- Their southeastern facing vineyard site is located 18 miles from the Pacific in Valle Seco at an elevation of 1,800 ft. Soil is composed of decomposed granite, sand, and some clay.
- Vineyards are completely isolated from any other wineries and farmed organically and sustainably.
- The vast highland plain where the winery is located has better water reserves that most of the viticultural regions of Northern Baja, and it is accessed by a pump powered by the wind. That’s right, the windmill that appears on their logo is an image of the windmill that was erected nearly 100 years ago and still serves to pump up the water from the underground aquifer for use in the winery.
Total production: 29 acres under vine, 4 wines, 1,200 cases
2025 Valle Seco Rosé - Valle Seco
Tasting Notes and Drinking Window:
The 2025 vintage continues this rosé’s remarkable run, now with a sharper edge of sophistication. Fruit from newly planted, certified French clones of Mourvèdre—sourced directly from a French nursery—drives greater aromatic precision and textural nuance.
Perfectly suited for rosé, this clone brings brighter fruit definition, lifted florals, and a fine mineral line through the finish. The result is vibrant and charming as ever, now with added depth and refinement. This is quite likely “the rosé” of 2025.
400 cases made
Drinking window: upon release - 4 yearsVintage:
2025
Blend:
100% Mourvedre
Producer:
Valle Seco
Winemaker:
Sergio Heras - Argentina (lives in Valle de Guadalupe)
Vineyards:
Estate vineyard in Valle Seco – Valle Seco is a high elevation valley which lies above Valle de Guadalupe and is where the Guadalupe river originates. Elevation is 1,800 ft, and the soil is largely granite with some clay. The oldest vines were planted in 2008.
Winemaking:
Grapes were hand-harvested at night on September 8th, following two days of very cool weather to preserve maximum freshness and natural acidity. Clusters were destemmed, hand-sorted, and crushed. Aiming for a light, Provençal-style rosé, the juice was separated from the skins כמעט immediately, allowing minimal pigment extraction. Fermentation proceeded in open-top stainless steel tanks for तीन weeks at the lowest possible temperatures to maximize aromatic and flavor complexity. After fermentation, the wine was racked off the lees, rested in stainless steel for two months, then bottled with only a coarse filtration for clarity.
Sulfites: 15 ppmFarming:
Organic, sustainable
Alcohol:
12.1%
