Clos De Tres Cantos – Interview With Maria Benitez Cantarero

The love of sparkling wine is infinite, a language that everyone can understand, a sparkle that can shine in anyone’s glass, it can connect people, brings them together and places a smile on faces around the world.

In this exclusive feature on Glass of Bubbly, we speak with Maria Benitez Cantarero from Clos De Tres Cantos, let’s discover a little about her life, her journey into the industry and one of her favoiurote bubbly memories.

It’s Great To Speak With You, Can You Tell Us A Little About Yourself & How Your Incredible Journey Into The Wine Industry Began?

“I am a rare chaos, a medical doctor with a master’s degree in business and apart from my background as a physician I have also been an executive of a multi-national company for more than 24 years. While living in Mexico City, my husband Joaquin and I used to do gatherings where we would invite an expert on a topic and then we would talk with friends over a glass of wine. After a trip to Valle de Guadalupe I decided to make my own wine to share with them in those gatherings. So we travelled every two weeks to made our first barrel. The varietal Petite Sirah chose us and introduced us to the world of wine and to many friends and experiences that we could not imagine then. After five years of travelling to Baja California we decide to retire and build our own winery, Clos de Tres Cantos. My dream was just a dream but with Joaquin’s dream, being the dream of both of us, came true.”

Do You Remember Your First Experience With Sparkling Wine? When It Was And What Kind Of Label It Was?

“As I was born in Spain I remember especially Christmas with CAVA. Usually during those festivities, a gift box of Cava Vallformosa arrived home, a winery from the Penedes which bottles were rarely found on the shelves of the stores. I loved the brut made by the traditional method and I hardly remember the label but was clear and simple and above all I liked the muselet which was different, like a clamp that caught the naked cork so tightly that no bubbles could escape from the bottle until it was opened. And then, when the cork was removed, I remember the aromas of fruits and flowers combined with the tiny bubbles tingling in my nose…Since then, I love bubbles.”

As The CEO, How Rewarding And Challenging Is Managing Clos de Tres Cantos?

“When we arrived at Valle de Guadalupe we followed the precepts of the ecosophy; according to Raimon Panikkar we have to listen to nature and act accordingly. So we listend to VDG and it told us that the climate change was beginning to be felt, with few rains and very hot summers…so we planned a sustainable, solidary and socially responsible winery. For this, we developed the first code of ethics of a winery in Mexico and aligned all the strategies and action plans to it. This code is based on three pillars: for the planet, for the people and for the community. And we acted accordingly: in viticulture we practice regenerative agriculture with an ecological approach and placed field automation for water management. The winery designed by the Mexican architect Alejandro D’Acosta is built with noble and second use or recycled materials, materials that we have given a second life to. Our strategies embrace the guidelines of the UN Global Compact and the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN Agenda 2030. And we also work together with the local community developing strategies to fight against the alarming challenges that come up every day and that for us as a msme winery, although is highly rewarding is also difficult to survive maintaining high standards.”

When It Comes To Pairing Your Sparkling Wine With Food, Do You Have Any Favourite Combinations That You Would Personally Recommend?

“From my point of view, sparkling wine harmonizes with all types of food, from hors d’oeuvres, salads, through main courses to desserts. Nor does it merit any celebration; every day is an excellent candidate for a glass of sparkling wine, since every day is worthy of celebrating life. And as I often say, never better to harmonize it with a good conversation and a good friend!”

If You Could Choose A Person In The World, Past Or Present, To Have A Glass of Bubbly With; Who Would It Be And Why? What Would You Drink And Why? What Would You Discuss And Why?

“Leonardo undoubtedly because of his creativity and vision and also his passion about wine. As he said “wine is the divine liquor of the grape” to which he gave a very spiritual value. He was born in Tuscany where he enjoyed a farm surrounded by vineyards in the Chianti region, and after painting the fresco of the Last Supper he was rewarded with a vineyard in Milan where he surely spent quiet and pleasant moments. Maybe he will offered me a Malvasia wine, a variety he had in his vineyard, and I will offered him a glass of Clos de Tres Cantos sparkling wine, a brut nature and blanc de noir elaborated with Barbera grapes, while we would surely talk about the manual of viticulture that he wrote more than 5 centuries ago, and about the Renaissance, but above all I would talk about his inventions and how they have influence present days. We would talk about the pleasure of flying, of descending into the depths of the sea. how to measure time that passes before us or the different devices for water management and in this way, with a glass of wine, an amazing talk as good friends, time will surely fly by….”

Can You Share With Us Some Of The Countries And Locations Around The World That You Can Enjoy A Glass Of Clos de Tres Cantos?

“Now you can only enjoy a glass of Clos de Tres Cantos in Mexico, at AAA restaurants around the country and we are in the task of doing all the paperwork and issuing the documents to export to Switzerland and USA. However, you can also taste our wines at our facility Clos de Tres Cantos. Is a sustainable, supportive, and socially responsible winery, located in the Valle de Guadalupe, Ensenada, Baja California. Union of philosophy and ecosophy that form our vision: “Creating Experiences that bring us closer to Nature”. By opening our doors, we want to touch the lives of the people who visit us, turning the art of wine into a tsunami of experiences.

Beginning with a tour of the winery, visitors are immersed in the discovery of the sustainable architecture of the winery’s deconstruction, and in the minimally invasive winemaking processes where complex and well-structured wines are produced, full of aromas and flavors that express the wisdom of the terroir, and the regenerative organic agriculture process implemented in the winery is also explained. As we enter the tasting room, serenity and tranquility invade us, allowing us to calmly taste the wines and try unique pairings designed to excite us and invite us to contemplate Nature selflessly, while we share a glass and a good conversation.

Our tastings are philosophical, conveying to visitors the emotions expressed by the wine labels and inviting them to philosophize and forget the problems, bad vibrations and stress of the big cities. And lately we embrace the Wine in Moderation initiative. We want people that come to our winery to Choose if they want to drink or not, instructing them on how to drink quality wines and to inviting them to Share wine with their friends and family in calm and enjoying it, while they care about themselves and others, as wine in moderation keeps us aligned with life.”

What Future Plans Can Enthusiasts Of Clos de Tres Cantos Look Forward To In The Coming Years?

“At Clos de Tres Cantos we are always innovating. Now we have being venturing into natural wines. This year we produced a very successful Pet-Nat, MeFlipa, and we are planning a whole line of natural wines including wines with no or low alcohol. Of course, we will continue with our regular line of wines including our superb sparkling wine Clos de Tres Cantos. In relation to wine tourism, in a few months we are going to inaugurate a library of more than 4,000 volumes, for the Valle de Guadalupe community, where people can come to read while tasting a glass of wine and it will be a meeting place for book conferences, reading circles and gatherings.”

Can You Share With Us One Of The Most Memorable Experiences You’ve Enjoyed With A Glass of Bubbly?

“In the Galapagos Islands, aboard an 18th century Dutch sailing ship, sipping bubbles while the penguins danced to the music of Mozart, surround by the magic islands and a bunch of friends. Magic!!!”

Thank you Maria, for sharing your story and experiences with us and we at Glass of Bubbly wish you the very best for the future!

Images credit belongs to Josue Castro (# 3 / 2024-08-21-11- 39-59). Maria Benitez Cantarero granted Glass of Bubbly  permission to use the image via email, stating Josue Castro had given their support and approval to publish the image.