A curated monthly dose of lifestyle, culture, and rhythm from San Miguel de Allende.
Cava Garambullo’s Natalia Lopez Mota crafts bold, low-intervention wines that reflect Guanajuato’s spirit, blending sustainability, creativity, and a touch of improvisation.
Photographs by Victoire Sidhoum
Late Friday afternoon in early August, we sat down with Cava Garambullo winemaker Natalia Lopez Mota, who generously shared a bottle of her naturally sparkling Ventura Pét-Nat. Crisp, vibrant, and refreshing, it was the perfect companion to our conversation.
Q: You traded half of your European training for an organic low-intervention path. What’s the single most beautiful mistake you’ve made in the cellar that taught you more than any textbook ever could?
Natalia:
There’s one that’s going to be on the market very soon, and it’s called Oportuno. We had a red wine in the barrel that did not fit with our other Cabernet Francs during aging. Instead of blending it, we experimented. I wanted to try making a fortified wine, so I added fresh juice to a finished wine, which is something that is not done traditionally.
We aged it for five years in barrels, combining aged wine with fresh juice. The result is similar in freshness to a Port but with an entirely different origin. That is why it is called Oportuno. It was all about taking the opportunity the wine gave us.
Q: You have said your best wines come from organic vineyards and low-intervention cellar work. How does that philosophy guide every step of your winemaking?
Natalia:
For us, it is about sustainability. We focus on how we use our creative energy and how we allow nature’s process to continue in the cellar. We work with natural fermentation, no acidity adjustments, and no manipulation. Our job is to listen to the voice of nature and let each vintage speak for itself.
Q: How do your backgrounds, chemist versus biologist, Mexicana versus Bosnian, shape decisions in the cellar?
Natalia:
It is a beautiful mix. Branko comes from a traditional, rural culture and knows how to conserve in the purest way. My approach is exploratory since Mexico’s wine culture is still young. Together, we blend tradition with experimentation while respecting the foundational pillars of winemaking.
Q: How do you stay balanced as both a scientist and artist when harvests bring surprises?
Natalia:
Each harvest teaches me to dance with nature. I have even taken improvisation classes to better respond to what the vineyard gives. It is about trusting that I will know the right direction when the moment comes, holding control where I can, and letting go where I cannot.
Right now, Natalia’s favorite label is Mono, a mono-varietal wine that changes grape variety each vintage depending on what ripens best.
Pinot Noir is the first grape of harvest, and it always brings both excitement and nerves.
If Natalia had to choose only three to drink forever:
Every vintage has its own playlist. Natalia’s top three songs to capture their winemaking spirit:
Natalia envisions Cava Garambullo as both a winery and a research hub, documenting regional styles, experimenting with new techniques, and sharing knowledge with fellow winemakers.
And on that perfect note, we ended the interview with a taste of freshly crushed Pinot Noir grapes from this year’s harvest, bursting with flavor and promise.
A curated monthly dose of lifestyle, culture, and rhythm from San Miguel.
