We left Saltillo towards Parras on route 40. What a vista! A flat sandy high desert valley on either side of the highway trailed off towards the ever present corral of mountains. It is a veritable cactus garden different from the species we saw between San Luis and Saltillo. The sparsely located plants endure in midget form except for one decorative spindley segmented thing that towered over everything at two meters appearing like green king crab legs. It looked more like an arachnid than a plant. Cactus is like that, its shape and setting so upsets the expectations of one from a more humid land that one must turn to fantasy in order to describe it. Tenancingo, which is dry for half the year is a jungle compared to this fascinating arid sea of gritty beige sand and pebbles. I imagine people from the desert might feel comfortable on Mars.
Parras:
The entrance to Parras ( which means vines in spanish) is lined with walnuts and grapes the leaves flapping like laundry showing their pale green underbellies in the reliable Coahuila wind. Very soon we came to The Casa Madero, a winery that dates from 1597. Casa Madero is the oldest working winery in the Americas-and the sixth in the world. In 1568 when Spanish Conquistadors arrived in Coahuila blistering and parched with gold fever near what is now Parras, they found to their surprise an oasis with water springs and a profusion of wild grape vines, called "cimarron". It didn't take long for the penny to drop. These wild vines, probably like those I have seen in the mountains surrounding Tenancingo, were exploited by Jesuits (those with time to contemplate the best fermentation methods) who came to this region soon after the spanish conquest and produced the first wine. Still later these wild vines would provide the hearty endemic root stock upon which were grafted spanish grape varieties leading to a drink that captured world attention.
As the story goes, Don Lorenzo Garcia, a conquistador and explorer of the northern part of New Spain, recognizing the benefits offered by this unique valley, calculated that this might be "the place" to settle and prosper. Soon he had the natives, who lived eight kilometers to the north near a choice spring, relocated to another water source. Then he petitioned and won from King Philip II of Spain a "Merced" or endowment of land.Thus began the production of wine and brandy in Parras. Many of the vines from Parras and other places in Mexico were the first to be exported and cultivated in what is now California, as well as other provinces in Northern New Spain and other Spanish colonies in South America. An applause for the viners from Mexico.
As the story goes, Don Lorenzo Garcia, a conquistador and explorer of the northern part of New Spain, recognizing the benefits offered by this unique valley, calculated that this might be "the place" to settle and prosper. Soon he had the natives, who lived eight kilometers to the north near a choice spring, relocated to another water source. Then he petitioned and won from King Philip II of Spain a "Merced" or endowment of land.Thus began the production of wine and brandy in Parras. Many of the vines from Parras and other places in Mexico were the first to be exported and cultivated in what is now California, as well as other provinces in Northern New Spain and other Spanish colonies in South America. An applause for the viners from Mexico.
Over the ensuing years the winery changed hands various times yet prospered, in fact wine making in many parts of the New World prospered to such an extent that in 1595 King Philip II, the great spanish war king, ordered that no more grapes were to be planted,,, in order to protect domestic production and exportation,,, in addition protecting part of Philip's tax base. This decree was ignored in the remote outposts of Chile and Peru but applied with a little more gusto in Mexico, the seat of the New World. Peru actually became the largest producer of wine yet an earthquake in 1697 devastated its industry. Presently one can see the result of Philip's measure and the 1697 Peruvian earthquake in the different levels of wine production from the three countries. In 1699 more bad new when, King Charles II of Spain restricted wine production again in New Spain only allowing the making of wine for use in the church. This new protectionist measure, coming from a very troubled monarch, seriously encumbered mexican wine making.
Charles II was the "Bewitched or Hechizo King", the last of the sausage eating spanish Hapsburg dynasty, who was born mentally handicapped, probably from the extensive sharing, at the time, of "Congenital Royal Jelly".
(This reminds me of that convoluted song "I'm Me Own Grandpa").
After independence Casa Madero changed hands several times even bought by the grandfather of Francisco Madero who briefly assumed the presidency of Mexico after Porfirio Diaz.
Charles II was the "Bewitched or Hechizo King", the last of the sausage eating spanish Hapsburg dynasty, who was born mentally handicapped, probably from the extensive sharing, at the time, of "Congenital Royal Jelly".
(This reminds me of that convoluted song "I'm Me Own Grandpa").
Many, many years ago when I was twenty-three
I was married to a widow who was pretty as could be
This widow had a grown-up daughter who had hair of red
My father fell in love with her and soon they too were wed
I was married to a widow who was pretty as could be
This widow had a grown-up daughter who had hair of red
My father fell in love with her and soon they too were wed
This made my dad my son-in-law and really changed my life
For now my daughter was my mother, 'cause she was my father's wife
And to complicate the matter, even though it brought me joy
I soon became the father of a bouncing baby boy
For now my daughter was my mother, 'cause she was my father's wife
And to complicate the matter, even though it brought me joy
I soon became the father of a bouncing baby boy
My little baby then became a brother-in-law to dad
And so became my uncle, though it made me very sad
For if he were my uncle, then that also made him brother
Of the widow's grownup daughter, who was of course my step-mother........
Charles's lower jaw jutted down and out which made it impossible for him to
chew food properly. His oversized tongue, like a monster slug left him prone to drooling. Breastfed until
the age of six using a series of wet nurses, he was treated as an
infant for most of his childhood yet he reigned for many years,, too many. This man, tormented all his life by his afflictions, sought the advice of sorcerers. He was enamored of public burnings and even held one at his wedding celebration. One of many reasons for The War of Independence can be traced to the "economic sadism" of these two Spanish Monarchs. And so became my uncle, though it made me very sad
For if he were my uncle, then that also made him brother
Of the widow's grownup daughter, who was of course my step-mother........
After independence Casa Madero changed hands several times even bought by the grandfather of Francisco Madero who briefly assumed the presidency of Mexico after Porfirio Diaz.
We took the tour and were the only clients. One enters down a corridor roofed in grape leaves. Parras is hotter than Saltillo so the trellised
path was soothing. Light was sifted by the leaves and fell upon the
floor in "spots" like silver dollars,, the Sun's change after the big
"bills" pass through. El Pasillo was lined on one side by stainless
steel tanks each with a capacity of 400,000 liters. We passed the circular bases for larger tanks of 1,000,000 liters, the tanks having been removed. We ambled through the wine cellar of oak and the sweet aroma of fermentation, past lonely barrels of brandy and wine.
In another quarter down the leafy aisle there were copper tanks like byzantine spires or copper colored Dairy Queens in which brandy is distilled. If I understood correctly the production of brandy will stop after this year. Mexico is not, after all a wine culture and the more recognized name, cognac, (brandy) is a registered trademark of France. Too bad the brandy business will dissolve into the past because the winery has won many awards for its products. I heard though that a French company is interested in buying the vineyard. I had the feeling that things were diminishing here. Why I asked myself. For all it's present splendor and history the hacienda seems a well manicured yet sleepy place. The large store doesn't offer samples. The two employees who manage the store, probably armed with "Degrees in Tourism", are diminished in that large room and are less than attentive. It made me wonder about the present owners, Cemex, the giant mexican cement conglomerate. I have a theory, that the animation in the great grandsons of the owners lodged in Monterrey has waned, or is concentrated on the far grander more modern multinational corporation, Cemex. It is a company based in Mexico but well represented in almost 60 countries. I imagined each part of the Zambrano Family has their own well connected and more lucrative lifestyles.They are tied to the history of the place thus obligated to continue but anymore they cannot afford to pay attention to the details of vineyard management. The only hope might be a great great great "dreamer" grandson who attended the Sorbonne and has seen the movie French Kiss 25 times.
The entrance shaded by grape vines
The Virgin of Parras like a female catholic Bacchus
In another quarter down the leafy aisle there were copper tanks like byzantine spires or copper colored Dairy Queens in which brandy is distilled. If I understood correctly the production of brandy will stop after this year. Mexico is not, after all a wine culture and the more recognized name, cognac, (brandy) is a registered trademark of France. Too bad the brandy business will dissolve into the past because the winery has won many awards for its products. I heard though that a French company is interested in buying the vineyard. I had the feeling that things were diminishing here. Why I asked myself. For all it's present splendor and history the hacienda seems a well manicured yet sleepy place. The large store doesn't offer samples. The two employees who manage the store, probably armed with "Degrees in Tourism", are diminished in that large room and are less than attentive. It made me wonder about the present owners, Cemex, the giant mexican cement conglomerate. I have a theory, that the animation in the great grandsons of the owners lodged in Monterrey has waned, or is concentrated on the far grander more modern multinational corporation, Cemex. It is a company based in Mexico but well represented in almost 60 countries. I imagined each part of the Zambrano Family has their own well connected and more lucrative lifestyles.They are tied to the history of the place thus obligated to continue but anymore they cannot afford to pay attention to the details of vineyard management. The only hope might be a great great great "dreamer" grandson who attended the Sorbonne and has seen the movie French Kiss 25 times.
The entrance shaded by grape vines
The Virgin of Parras like a female catholic Bacchus
The Chapel decorated for a festival
The copper vessels for brandy
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