Breathe
By Areli Paz
Wine: it is not a bottle, a label or a year, it is an experience.
After-dinner: The best part of the meal with good conversation is the tasty memories.
Conversation: a nice habit that we lost when chat rooms were born.
And if we have a glass of wine? one that reminds you of the great moments of life, that takes you back to the best conversations, laughter, tears or reflection. Again and again at a table with those you love, enjoy and share the pleasure of drinking wine.
When you are served a glass of wine, it is not just a drink, it is a whole experience, in each sip you drink there is also a chain of stories that came together to get to that moment.
The land, the planting hands, the Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec or Petit Verdot grapes, the vineyard, the winemaker, the water, the temperature, the harvest, the barrel, the bottling, the label, the distribution, the sale and finally it reaches your table.
It is a whole chain of people who have found in wine a way of life, but also a way of accompanying us by adding flavor, texture and emotion.
Eating rich has more potential to do so if it is done with Mexican wine.
I spoke with Hans Backhoff, General Director of Monte Xanic, one of Mexico's most important wineries in Valle de Guadalupe, Baja California, and he told me the story of one of my favorite wines, Gran Ricardo, a wine that was born 30 years ago as a tribute to one of the founding partners, the plan was always to have a wine of exceptional flavor and texture.
To me it has a color like a ripe, dark cherry with a very shiny skin, it is silky as if it caressed the mouth and its flavor reminds me of a blackberry, blueberry, currant, some coffee and a little vanilla.
They wanted one that could be memorable and live again and again on the tables of those who love wine or be a great discovery for new followers.
That it be a gift, that it be able to cross borders and that over time it be able to preserve a tradition.
It has an aging potential that gives it a life if you open a bottle in 25 years.
Just its history puts it not only as a bottle of wine, but as an experience for the senses.
Hans Backhoff says this label is for feisty Mexicans who have been daring and always believe in being able to do things better.
He says that Mexican wine is no longer a fad, its consumption has evolved since 2017 and records reveal that it is already a favorite among Mexicans.
That being premium does not mean being left with awards or with good recommendations, that the challenge is to maintain it and that precision viticulture will be important to take care of the habitat and face climate change in the region.
In data:
In Mexico, local wine consumption has increased 34 percent.
3 out of every 10 bottles consumed in our country are of national origin. Baja California, Coahuila and Querétaro are the states with the highest wine production.
Red wine is the most consumed. 16 states produce wine, and there are more than 12,000 labels on the market. Wine routes, grape harvests and pairing tastings have increased the knowledge of wines in Mexico.
For me, that bottle of wine reminds me of an afternoon in Valle de Guadalupe with a very orange sunset, at my mom's house with the famous "garnachitas" of the Isthmus, those little ones of meat marinated with onion, with its spicy pickled cabbage and drops of morita, its flavor is a roof of the pandemic and the escape we made during the confinement to breathe fresh air and see the sky for hours, to the birthday dinner of my best friend, to the conversation of turning 40, to the 18th anniversary, to the confession of a life that was extinguished, to the conversation of those who make up the world, of those who recover from defeat or for the pure pleasure of a good drink, with a good company. That is what a bottle of wine should always refer to.
With the passage of time and with responsibility, I have learned that wine is an emotional and memorable experience, one that reminds us that life without cell phones and good conversation is also a good time. It goes without saying, but it is always good to remember that drinking in moderation and being of age are the only possible conditions in which you will always remember the good experiences around a great bottle. Happy 30th to this Ricardo, one who always delivers what he promises.
The opinions expressed are the responsibility of the authors and are absolutely independent of the position and editorial line of the company. Opinion 51.
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