Red, White, Bubbly or Pisco?
Tacama, Peru’s oldest winery, has been offering up some of the world’s finest wines since the 16th century. With the Andes as one backdrop, it’s nestled in the Valley of Ica, about 180 miles southeast of Lima. The company nurtures its wide variety of grapes by using the original irrigation system that was designed over 500 years ago.
The wine tasting experience included a five part lesson: 1. Sniff 2. Swirl and sniff 3. Complete three different tastes and evaluate after each. Acidic? Sour? Fruity? Like? Dislike? I thoroughly enjoyed this first-ever experience.
Haciendas, the church and stables have been well-preserved over the years. Workers take as much pride in maintaining and preserving the history of this place as they do their products.
In the late 1700’s, pisco became the alternative distilled option when Spain started protecting its own wine distribution by not allowing Tacama wines to be exported. The only question is which is better, Chilean or Peruvian pisco? That debate will never end.
