Hotel in Tequila

Bob, they've got some killer casitas at Casa Noble, the premium brand of La Cofradia. They're on the beautiful grounds of the distillery and beside an agave field. Contact David Yan: dyan@casanoble.com.mx and see if you can rent one of them. Otherwise he could probably make a hotel recommendation. Tell David that you're a friend of the David from TECA, Ajijic.

Yo! Bob

Here is a post I made several years ago in response to a question by Wendy Devlin.


Wendy;

Your answer to my posted question brought back some memories of our last visit 40 years ago, and just why we wish to return to Tequila.

We drove to Tequila in a taxi we had hired by the day for almost a week. We were staying at the Mendoza in Guadalajara and had seen a lot of the area in the previous four or five days. The drive was uneventful, but interesting. I had never seen fields of cultivated agave before.

We arrived, parked, and our driver came along as we walked around town. Within a few blocks, a large facade with the name SAUZA emblazoned on it presented itself. Patty and I walked into a courtyard that was empty except for a fountain, which was not operating. Patty sat on the edge of the fountain and I fumbled with my Leica. Just about the time I finally got the wide-angle lens attached, the fountain came on in full force and Patty went ballistic. (Who says those white folks can’t jump) A very pleasant gentleman in white shirtsleeves and a tie came out the door and greeted us in English with, “Welcome to Sauza”.

After the initial pleasantries were dispensed with, he told us that he had seen us from his office window and realizing that we wanted to take a picture, he had called downstairs and ordered the fountain turned on. He then identified himself as the manager of the plant and invited us to take a brief tour with him.

Well, his idea of a brief tour was just pretty amazing. We went through the entire process. We were shown the agave piñas in storage and then where they were roasted and chopped up and then where they were thrown into large vessels for fermentation and, finally, the distillation itself.

One of the strange things (at least to me) was, at regular intervals along the production line, there were spigots and paper cup dispensers. I asked, “Is that water”....”Oh no, Senior, that is tequila”. It seems that part of the union contract allowed the workers to have a taste now and then as long as it didn’t interfere with their duties. What a wonderful concept!

As we were headed for the door, the manager asked us if we ever drank tequila in the United States. I answered yes, and that our favorite tequila was Sauza Conmemorativo. Well, I have seen some big smiles in my life, but his was certainly in the top five. (40 years ago, I believe that Conmemorativo was still 100% agave azul and it was, of course, John Wayne’s favorite)

“Señor, you like Comemorativo?”...“Of course!”...“Come with me!” The manager of the Sauza factory, Patty, our driver, and I proceeded to the basement where he showed us a very large room full of wood aging vats. If I recall correctly, they were 40,000 liters each. Our host took a key from his pocket and opened a cabinet containing several unmarked bottles and a stack of the same paper cups that we had seen throughout the plant. Within 5 minutes, the manager, a Guadalajara taxi driver, Patty, and I found ourselves sitting on the concrete basement floor of that grand old building and toasting our newly found friendship with Dixie cups of Tequila.

It was a very pleasant afternoon!

uj

Bob, Here is the website for a hotel downtown - looks nice in the photos, but I've never stayed there: http://www.hotelplazajardin.com/espanol.htm