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    La Comida y Bebidas de Baja

    Baja is currently going through a serious food renaissance, led by Ensenada and Guadalupe Valley. The Legends Rally takes full advantage of these great foods and wines to create a one of a kind off-road culinary experience.  

    Abundant with natural resources, Baja is unique geographic region providing a prosperous coastline for seafood, rich mountains perfect for growing grapes for wine and a variety of produce, and flat prairies perfect for raising free range livestock. The year round temperate weather means there is not an off-season for fantastic local food.

    Just slightly north of downtown Ensenada, Guadalupe Valley is exploding with wine and food culture. Accelerated by the growth of the local wineries bringing in tourism, Guadalupe Valley has some of the most exciting restaurants serving locally sourced seafood and produce.





    Franciscan missionaries planted wine grapes on their way up the Baja Peninsula during the creating of “El Camino Real” from 1683 and 1834, making them some of the first wine grapes planted in North America. Today, many of the missions still have the original vines planted.   

    It is believed that wine grapes were first planted in the late 1500’s after Hernán Cortés and his soldiers ran out of their wine supply. Casa Madero was founded by Lorenzo García in 1597 in the town of Santa María de las Parras (Holy Mary of the Grapevines) making it the oldest winery in North America. The king of spain decreed that wine production should only be allowed for religious purpose.

     


    BEER
    While Corona and Tecate are staples of Mexico, here are some local breweries that are exploding in Baja.  

    Agua Malawww.aguamala.com.mx
    Baja Brewing Company (Cabo) - www.bajabrewingcompany.com
    Border Psycho Brewery - www.borderpsychobrewery.com
    Cerveceria Insurgente - www.insurgentebrew.com
    Lúdica Artesanal Cervecería - ludica.mx
    Old Mission Brewery - www.oldmissionbrewery.com
    Cervecería Wendlandt - wendlandt.com.mx
    Ensenada Brewing Co. - www.ensenadabrewing.com

     

    Mamut Brewery Co - www.mamutcerveza.com
    Border Psycho Brewery - www.borderpsychobrewery.com


     

    TEQUILA
    Although tequila has become one of Mexico’s biggest exports, most people have little understanding of this great spirit. When you drink Tequila, you are tasting the collision of Mexican and Spanish culture - the fermentation of “Pulque” made from the piña of the blue weber agave from Native Mexicans mixed with the refinement of the distillation process introduced by the Spaniards when they ran out of brandy.

    It is a drink that represents the complex history and beauty of Mexico. The more your understand it, the more the layers of its complexity open up to your palette, allowing you to fully experience the richness of the tequila. 

     

    Types of Tequila:

    Blancos
    Blancos, or often referred to as Silvers or Jovens, are tequilas that have been bottled straight from the distillation process with no aging. This is what most people have tasted and mix into their Margaritas. Blancos have notes of pepper and herb upfront with a hint of vanilla. Purists love the taste of the undisturbed agave flavor usually served on the rocks.

    Reposados
    Reposados or “Rested” Tequilas, which are aged for only a few months (no more than a year), usually sit in French oak whisky barrels to help smooth out the taste and bring out the caramel and vanilla notes. Usually used for mixing into drinks, Reposados are also sipped, shot and served on the rocks.

    Añejos
    Añejos are aged for one year our more in commonly re-used French oak whisky barrels, making them the richest sipping tequilas with supremely smooth butterscotch and caramel notes. Extra Añejos have become some the most coveted sipping spirits in the world.

    Five Tequila’s you have to try:

    • AsomBroso Extra Añejo Tequila
    • Casa Noble Single Barrel Extra  Añejo Tequila
    • Pueblo Viejo Orgullo  Añejo
    • Espolon Reposado Tequila
    • Silver Coin Blanco Tequila

    Come taste these tequila’s and learn more about tequila at The Legends Rally!


     

    MEZCAL
    Perceived as some harsh homemade hooch with a worm in the bottom of the bottle, Mezcal has had a bad reputation to Americans for decades but this complex and diverse spirit has more range and depth than tequila. With over 30 types of agave species, varietals, and subvarietals, the different varieties of mezcal's are endless. The word mezcal means "oven-cooked agave". Though most mezcal is made in Oaxaca, it can also be made in Durango, Guanajuato, Guerrero, San Luis Potosí, Tamaulipas, Zacatecas, and the recently approved Michoacan.

    Mezcal is made from the heart of the agave plant, called the piña, much the same way it was 200 years ago. Mezcal is highly varied, depending on the species of agave used, the fruits and herbs added during fermentation and the distillation process. It is generally consumed straight and has a strong smoky flavor. Though mezcal is not as popular as tequila (made specifically from the blue agave in select regions of the country), Mexico does export the product, mostly to Japan and the United States, and exports are growing.

    Five Mezcals you have to try:

    • Wahaka Ensemble
    • Sotol Por Siempre
    • Marca Negra Arroqueno
    • Marca Negra Tepeztate
    • Bosscal Mezcal

    Come taste these Mezcals and learn more about Mezcal at The Legends Rally!