TEQUILA AND THE SAN GERVASIO RUINS

The Norwegian Pearl docked in Cozumel on April 10, 2018 at 8am. Cozumel is located off the East coast of the Yucatan Peninsula and about 50 miles south of Cancun.  The economy is based primarily on tourism. 

Docking in Cozumel

Our departure time from Cozumel was set for 5pm, leaving us plenty of time to explore. 

The arrival port was Punta Langosta, located on the West coast of Cozumel.  Directly across the street from the cruise docks is the Plaza Punta Langosta, offering a nice selection of shops such as Diamonds International, plus several duty and tax free shops.  Just stepping off of a cruise ship I can’t imagine that you would be hungry, but if you are, you will find eateries like Burger King and Hooters.  There are also places for quenching your thirst like Senor Frogs and Starbucks. 

 

It is good to remember that the main city of  Cozumel is for locals.  Cruise passengers and tourists are centered in the Plaza Punta Lanagosta where prices are considerably higher.   A beer in local Cozumel will run $1 but that same beer will cost $3 in the tourist area.  

As Marci and I strolled past the various shops at the Plaza, we ran across fellow cruisers, Jon and Randall.  They were looking for transportation to San Gervasio Ruins.  Jon is an avid Geocacher  and with a “cache” listed at the ruins, Jon was anxious to get there.  Marci and I are always up for a cultural experience so we decided to hire a taxi for the four of us and we were suddenly off to the ruins. 

First, a unscheduled stop at the Los Tres Tonos tequila factory,   rating 4 out of 5 stars on YELP and 5 out of 5 on TripAdvisor.  

This is a fourth generation family run business that owns both Los Tres Tonos and also an adjacent  restaurant called Casa Mission.  

Our guide for the Los Tres Tonos tour was Ulysses Alverado Perez.  The tour is free and at the end of the tour you will have opportunity to sample a dozen different types of tequila, including flavored sweet tequilas like pina colada, chocolate and guava flavored.  

The tour is very well done, taking you through the various stages required to produce the final product.  Their products are 100% organic tequila that start in Guadalajara.  With more than 253 different types of Agave plants around the world, Los Tres Tonos has selected only one kind for their tequila, the Blue Agave. 

They harvest the Blue Agave in Guadalajara because the plant needs the cold climate and high altitude of 5,138 feet above sea level.  Also, Guadalajara has a nice red volcanic soil that is rich in minerals.  A typical plant will take 8-10 years to mature to full growth for harvesting.  How do you know it is ready to harvest?  A flower will grow in the center of the plant and when it begins to bloom it is ready to harvest. 

If you harvest a plant in the first to fifth year of growth you will not be able to use it for the making of tequila. The reason being that from year 6-10 it produces it’s own sugar.  Also the Blue Agave is low in glucose. 

Once harvesting begins everything is done by hand.  The core is buried in the dirt so has to be dug out.  The leaves are then cut off and a ‘pineapple’ is produced. The pineapple will weight between 90-200 pounds.  Every 20 pounds of pineapple will produce 1 liter of tequila. 

Once you have the pineapple, the next step is to steam cook the pineapple.   A mesquite firewood is used because it is heavy and takes a long time to burn. 

Next the pineapples are places inside a clay pot with water.  Bigger pineapples are placed in the back and smaller ones in the front.  Then it is cooked for 24-72 hours.  This process causes the juices and honey from the agave to be released.  Then they must cool for 24 hours. 

The next step is the grinder.  It weighs one ton.  After being cooked and cooled, the plants are cut into fourths and placed on the grinder for smashing.  This causes the juices, minerals and agave syrup to be released.   

Two main ingredients are needed to make an alcoholic beverage, yeast and sugar. Most commercial tequila manufactures use yeast and sugar to speed up the process because of production demands.  Los Tres Tonos uses only purified water to mix with the natural juices, minerals and agave syrup.  It then ferments for 17 days.  This is one of the reasons why Los Tres Tonos only makes 12-15 bottles of Tequila per day. 

The 17 day fermenting process converts the solution from 4.6 to 6% grade alcohol.  Next, the alcohol is distilled with an Alembic.  

First you create a heating temperature of 90-100 degrees.  Most commercial tequilas leave a burning sensation in your esophagus.  This is because they use metal or aluminum and copper when they do the distilling process.  These metals, when heated, produce toxins that are released and blended into the tequila, causing the burning sensation when you drink it.  Los Tres Tonos uses only clay pots so no chemicals are released to change the flavor.  Another thing that makes Los Tres Tonos different is that they TRIPLE distill the alcohol.  Once the third distilling process is finished, every drop counts because now it is considered white silver tequila.  After the triple distilling is complete it converts it to 38% alcohol which is 78 proof.

Los Tres Tonos uses barriques barrels made of oak wood obtained from the United States. The White Silver Tequila produced by Los Tres Tonis is triple distilled and ready to drink in the bottle but they let let it rest for 1, 3 or 5 years. 

For consumption, it is recommended you put the bottle in the freezer for about 20 minutes.  You should never serve it  “on the rocks” because the ice melts and dilutes the tequila.  Once you are finished, simply wipe down the bottle and put it back on the shelf, bringing it back out when you are ready to drink again.    

Tradition calls for lime and salt when drinking tequila.  This is a U.S. invention used to disguise the taste of the chemical reaction and is never used when sipping Los Tres Tonos tequilas. 

To properly drink tequila you first smell the glass, then inhale through your nose, holding your breath the entire time, then drink, swallow and exhale.  You will not feel a burning sensation but rather a warmth going down and you will never need lime and salt.

You area allowed to bring back 3 bottles of alcohol per person tax free.  Additional bottles will be taxed by the U.S. at a rate of $1.75 per bottle.  All bottles must remain sealed.  If you open a bottle it will be confiscated.  You can take alcohol on the ship but will be required to turn it over.  It will then be returned to you the night before disembarkation. 

Los Tres Tonos has an ATM onsite and charge $49USD for any flavored tequila, $55 for the White Silver Tequila, $85 for the aged family and $120 for the 5 year aged bottles. 

Now we were off to the San Gervasio Ruins.  

San Gervasio is an archeological site of the Maya Civilization located in the top portion of the island of Cozumel.  Juande Grijalva originally discovered the island for the Spanish in 1518.  The park is a wildlife refuge for the local iguana population.   Bug spray was recommended but we did not find an issue with the mosquitos. 

Entry fee is $10.00USD split into 2 admission fees.  The first fee of $5.50USD gets you into the park, souvenir shops and drug store.  The second fee of $5.50USD is collected to allow entry into the ruins.  Essentially, the first fee allows you to shop and use the bathrooms.  The next fee gives you the ticket to the ruins.  You will be given an option of a 30-40min tour in your language of choice by an official guide for an additional $20/person. 

The posted signage at the ruins is in both English and Spanish.  If you are looking for big Mayan pyramids this is not for you. These buildings are much more modest looking, but the history behind them is very intriguing.  The tour is not physically difficult and is mostly flat.  Also, make sure to wear sneakers, as the ground is quite sandy and there are small lizards and larger iguanas a-plenty on the grounds.  You can visit San Gervasio any day from 8am to 3:45pm, however, if you get caught taking video footage of the ruins be prepared to pay a copyright fee.

After leaving the ruins we headed back to the downtown area and had our taxi driver drop us off at a local bar.  This is the first time I have ever been witness to a fish pedicure.  It was only $25 but I couldn’t bring myself to try it out.  Instead I drank two beers and headed back to the ship.