Pisco - (Distilled Grape Liquor)

The name comes from the quechua Inca language that denotes a huge heard of sea birds that inhabits a region. The first grape plants were brought from Canary Islands (Spain) by Francisco de Caravantes in the year 1553 and with the Spaniards came the unknown distillation technique. 240 Km south of Lima stands the city of Pisco (2) in 1620 was known as the “Pisco Valley” According to Pedro Manuel a Greek wine producer installed in this area, in this year the grape liquor or aguardiente made it’s mass production and by 1630 was exported mainly to other colonies in Chile, Ecuador, Panama. In 1640 the Spanish Viceroy Pedro de Toledo officially renames the city, Pisco Villa.

In 1838 Swiss doctor Johan Jacob Von Tshudl in his book “Testimony of Peru” 1838-1842, mentions about the grape liquor being shipped by means of the Port of Pisco. (4-9) Jesuita’s Fathers used to make excellent pisco in their old monastery (10-12) located in the middle of the Pisco dessert, broken tinaja’s (13-17 )memories from the glorious distillation past can still be found. In 1988 is declared by the Peruvian National Institute of Culture, “Cultural Patrimony of Peru”. An alcoholic standarisation that all pisco producers must meet has been set to 42°

Chile wisely has registered the word pisco for their grape liquor as own, which is of inferior quality because it’s made from the grape leftovers from their wine production. The inevitable and only truth is that it’s Peruvian made by the historical & photographical reasons expressed.