Orujo is a liquor obtained from the distillation of the pomace (solid remains left after pressing) of the grape. It is a transparent spirit with an alcohol content over 50% (100° proof). Its name comes from the expression "aguardiente de orujo" (pomace eau-de-vie).
It is a popular beverage in the northwest part of Spain, especially in Galicia where it is also called aguardente or caña and is an element of collective identity. It is also known in Castile and Leon, and Cantabria (principally in the valley of Liébana), where it has become an artisanal craft for some families who after making wine for themselves distillate the pomace in a little pot still. Many high quality distilled spirits have appeared in the last twenty years, including some origin appellations (in Spanish D.O.). These are obtained from quality grapes and produced according to the highest standards and are replacing the traditional home made liquor, nowadays only available in small villages.
Orujo’s basic ingredient is the residue from wine production. Once the grapes are crushed, the orujos or residue of the grapes can be used to produce the liqueur of the same name. The grape skins, seeds and stalks are fermented in closed vats and then distilled. Stills, called alambiques, alquitaras or potas are traditionally large copper kettles that are heated over an open fire, while a poteiro (orujo distiller) watches over his brew. The distilling process in the alambiques takes 6 hours or more. The copper stills used by Galicians for centuries are thought to have been brought to the Iberian peninsula by the Arabs. It should be noted that alcohol distilled in this old-fashioned way can contain harmful alcohol and oils and is best left to the experts.
The orujo that is produced by the distillation is a colorless liquor, while the orujo envejecido or "aged orujo" is amber in color. The aged variety is fermented and distilled the same way, but is then poured into oak barrels to age for at least two years.
Since the XVI century Galicians have made orujo on their farms and take great pride in their liqueur, each family carefully guarding their own secret recipe. However, there are now over 20 commercial producers of orujo within La Denominación Específica Orujo de Galicia, (Denomination Orujo of Galicia,) which was formed in 1989. Although orujo from Galicia is probably the most famous, it is also made in other regions, such as Cantabria. The monasteries in the county of Liébana, Cantabria has been distilling orujo since the Middle Ages. Each November the town of Potes celebrates the Fiesta del Orujo, including tastings and a contest where participants distill orujo in public with their own stills and judges award a prize for the best-tasting batch.
From orujo, Galicians traditionally make a drink called queimada, in which bits of lemon peel, sugar and ground coffee are put into a clay pot. Then the orujo is poured on top and the pot is lit on fire until the flame turns blue. This ancient tradition dates back to Celtic times and includes a ritual where the queimada-maker recites a "spell" as he makes the drink.
Orujo, although with distinct names and characteristics, is also found in other countries, such as Italy (where it is produced as grappa), Germany where its name is Tresterschnaps, Peru (known as Pisco), Portugal (known as Bagaceira), Hungary (törkölypálinka), while in Bulgaria, Montenegro, Croatia, Greece, and Cyprus it is the local variant of Rakia. In Galicia itself it is also sometimes referred to as Aguardente and in the rest of Spain as Aguardiente.
In an attempt to replicate the taste of Orujo in Latin America, which was an extremely popular drink in the 16th and 17th centuries, the Spanish developed similar liquors such as Pisco in Peru. These Latin American versions, however, were considered inferior in taste and quality to the original liquor from Spain and were consequently much cheaper in price. (source?)
The term "orujo" (in galician, "bagazo") is also sometimes used as a synonym for the pomace of the grape (prior to distillation).
In the Christian New Testament, the Gospel of John refers a number of times to a town called Cana of Galilee.
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Among Christians and other students of the New Testament, Cana is best known as the place where, according to the Fourth Gospel, Jesus performed his first public miracle, the turning of a large quantity of water into wine at a wedding feast (John 2:1-11) when the wine provided by the bridegroom had run out (see Jars of Cana). Although none of the synoptic gospels records the event, mainstream Christian tradition holds that this is the first public miracle of Jesus.[1] However in John's gospel it has considerable symbolic importance: it is the first of the seven miraculous "signs" by which Jesus's divine status is attested, and around which the gospel is structured.
It is still a matter of discussion among theologians whether the story talks of an actual material transformation of water into wine, or is a spiritual allegory. Interpreted allegorically, the good news and hope implied by the story is in the words of the Governor of the Feast when he tasted the good wine, "Everyone serves the good wine first, and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now" (John 2:10, NRSV). This could be interpreted by saying simply that it is always darkest before the dawn, but good things are on the way. The more usual interpretation, however, is that this is a reference to the appearance of Jesus, whom the author of the Fourth Gospel regards as being himself the good wine[2].
The story has had considerable importance in the development of Christian pastoral theology. The gospel account of Jesus being invited to a wedding, attending, and using his divine power to save the celebrations from disaster are taken as evidence of his approval for marriage and earthly celebrations, in contrast to the more austere views of Saint Paul as found, for example, in 1 Corinthians 7 [1]. It has also been used as an argument against Christian teetotalism[3].
The other biblical references to Cana are in John 4:46, which mentions Jesus is visiting Cana when he is asked to heal the son of a royal official at Capernaum; and John 21:2, where it is mentioned that the apostle Nathanael (usually identified with the Bartholomew included in the synoptic gospels' lists of apostles) comes from Cana. Cana of Galilee is not mentioned in any other book of the Bible, nor in any other contemporary source.
in Qana, a Christian pilgrimage site in Lebanon.]]
There has been much speculation about where Cana might have been. In his Gospel, the author makes no claim to have been at the wedding himself. Some Christians regard the story of the wedding at Cana as having more theological than historical or topographical significance, but most do not. Likewise, some (but not all) modern scholars hold that the Fourth Gospel was addressed to a group of Jewish Christians, and, very possibly, a group living in Judea.
There are four villages in Galilee which are candidates for biblical Cana:
According to the Catholic Encyclopedia of 1914, a tradition dating back to the 8th century identifies Cana with the modern Arab town of Kafr Kanna, about 7 km northeast of Nazareth, Israel. However more recent scholars have suggested alternatives, including the ruined village of Kenet-el-Jalil (also known as Khirbet Kana), about 9 km further north, and Ain Kana, which is closer to Nazareth and considered by some to be a better candidate on etymological grounds. The village of Qana, in southern Lebanon, is another candidate for the location. Many Lebanese, Christians and Muslims, believe the village to be the correct site. This is not a matter on which certainty is ever likely to be achieved.
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In the Christian New Testament, the Gospel of John refers a number of times to a town called Cana of Galilee.
Contents |
Among Christians and other students of the New Testament, Cana is best known as the place where, according to the Fourth Gospel, Jesus performed his first public miracle, the turning of a large quantity of water into wine at a wedding feast (John 2:1-11) when the wine provided by the bridegroom had run out (see Jars of Cana). In mainstream Christian tradition this is taken as the first public miracle of Jesus[1], though this is an inference rather than something stated explicitly in the bible, and given the difficulty of reconciling John's chronology with that of the synoptic gospels it cannot be regarded as certain even if the biblical record is taken as authoritative. In fact none of the synoptic gospels records the event. However in John's gospel it has considerable symbolic importance: it is the first of the seven miraculous "signs" by which Jesus's divine status is attested, and around which the gospel is structured.
It is still a matter of discussion among theologians whether the story talks of an actual material transformation of water into wine, or is a spiritual allegory. Interpreted allegorically, the good news and hope implied by the story is in the words of the Governor of the Feast when he tasted the good wine, "Everyone serves the good wine first, and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now" (John 2:10, NRSV). This could be interpreted by saying simply that it is always darkest before the dawn, but good things are on the way. The more usual interpretation, however, is that this is a reference to the appearance of Jesus, whom the author of the Fourth Gospel regards as being himself the good wine[2].
The story has had considerable importance in the development of Christian pastoral theology. The gospel account of Jesus being invited to a wedding, attending, and using his divine power to save the celebrations from disaster are taken as evidence of his approval for marriage and earthly celebrations, in contrast to the more austere views of Saint Paul as found, for example, in 1 Corinthians 7 [1]. It has also been used as an argument against Christian teetotalism[3]. A minority of modern readers have asserted that the wedding was originally Jesus' own (some among them identifying the bride as Mary Magdalene), and that an earlier account has been edited in order to suppress this fact[4]. In Roman Catholicism, the Wedding at Cana is one of the Luminous Mysteries of the Rosary.
The other biblical references to Cana are in John 4:46, which mentions Jesus is visiting Cana when he is asked to heal the son of a royal official at Capernaum; and John 21:2, where it is mentioned that the apostle Nathanael (usually identified with the Bartholomew included in the synoptic gospels' lists of apostles) comes from Cana. Cana of Galilee is not mentioned in any other book of the Bible, nor in any other contemporary source.
in Qana, a Christian pilgrimage site in Lebanon.]]
There has been much speculation about where Cana might have been. In his Gospel, the author makes no claim to have been at the wedding himself. Some Christians regard the story of the wedding at Cana as having more theological than historical or topographical significance, but most do not. Likewise, some (but not all) modern scholars hold that the Fourth Gospel was addressed to a group of Jewish Christians, and, very possibly, a group living in Judea.
There are four villages in Galilee which are candidates for biblical Cana:
According to the Catholic Encyclopedia of 1914, a tradition dating back to the 8th century identifies Cana with the modern Arab town of Kafr Kanna, about 7 km northeast of Nazareth, Israel. However more recent scholars have suggested alternatives, including the ruined village of Kenet-el-Jalil (also known as Khirbet Kana), about 9 km further north, and Ain Kana, which is closer to Nazareth and considered by some to be a better candidate on etymological grounds. The village of Qana, in southern Lebanon, is another candidate for the location. Many Lebanese, Christians and Muslims, believe the village to be the correct site. This is not a matter on which certainty is ever likely to be achieved.
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