One of the most important missions at Dos Cuerpos is to understand the background of all our products, from who crafts them, why, and how, but also the historical, social, and artistic aspects our products have had. That's why we want to share works from different arts that allude to the products we handle. On this occasion, we share a fragment from Chapter XIII of "Don Quixote" by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, where there is a dialogue about wine. The intention is for you to enjoy your drink and be able to reflect on and appreciate the following excerpt from this masterpiece:
And, rising, he returned from there after a while with a large wineskin and a half-yard-wide pastry, and it's no exaggeration, for it was from a white rabbit so large that Sancho, upon touching it, understood it to be from a kid goat, not a young goat; which, when seen by Sancho, he said:
"And does your grace bring this with you, sir?"
"Well, what did you think?" answered the other. "Am I, by chance, some squire of water and wool? I carry better provisions on the haunches of my horse when he goes on the road, provisions that a general carries with him."
Sancho ate without being asked twice, and he swallowed knots of pastry in the dark by the mouthful, and he said:
"Your grace is indeed a loyal and lawful squire, serviceable and common, magnificent and great, as this feast shows, for if it hasn't come here by enchantment, it seems so at least. Not like me, wretched and unlucky, who only have in my saddlebags a bit of cheese so hard it could knock out a giant, accompanied by four dozen carob pods and the same number of hazelnuts and walnuts, all thanks to the stinginess of my master and his belief and rule that knights-errant should be sustained only with dried fruits and field herbs.
"By my faith, brother," replied the one from the Forest, "I haven't accustomed my stomach to prickly pears or turnip tops, nor to mountain roots. Let our masters take care of their knightly opinions and laws, and let them eat whatever they command. I've got my provisions, and this wineskin hanging from the saddlebow, just in case. It's so dear to me and I hold it in such devotion that few moments pass without me giving it a thousand kisses and a thousand hugs."
Saying this, he handed the wineskin to Sancho, who, raising it to his lips, stared at the stars for a quarter of an hour. After finishing his drink, he dropped his head to one side and let out a deep sigh, saying:
"Oh, son of a whore, you villain, and how Catholic it is!"
"Do you see there," said the one from the Forest upon hearing Sancho's exclamation, "how you've praised this wine by calling it a 'son of a whore'?"
"I mean," responded Sancho, "that I admit I realize it's not a disgrace to call anyone 'son of a bitch' when it falls under the understanding of praise. But tell me, sir, by the life of what you hold most dear, is this wine from Ciudad Real?"
"Great milestone!" replied the one from the Forest. "Truly, it's from no other place and it's got a few years of age to it."
"To me with that?" said Sancho. "Don't think less of me, but rather that I might have overlooked the chance to come to its understanding. Isn't it possible, sir squire, that I possess such a great and natural instinct for recognizing wines that, upon taking a whiff of any, I can guess its origin, lineage, flavor, hardness, and the turns it will take, along with all the circumstances related to the wine? But there's no need for astonishment, considering that I have in my lineage on my father's side the two most distinguished wine-tasters that La Mancha has known in many years. As proof of which, I will now relate an anecdote about them. They were both given the task of tasting the wine from a cask and providing their opinion on its state, quality, goodness, or badness. One of them tried it with the tip of his tongue, while the other merely brought it to his nose. The first one said the wine tasted like iron, and the second one said it tasted more like cordovan leather. The owner of the wine said that the cask was clean and that the wine had not been seasoned in a way that would give it the taste of iron or cordovan leather. Nonetheless, the two renowned wine-tasters stood by what they had said. Time passed, the wine was sold, and when the cask was cleaned, they found a small key hanging from a cordovan leather strap inside it. I mention this so that you may see whether someone from such lineage could offer an opinion in similar matters.
"That's why," said the one from the Forest, "I suggest we stop searching for adventures. Since we have loaves of bread, let's not look for cakes, and let's return to our huts, where God will find us if He so desires."
"Until my master reaches Zaragoza, I'll serve him, and afterward, we'll all come to an understanding."
In the end, they talked so much and drank so much that sleep had to tie their tongues and temper their thirst, which couldn't be quenched; and thus, both clutching the nearly empty wineskin, with half-chewed bites in their mouths, they fell asleep. We'll leave them there for now, to recount what the Knight of the Forest experienced with the Knight of the Sorrowful Figure.
This excerpt is interesting as the narrator allows the protagonist squires to converse without intervening. This dialogue, as we can observe, primarily revolves around Sancho's grievances, as if he were still a powerless character. Let's recall that in this chapter, he's bestowed with the power of enchanting Dulcinea and, consequently, having influence over Don Quixote. It's intriguing to analyze the characters' pride and contrast it with the victim role that Sancho has adopted. During the dialogue, Sancho projects himself through Don Quixote, and as Eduardo Urbina puts it, "He acts based on his role and character, that of a simple peasant turned squire errant." Some critics argue that the mention of wine in "Don Quixote" by Cervantes is solely to emphasize the dominant aspect of the squire in a material sense, as a matter of status. Do you agree?
We hope you found it enjoyable, and if you have any suggestions or comments, we are here to listen.
To read the complete chapter, we share the following link: Complete chapter:
Commentary by Eduardo Urbina:
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