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by Fred McMillin Monterey On DisplayPrologue
The Rest of the StoryMonterey has always been full of suprises... 1769—Gaspar de Portola was sent by the King of Spain to establish the first capital of California at Monterey. He arrived on Sept. 30, didn't recognize Monterey Bay, and marched his exhausted troops back to San Diego to report his failure. 1783—Father Junipero Serra had been waiting 10 years at his ecclesiastical headquarters near Monterey for his friars in Southern California to make him some wine. Finally, a ship arrived at Monterey with a precious cask of Mission-grape red. It was loaded onto a mule, fell off and shattered...as did Father Serra's morale. 1837—Britain's H.M.S. Harriet sank off the
Monterey coast. One of the few survivors was the
ship's physician, Dr. E. T. Bale. His subsequent
behavior seemed a bit E.T. (Extra Terrestrial that is),
possibly due to what Hudson's Bay visitor, Sir George Simpson,
noted in his diary:
b) was appointed Surgeon General of the Mexican Army by the General, c) was publicly flogged by Capt. Salvador Vallejo, the General's brother, and d) then shot Salvador in the chest (not fatal). Hence, General Vallejo banished E.T. to the upper Napa Valley along with a grant of 18,000 acres. Dr. Bale ran over to check the gold mining, caught a fever and died in 1849. What has this to do with wine? E.T.'s daughter married a young German named Charles Krug who took 20 of those 18,000 acres and established Napa's first commercial winery. But back to Monterey, and its suprises. Did you know it exceeds all other U.S.A. counties in strawberry and artichoke production? It contains the longest underground river in the world, the Salinas. Furthermore, it contains the largest vineyard in the world, the 8,000+ acre San Bernabe. Last, Monterey County turns out some BIG BARGAINS. One of them is our... Wine of the Day
1997 Monterey Vineyard Pinot Noir PostscriptWhence the name Monterey? On Dec. 16, 1602, Capt. Sebastian Vizcaino anchored in what is now called Monterey Bay. He named it after his boss in Mexico City, the Conde de Monterey, viceroy of New Spain.
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February 2000This page created February 2000
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