Teresa Rodríguez Rivera
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Editor’s Note: Alfredo Espinola, el Restaurante’s representative in Mexico City, recently had the pleasure of talking to Teresa Rodríguez Rivera, named by the magazine Líderes Mexicanos one of the 25 wine leaders in Mexico. She is part of the communications department of the Mexican Wine Council (CMV) and she serves as vice president of communications at the Association of Mexican Sommeliers (ASM).
How did your story begin in the world of gastronomy and wine?
Fifteen years ago, when I had five years of experience in journalism, I was offered the responsibility of being the editor of the “Buena Mesa” (Good Table) column in the newspaper “Reforma,” which led me to return to school. I studied at the College of Gastronomy and obtained a diploma in haute cuisine, as well as another in bakery, chocolate and pastry.
What do you think about current Mexican gastronomy?
I have had the privilege of seeing, I'm not going to say the evolution of Mexican gastronomy, but rather the awakening of the rest of the world to Mexican gastronomy, which is something very different. Mexican gastronomy has been around, but what was definitely needed was for people to turn their attention to Mexico and understand the reality of Mexican gastronomy, clearing up the confusion with “Tex-Mex,” which has its own history, but is more of a fusion.
Several things came together to make the world take notice of Mexican cuisine, the most important of which was its recognition as Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 2010.
Another very important point is that chefs in Mexico are beginning to recognize the value of what we have, giving the milpa -- the Mexican triad (a combination of corn, beans and squash) -- its rightful place. We are beginning to see a resurgence of ingredients endemic to Mexico. The beauty of Mexican cuisine is that we already have those two extremes, the great dishes, the great productions, but also traditional cuisine.
Nowadays, people are looking for authentic experiences, rural cooking experiences. An example in Puebla is the restaurant “Macuitl Molino” by Chef Gustavo Macuitl, where he literally cooks in his family's cornfield.
Another example is Chef Thalía Barrios, originally from San Mateo Yucutindoó in the Sierra Sur region of Oaxaca, Mexico, who won the “Young Chef” award from Michelin. In her restaurant “Cocina de Humo” (Smoke Kitchen), she offers the experience of eating in a traditional highland kitchen, where the comal, the metate and various ancestral cooking techniques are present in the preparation of the dishes.
Similarly, the media has evolved, displaying photos of traditional cooks in its pages. Today that is the new luxury, the authentic, the real, the milpa cuisine, community cuisine.
How have you managed to combine your passion for gastronomy and the world of wine?
When I was working as the editor of the “Buena Mesa” column, my collaborators who were in charge of the wine section left the project, which forced me to go back to school again to be able to write responsible content. I took a sommelier training course at the Mexican Sommeliers Association, as well as a course at the Mexican Sommeliers Association with Ricardo Espínola, who is considered one of the best sommeliers in Mexico, and I am currently taking a course at the Domecq Academy.
Since my first course, I have always been very grateful for the places and the people who have given me the opportunity to be a taster, to sit in front of that product, to think that there is at least a year's work behind that wine that you have in your glass and that you are evaluating, to know that someone in the field was careful to measure the ripeness of the grapes, that people in the wineries spent sleepless nights on harvest days. As a taster you reflect on everything that goes into a wine, you realize the responsibility, what a great privilege it is.
How do you see Mexican wine in the current market?
Since I arrived at the CMV, statistics indicate that since 2017, national wine has been leading the market share; so, you realize that the market itself is beginning to feel proud and take ownership of its own. This does not mean that there is nothing to improve, but it does recognize that Mexicans already have that awakening and that awareness of saying “my own first.”
We have to recognize the preference for Mexican labels in the market, just as there are important challenges to face. Definitely the issue of having a sustainable industry is one of the biggest, another is what producers face in the tax burden on each bottle of wine, which makes us less competitive compared to other producing regions.
What do you think of the role of women in the world of wine in Mexico?
Women have gained a significant amount of participation in the industry. I think they still have a long way to go to reach the top, and decision-making is still mostly in male hands, but I do think that women have gained a lot of ground, precisely in occupying management positions, sub-management positions, some presidencies such as that of Gina Estrada in the ASM. In the end, women are helping to increase the visibility and boost the industry.
In the world of sommeliers it is said that women have a more developed sense of smell, the issue of sensory and aromatic memory, that we are more sensitive and focused on aromas. Historically, women have had that part of conciliation and emotionality that society has recognized in us and that men do not allow themselves.
On the subject of bringing the world of wine closer to the new generations, what are you doing as head of communications at the CMV?
Within the CMV, the issue of correctly conveying and reflecting everything that is in a bottle of wine is a great responsibility, as is making people aware of where it comes from and how it is made, as well as promoting quality and spreading the word about wine made in Mexico. That is my role in the area of communication and project management within the Council.
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