All but forgotten and hidden away inside the little town of La Venta del Astillero can be found an ancient arch which for centuries welcomed visitors traveling to Guadalajara via the famed Camino Real (Royal Highway).
Alongside the arch, equally well hidden behind high walls, stands a proud old hacienda, which in 1880 Fray Antonio Alcalde, the bishop of Guadalajara, donated to the priests operating the Belen Hospital, today known as the Hospital Civil.
Ownership of the hacienda then passed through several hands, including those of Mexican historian Ricardo Lancaster-Jones (1905-1983) until it was taken over by the present owner, Joaquín Romero whose son Juan Manuel recently announced plans to open the venerable building’s doors to tourism.
“This hacienda has a long history,” says Romero, a registered doctor. “It was the main gateway to the Zapopan Valley, Mexico’s most productive agricultural area. These buildings are probably 350 years old. In those days, the hacienda produced great quantities of corn and beans and it was the place where stagecoaches could be repaired. That’s what the world ‘astillero’ refers to in the name of the town. The hacienda was also the main source of firewood in those days. It provided leña for the Belén hospital and for a firewood storage center that was located in front of the Expiatorio church in Guadalajara. In addition, the hacienda was equipped for feeding people and putting them up overnight. It was the last stop of the stagecoach before entering the city and, of course, the place to catch the stage if you were planning to head north.”
In bygone days the hacienda produced tequila to welcome passengers after a long ride on the stagecoach. This tradition continues today.
“Our brand name is Tequila Arco de Oro but we also make Tequila Don Joaquín and El Zurdo de Romero,” says Romero. At present, most of the tequila produced by the hacienda is being sold in Russia.
Like many haciendas, this one has its legends and ghosts. It is said the first owner used to hunt for the highwaymen who plagued the Camino Real in ancient times. Those he caught, he literally worked to death in his taberna, claiming that it was their ghosts who gave his tequila its unique flavor. Eventually, the hacendado himself was killed by one of his enemies and legend has it that his headless specter still roams the underground passages.
To be on the safe side, the Romero family recently invited a local priest to perform a desalojo inside the hacienda.
“Exorcisms are for people,” Juan Manuel Romero told me, “but a desalojo is a special ceremony for getting fantasmas to leave their favorite haunts.”
Now hopefully filled with nothing but good vibrations, Hacienda La Venta del Astillero intends to offer visitors the kind of experience they would normally only get by traveling a long distance into the countryside.
Says Romero: “We would like to open our doors to tourism and invite visitors and the general public into the hacienda. We will be opening our doors to the public on August 18. From then on people will be able to visit or arrange to hold an event here, by calling us for an appointment. We think both Tapatios and foreigners will be amazed at what they will find hidden away here in the little town of La Venta, so close to the city limits.”
You can contact the hacienda at (33) 3151-0245 or 333-143-4198 (cell) from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. or via the web page haciendalaventa.mx.
How to get there
La Venta del Astillero is located ten kilometers west of Guadalajara on the road to Nogales and Puerto Vallarta. Just after the first pedestrian overpass, turn right on Calle Hidalgo and go two blocks to Calle Ejido. Turn left here and after a couple of blocks this street will take you right through the arch, which is in front of the Hacienda. Yes, today, noisy, dusty Calle Ejido is all that’s left of the once glorious and prestigious Camino Real! Driving time from the Guadalajara Periférico: about 15 minutes.