Origins of Tapas
El
Sabio - the wise one
The
man behind Spanish Tapas
The
legend has it that King Alfonso X of
Castile and Leon is the inventor of tapas. He was known as The Wise One
(El Sabio) and it is from him that our restaurant takes its name.
King
Alfonso was born in Toledo in 1221
and crowned King of Castile & Leon in 1252. He was a hugely
important figure in the growing knowledge and scholarship that ended
the dark ages of Western Europe and paved the way for the Renaissance
and Rosicrucianism.
He
was a scholar, writer and composer
and his music is performed to this day. He translated Arab texts into
Latin and much of the knowledge of Maths and Astronomy was thus made
accessible to Western countries. This is how he got his name of El
Sabio - The Wise One.
Tapas
means 'cover' in Spanish and the
story goes that once, when on his way across Spain to fight the Moors,
Alfonso rested at an inn near Cadiz where he asked for sherry.
The
waiter covered the glass with a
slice of cured ham before offering it to the king, to protect the wine
from the beach sand, as Cádiz is a windy place. The king,
after
drinking his wine and eating the tapa, ordered another sherry "with the
same cover".
For
more information about Alfonso X and
his connection to Tapas click here.
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