From 1059 to 1901, Basque sailors they launched to the ocean with one goal in mind: hunt whales. Due to the abuse, they killed the whales on the Cantabrian coast and headed for new seas, making enemies like some. Icelanders who could “hunt” Basque sailors. The expansion took them to Canadian waters, where the imposing whale ship San Juan was shipwrecked. Now they are reviving the ship and they need the most important piece to revive the whaler’s voyage.
A “motivated” cook who wants to replicate the 16th century voyage in the same conditions as 500 years ago. And with the same menu.
The new San Juan. A few years after the arrival of Christopher Columbus To America, the ship San Juan left for the Canadian coast. In the middle of the 16th century, the Basque whaling industry It was a world power with a significant share of the whale blubber and meat market in Europe. The expeditions took them far away, so much so that they had to create settlements and bases like the ones they founded in North America.
On one of these expeditions, the San Juan was shipwrecked. It was in 1565 in Red Bay in Canada after a strong storm. In 1970, remains were discovered of the ship and, after the remains of the San Juan were brought to light in 1990, it was recognized by UNESCO as a symbol of underwater cultural heritage. It was in very good condition, which encouraged the Albaola Maritime Factory to build an exact replica of it. The special thing? They only use materials and techniques from the 16th century.
The Saint John
Handcrafted to the extreme. This ‘whim’ follows a rigorous process in which construction methods from 500 years ago are reproduced, something that is being documented step by step and which is not easy at all. The original San Juan It weighed 200 tons, was 20 meters long, 7.5 meters wide and had a six-meter depth. And they are not only rebuilding it with those measurements, but with the original materials.
For example, for the keel, they have carved a 14.5 meter long piece of beech extracted from an eight-ton tree. And for the rest of the structure it has been employee wood from 200 oaks forests of the Navarrese ‘Sakana’. In total, it will also have six kilometers of hemp ropes, hand-forged anchors and 560 square meters of cloth for sails. It is a faithful reproduction, but they also want it to be functional because this new San Juan will once again sail the seas.
Vintage wine cellar. The idea is to return to Canada aboard the ship, reproducing the original journey and to do so they will need another vital piece, in this case human: the cook. This search for historical fidelity will ensure that the wineries have the foods of the time such as double-baked bread, dehydrated bread, legumes such as peas and beans, sardines, cod, bacon and oil.
It is part of the food they carried, and in large quantities, along with others such as bacon and drinks much more Spanish, and Basque, than the famous rum. There they highlight the cider, txakoli or the came. Why didn’t they carry water? Due to the difficulty of storing and conserving fresh water in good conditions. And, as for quantities, it is estimated that a ship like the San Juan could carry up to 50,000 liters of cider.
Top ship chef. And those foods are what the chef who is on board during the “expedition” will have to create the menus with. The Albaola factory itself is the one that will carry out the selection process to find the ideal chef. It won’t be an easy job because there will be no showers as we know them today or toilet paper on board, and nor a huge range of ingredients, but the candidates are already getting into the role.
In one demonstrationMichelin-starred chefs have prepared some examples of dishes that sailors might see on the menu. For example, a pea soup with cod, garlic and oil. Also a ‘zurrukutuna‘, which is a traditional Basque soup in which the ingredients are garlic and cod, or ‘soupoko‘, which is a traditional bread from the Basque Country created from leftover dough to create a bread intended for soups.
2027. While they choose a chef, the factory continues working, because on November 7 will be done the launching of the ship after twelve years of construction. Once in the water, the remaining elements will be installed to turn the ship into one worthy of sailing the seas as the original did 500 years ago.
And, in 2027, the new San Juan will leave for Canada, recreating that original journey. And he will do it with his sailors and everything, reproducing the medieval way of sailing. Let’s hope that this new ship reaches a better port than the original.
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