Back to 2026, and I attended the fourth Festival ¡Del Tomate!, organised by Dr. Maria Sance at Casa Vigil in Chachingo, Mendoza. (The only thing missing was a bar for Bloody Marys made with Zapotec Pleated heirloom tomato juice.) Her father worked in agriculture, growing tomatoes for processing, and the Sances had a self-sufficient lifestyle out of necessity. Returning to live on the family farm with her winemaker husband Alejandro Vigil, they later founded Casa Vigil together. While we know he enthusiastically became an instant ‘flanatic’ of Ness’ halva flan, let’s assume he also dined on a seasonal staple of an heirloom tomato salad.
