“Pulperías y chinganas”, the book that shows the past of modern wineries

When one walks through the streets of the Historic Center of Lima, it is impossible to ignore the small wineries that occupy the ground floor of the old mansions that still remain around the Plaza de Armas. In his recent work, “Convenience stores and chinganas. Lima (1700-1862)”Arnaldo Mera travels through time through the streets of the Lima of yesteryear to unravel the history of the ancestors of the so-called “bodeguitas”.

The pulperías and chinganas, those small and often forgotten social institutions, represented much more than mere businesses. They were places that gradually became the heart of viceregal Lima and the first years of the republic, as Mera reveals in his book. “In the grocery stores, the people of Lima interacted – slaves, blacks, Indians and mestizos – who went to drink alcohol, as well as those who came to purchase essential products such as candles or bread.”, explains the historian in an interview with El Comercio.

Grocery stores and chinganas

A chingana, in the context of viceregal and early republican Lima, was much more than a mere ephemeral commercial establishment; It was, in fact, a space of social and cultural vitality, a refuge for rest and recreation for ordinary citizens. Often emerging temporarily and spontaneously, especially in times of revolt or social unrest, chinganas stood as meeting points where soldiers and citizens found a place to drink liquor, share stories and, in a way, escape the tensions of everyday life. .

On the other hand, the pulpería was established as a more permanent and structured institution within the urban fabric of Lima. These establishments, strategically located on corners and equipped with two doors – an architectural detail in accordance with the regulations of the time – became nerve centers for domestic and social life. Grocery stores offered a variety of essential products for everyday life, from basic foodstuffs such as bread and cheese, to daily necessities such as candles and pots.

These places became points of social interaction, bringing together various layers of society: slaves making purchases for their employers, citizens looking for what was necessary for the home, and, later, with the arrival of Italian immigrants, they became epicenters. of Lima’s bohemian life. The introduction of products such as sausage and coffee, thanks to the Italian influence, represented an evolution in the offering of grocery stores, adapting and enriching the social and gastronomic life of Lima.

“By the early 19th century, there was talk of the confusion that arose among the customers regarding these businesses, the chinganas, and their confusion with the pulperías (probably with the third and fourth class ones, where the difference was minimal)”comments Mera who clarifies that although they shared similarities, especially in their most basic functions, there were significant differences in terms of their operation and the role they played in Lima society.

Wheelbarrows and warehouses

These establishments, especially the chinganas, faced constant tension with the colonial and, later, republican authorities. Their existence and operation, often outside official regulations, placed them in a delicate position, subject to fluctuations in government policies and attitudes. Despite being vital spaces for the social life of the city, the chinganas, in particular, were viewed with suspicion by the authorities, who perceived them as sources of disorder and rebellion.

“In my book I explain how the chinganas appeared and how they were later persecuted by both the building authority and the higher government; as the viceroys Abascal and Pezuela did energetically because they did not pay taxes as the grocery stores did.”explains Mera.

In these chinganas, the sale of local drinks such as pisco, mistelas and guarapos predominated, offering their customers a less regulated space, more liberated from the strict social norms that governed other areas of Lima life. “The chinganas existed to give customers pisco, mistelas and guarapos to drink and there was no problem opening them after independence”explains Mera about these places that today bear the name of “seedy restaurants.”

Along the same lines, grocery stores also faced a great change due to Chinese migration, a movement that began at the end of the 19th century and intensified in the first decades of the 20th century. This new wave of migration brought with it a cultural and commercial transformation in the heart of Lima. Chinese immigrants, with their own traditions and commercial practices, began to integrate into the fabric of grocery stores, contributing new products, management styles and a different dynamic to social interaction in these spaces, replacing the Italian migrants who until then They had given new vitality to these businesses by offering foreign products.

“The grocery stores did not disappear in 1862 as is commonly thought. The businesses survive to this day: the Italians were replaced by the Chinese and the name became a winery. After a while, the Chinese were replaced by any immigrant neighbor who today has a bodega or bodeguita in our city,” says the historian, who details that its location was mandatory on the corners of the capital, something that to this day can be seen in different streets of Lima.