On the Track of Murrieta

Abstract Among the stories resulting from Greene’s travels through Spain and Portugal that have remained unknown, the creation of the short-lived Graham Greene Foundation stands out. In gratitude for the mention of Marqués de Murrieta wines in Monsignor Quixote, Greene received two invitations to visit the Rioja winery. In the second of these, which occurred in August 1987, the owner of the winery, Vicente Cebrián, Count of Creixell, proposed to Greene the creation of a foundation that would bear his name. From this moment on, there unfolds a complex record of encounters and clashes between Cebrián and Durán, with Greene as a backdrop. The foundation was supposedly designed for cultural purposes, but Durán did not fail to see the commercial aspect of the project, and he would soon have qualms about whether it was right to collaborate with it and, furthermore, involve his friend Graham.