6.10.14 Manzanilla Should be Served from the Bottle

Ferejerez has asked the Consejo for a campaign to inform the consumer that genuine Manzanilla can only be served from the bottle. The Manzanilla producers are facing the dilemma of either selling their wines in bottle, as the Consejo insists, or losing its support by selling in other formats such as bag-in-box (BIB), whereby their wines would be disqualified from the Denominacion de Origen (DO).

Many producers have opted for the BIB, particularly for the catering trade, and especially for the ferias, mainly that of Sevilla, where some Sanlucar firms prefer to sell their wines without a DO just to maintain decent levels of sales and not lose clients. It is a widespread practice which, according to the Consejo, has now reached hundreds of thousands of litres, predominantly in spring.

Look at that flor!! (foto:descubrecostaballena.com)

Up till now the bodega has been free to choose, but some are not happy to renounce either the DO or the packaging. Fedejerez has denounced bodegas who are members of the Consejo and are selling ten litre BIB’s with the names "Sanlucar" and "Manzanilla" on the label, names which are protected under the DO. What’s more, these BIB’s are being sold at ridiculously low prices like 2 euros per litre which undermines the trend for increasing prices and thereby value.

Manzanilla can be sold in bulk – under Consejo supervision – but normally must be sold in bottle in which case it can mention those two words on the label: “Manzanilla de Sanlucar”. Fedejerez has reported this fraudulent practice to the Consejo so that it can take appropriate action, which could include sanctions such as removing the product in question from the market.

Evaristo Babe, Fedejerez president, said that it is necessary to inform the public in a positive and clear way that Manzanilla is only Manzanilla if it is in bottle with the seal of the Consejo Regulador. Anything else is to deceive the consumer which must be stopped to maintain the value of the DO, especially in this, its fiftieth anniversary.