31.1.14 Vineyards Special Plan; 2.3 Million to Promote Sherry

The “special plan for the development of vineyard activities” was approved unanimously and envisages the re-launching of vineyard and wine tourism. It has great importance for the city, which as the mayor put it, “is a place with great patrimonial, ethnographical, cultural and architectural value with especially protected countryside”. Local councillor Agustin Munoz pointed out the support of the wine and tourism sectors for this historic and novel project would act as an umbrella for any public and private initiatives which will add value and reduce time taken to implement them.

 The Support Programme for Spanish Viti-viniculture is to invest 2.3 million euros, paid for by the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund, in the promotion of Sherry outside Europe. The announcement came from Federico Fernandez, environment delegate of the Junta, on his visit to Las Angustias Cooperative, where he met Salvador Espinosa, its newly appointed president.

The money will be divided as follows: Aecovi Cooperative will receive 694,518 euros, while the rest will be spent in the following countries: USA, Canada, Mexico: 223,380 euros; Russia, Ukraine, Serbia: 141,168 euros; China, Taiwan, Singapore, Philippines: 108,018 euros.

While in Jerez, Fernandez took the opportunity to pay visits to Williams & Humbert and Lustau, two companies to which the Junta de Andalucia has given 120,000 euros in funds towards promotion in third countries. He underlined the Junta’s commitment to the cooperative movement, which will be a priority in 2014. He said that promotion will determine their long term viability.

Salvador Espinosa reaffirmed what Fernandez said, how important financial is to promote wine abroad, especially to such potentially important markets as Asia, USA and Canada. He announced he was going to China in March on a sales mission organised by the Business Confederation. He \said it would be more difficult for the cooperatives than for the bodegas who have recognised brands, but he would fight for market share.

He pointed out, however that it should never be forgotten that the Cooperatives’ biggest market is the bodegas themselves, who buy the musts, but who have enjoyed years of paying low prices. The growers must remain profitable, an no growers, no Sherry. In reference to Jerez being European City of Wine this year, he said that the cooperatives would be doing open doors days, tastings, food and wine pairings and vineyard visits. “We have come a long way, but there is still plenty to be done”.

                                          

                                         

30.1.14 Barbie at Gonzalez Byass; Domecq to Visit China

Barbie, the biggest-selling doll in the world, will be present at the forthcoming Mercedes Benz-sponsored Flamenco fashion show to be held at Gonzalez Byass on 6^th February.

There will be a special exhibition of around 400Barbies in a variety of Flamenco costumes and in a variety of scenes, such as a bodega, El Rocio, at the bullfight, at the Feria etc. She will, of course be accompanied by her long-term boyfriend, Ken, who will be dressed as a bullfighter, a horseman etc.

The exhibition can be seen for 2 euros at the Sala de Arte in Gonzalez Byass from the 6^th February to the 8^th of March, coinciding with the end of the XVIII Festival de Jerez.

(Imagen: + Jerez)

The Consejo Regulador has its eyes set on the Asian market, where Japan is already a major – and growing - customer for Sherry, and sees similar possibilities in China. According to Beltran Domecq, they have already been working on China for a while, but he is going there in March to do his bit to promote Sherry there. 

An “important” plan is already underway for extra promotion in the existing major markets:  Spain, UK, Holland, Germany and the USA. South America has distinct possibilities, like Mexico, for example, but it will need more time.

Beltran Domecq closed the big wine and gastronomy fair Enofusion yesterday with a top level Sherry tasting, where he promoted the forthcoming wine fair in Jerez, Vinoble, which will be taking place on 25-27 May.

Palo Cortado Bota Punta No.6 21%, Equipo Navazos

Appearance
Deep limpid amber with slight reddy hue (almost like very old colheita Port) fading through pale yellow to a trace of green on the rim. Legs.
Nose
Fresh and aromatic with lots of toasted almonds and a delightful raisins in caramel sweetness, then a salty, slightly bitter tang of flor and a trace of wood dry things out a bit. Hints of pastry with almond cream and tangy raisin with a faint whiff of cinnamon, complex, interesting and very elegant.
Palate
Quite light but full of flavour, tangy, almost crisp with more phenolic notes of wood and walnut, even a certain earthy bitterness which balance with that slight implied sweetness. While the nose is very Amontillado, the palate is more oloroso in style, which is the hallmark of good Palo Cortado. This is a really characterful wine, very long and quite superb.
Comments
It comes from a tiny old solera of 7 butts originally established by Fernando Carrasco Sagastizabal in his old bodegas at Rincon Malillo and Cordobeses, which was bought by M Gil Luque, owned by La Guita, in 1995. It was then moved to their bodega complex at Vina El Telegrafo. In 2007, La Guita including Gil Luque was taken over by Grupo Estevez, and the solera was moved again to their modern facilities. Just before this happened, and before any changes that might happen to the wine, Equipo Navazos managed to bottle 300 half bottles from the Bota Punta, or end butt, the one containing the best wine of all. Luque had been using the old Carrasco Sagastizabal soleras for their flagship range De Bandera. This wine, then, is unique, though Equipo Navazos may well look at the solera again once  it has settled down.
Price
I paid around 30 euros for the half bottle in Spain, but I doubt it will still be obtainable. Try winesearcher.

29.1.14 Consejo Budget Increase

The Consejo Regulador will have a budget increase of 25% over last year for the promotion of Sherry, around 500,000 euros, to which will be added a further 500,000 by the OCM (Organizacion  Comun del Mercado). This is a good deal less than they had hoped for.  Beltran Domecq had proposed to triple the budget to 2 million euros at yesterday’s full meeting of the Consejo.

He had hoped that the bodegas’ contribution could be doubled from one centimo per litre sold to two, along with one centime per kilo of grapes from the growers. He felt it would be ideal in a year when Vinoble is returning and Jerez is European City of Wine. While bodegas and growers approved in principle however, agreement couldn’t be reached, mainly because the bodegas, who own about one third of the vineyards, felt they were paying twice.

According to Evaristo Babe, president of the bodegas association Fedejerez, the bodegas were making a great effort by increasing their contribution by 25%, and would have liked it to be more, but that is the limit, especially as the increase comes only from them.

Some say, however, that realistically, their contribution should be much more. 

Fino San Patricio 15%, Garvey

Appearance
Strawy gold, light legs.
Nose
Full and fresh, lots of bitterness from the flor and the very slightest hints of fruit and autolysis. Refined and elegant with traces of flowers, well rounded with a certain softness.
Palate
Soft and fresh at first then develops the flor flavours, good depth with traces of fruit and almond and a lovely long clean finish with some length.
Comments
A very good wine with character. San Patricio (Saint Patrick) was the name William Garvey, an Irishman, chose for his grand - and huge - new bodega and this, the first Fino to be exported from Jerez. "Pajizo" (or straw wine - what we now call Fino) was regarded as inferior in Garvey's day, and often ended up as vinegar, but he saw potential and began exporting it in the 1820s albeit on a small scale. The real development of Garvey's Fino was left to his only son and heir, Patrick Garvey. The wine runs through 6 criaderas and then the solera.
Price
5,50 Euros in Spain. Distribution abroad is a bit unsure, as the bodega is in a rather dodgy financial position after the Nueva Rumasa collapse.

25.1.13 Jerez-Sydney Tasting; Fitur; Barbadillo Prize; Guia Penin; Guinness Venencia Record

An interactive tasting of Finos and Manzanillas has united Jerez with Australia. The online tasting was organised by Chelsea Anthon of International Sherry Week and conducted by Cesar Saldaña, director of the Consejo Regulador. “Fino and Manzanilla Masterclass” was the name given to the tasting, and ten guests enjoyed the interactive tasting from Tapavino wine bar in Sydney Australia in live contact with Jerez. The wines tasted were:

Tio Pepe en rama;  Manzanilla La Goya;  Fino Inocente;  Tio Pepe dos palmas and Barbadillo’s Manzanilla Sacristia, which was being tasted for the first time ever in Australia.

Fitur, the international tourism trade fair now in its 34^th year is currently taking place in Madrid and closes tomorrow. It was opened by Prince Felipe and Doña Letizia. Needless to say, there is a strong representation from Andalucia, and particularly the Sherry zone. Sanlucar for its part, has presented the posters for the 3 main tourist events, the Carnival, Semana Santa and the Feria de la Manzanilla (27^th May-1^st June). They were also promoting the VI Ruta de la Tapa y de la Manzanilla which will take place on 1^st September. El Puerto de Santa Maria has a stand too, in which they are promoting the city with the slogan “365 Days and 360 Degrees”, highlighting the fact that there is something interesting going on every day. Sherry is naturally a key part of their strategy. Jerez is, of course promoting itself as European City of Wine 2014.

Vivir el Vino Magazine has chosen Barbadillo’s Palo Cortado VORS as its best fortified wine in its “11 Magnificos”(the eleven best from their respective Dos), a part of its 2014 guide. The prizes were handed over in Madrid on Tuesday. The guide presents the 365 best of over 1,500 tasted blind.

“If any Spanish wine deserves 100 points, it is without doubt Sherry”. This is what Carlos Dominguez had to say about our beloved wine as his tasting team descended on Jerez to do the tastings for the 2014 Guia Peñin. Carlos is director of the Guia. In last year’s edition, Sherry achieved the best scores, and averaged 91 points. As is habitual with the Guia, no wine can score 100 points, and last year the highest score was 98. Two Sherry brands achieved this: Equipo Navazos and Barbadillo.

Jerez is traditionally the first stop for the Peñin tasters on their whistle-stop tour round Spain’s wine regions during which they will taste some 10,000 wines from 135 regions. The Sherry wines just keep getting better, according to Carlos, “they are spectacular. Tasting these wines imposes respect for them, and requires serenity”.

The Consejo Regulador is proposing to break the Guinness World Record for the Venencia. (the long flexible stick with a cup at the end for extracting Sherry from the butt) The winner of the 11^th Venencia competition in Japan (where the competition is held), is Shuji Fujikawa, a young cocktail bar owner, who is currently in Jerez to receive his title from Beltran Domecq and visit bodegas.

Shuji Fujikawa (L) at the Consejo bodega San Gines

The Japanese love Sherry, and there are over 100 Japanese venenciadores registered with the Consejo. They even go so far as to serve Sherry with a venencia direct from the barrel in Japanese bars and restaurants, not from the bottle. The Bamboo cocktail is popular in Japan, and consists of one part Fino Sherry, three parts dry vermouth and a dash of Angostura bitters.

The Consejo plan is to beat the Guinness record for the highest number of venenciadores pouring at the same time, which currently stands at 61, and which was achieved in Seville in 2005.

Fino Quinta 15%, Bodegas Osborne

Appearance
Pale golden straw, light legs.
Nose
Flor followed by saline almondiness beautifully balanced by gentle background fruit and a hint of camomile. There is a slight fatness typical of finos from El Puerto, but it is deep and well rounded, yet always with that bitter flor edge, lovely.
Palate
Similar to nose really, deep flor influence but with the perfect manners imparted by that fruity floral note. Just enough bitterness to show its quality. I would guess it is about five years old, and it has considerable length and is terribly moreish.
Comments
An excellent fino. The name "Quinta" has nothing to do with Port vineyards (although Osborne do produce Port). It refers to the solera which is the fifth (Sp."quinta") row of butts. In other words, the solera system for this wine consists of four criaderas and a solera. If only Osborne would promote their excellent wines a bit harder. They have some gems of soleras.
Price
In Spain 6.50 Euros. Availability in UK soon apparently. Check with importers Grands Chais de France or Emporia Brands. I've checked already, and there seems to be no news so far.....

Buy this wine online