Just back from Jerez, and had a wonderful time, not surprisingly! I had only made three official bodega appointments, with the intention of taking things easily and getting at least some relaxation from my holiday, but that's not how it worked out. Inevitably. This is Jerez after all.
I had barely arrived and parked when I noticed an old house with a wall plaque announcing that the famous
singer Lola Flores was born here. Nearby there is a charming statue
to her just outside the Centro Andaluz
de Flamenco. The Flamenco legend
Antonio Chacon is also remembered
on another plaque erected in 1936 by
the Republican Government. Further
down the street, is the birthplace of
another Flamenco legend, La Paquera.
There too is a scruffy house with a plaque
and at the end of the street, another
statue, one which really looks like her. I was in my element, my accommodation
was in the heart of flamenco-land as well as being very central. It would be a
wonderful thing to restore these houses and create museums, but Jerez is not
in a sound enough financial position at the moment - nor in the near future.
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| La Paquera |
Anyway I was here to see about Sherry, and my first appointment was the following day with Osborne in El Puerto de Santa Maria. The estuary-side town is a short drive from Jerez with a prominent bullring (built by Osborne).
The firm has two main bodega complexes here, one for the extensive range
of brandies and the other for the Sherries. This is where I met with Area Director Stanley Manski and Technical Director and Enologist Jose Ignacio Lozano. Real gentlemen both, we began with a discussion of the VORS
Sherries: Capuchino, Amo. 51-1a, Venerable and Sibarita, whose soleras
brands and bodegas were bought from Pernod Ricard when they disposed
of Domecq. These wines are all well over 30 years old and among the best
of their kind, coming from some of the oldest soleras in Jerez, yet have the
most astounding fragrance and elegance without much woodiness.
Jose Ignacio explained the tortuous lengths they have to go to to prove the wines' age to the Consejo and the amount of stock they need to have. The sacas (withdrawals from solera) are rare, perhaps annual, and so production is tiny despite demand. The wines sell in Scotland for about £35 and represent an absolute bargain. The bodega makes little profit, but the pleasure and value offered to the consumer is immense.
Our attention turned to the Venerable PX and the summer
phenomenon of the butts "weeping" (see right). It really does
look as if the barrels are weeping - all the staves of the butts
are being forced apart very slightly by the action of sugar in
the wine setting in the summer heat. This wine has nearly 500 grams per litre of sugar in it (all totally natural from the grapes
- or raisins) and as tiny amounts of almost solid PX ooze out
between the staves there is a fantastic smell but it can attract flies.
All this puts some strain on the butts, and the coopers need to
tighten up the hoops occasionally.
After an in-depth talk and tasting with the charming chaps at Osborne, to whom I am much indebted, it was time for a spot
of lunch, and I wandered down past the Gutierrez Colosia bodegas ( I confess I bought some wine - well, wouldn't you?!)
to the riverfront and found a typical local bar where I found just how well Osborne's Fino Quinta matches with olives and ham. Very well indeed!
Fino Quinta was followed by Fino Pavon from the other big bodega in El Puerto, Luis Caballero (owner of Emilio Lustau) and the Pavon was accompanied by more ham and olives. Delicious! After chatting with a few locals, thoroughly nice folk, and taking a few photos, I left the town with a distinct feeling of happiness and satisfaction.
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