20.9.13 Andalucia's Place in Wine World; Harvest; Mundus Vini Awards

Andalucia occupies 8^th place in terms of wine production in Spain. Average production of 1.6 million hectolitres only achieves 3.4% of the national total. More than half of the Andaluz vineyard area is in Jerez (30%) and Montilla (24%), then in a smaller way, Huelva, Malaga and Granada. The wine sector, along with other agricultural sectors is really important to Andalucia.

In an official Bulletin of the Junta de Andalucia (BOJA,) published yesterday, requests may be submitted for the approval of plans for the restructuring and reconversion of vineyards for 2013/14 and support will be available. After the recent great grubbing up of vines in Jerez, already it is clear they went too far.

The harvest 2013 is all but over. Only a few small coastal vineyards have yet to pick as their grapes are not yet quite ripe enough. It has been a successful harvest, slightly ahead of predictions, with over 80 million kilos already pressed. Both quality and quantity, what every wine maker dreams of, have been achieved. The average must weight (sugar content of the grapes) is 11.24.      

The XIII Mundus Vini International Wine Awards, a prestigious event held in Neustadt, Germany, was able to count on a masterclass from Beltran Domecq, president of the Consejo Regulador, for 40 wine professionals at the end of last month. Six Sherries were tasted and then matched very successfully with food. The awards, which are organised by German publisher Meininger, are recognised by both the OIV (International Office Of Wine) and the UIOE (International Union of Oenologists).         

Aperitifs and tapas

The recent news that Cava is trying to promote itself as the ideal accompaniment to tapas is worrying. And not a little insulting. The tapa has been an Andaluz tradition forever, as has Sherry, which is without doubt the perfect match for it. No other wine comes near.

Surely Catalunya has the imagination to create a more innovative promotion. They certainly need to; sales of wine in Spain have tumbled over the last 25 years to less than half the 47 litres per capita consumed then, and the golden age of booming Cava sales is over. This applies throughout Spanish wine regions unfortunately, not least Sherry. Perhaps it's time for the CRDO Jerez to retaliate with a campaign such as "Crema Catalana is better with PX Sherry". Or perhaps they could do a promotion at the Boqueria Market in Barcelona "Fideos go better with Sherry".

News from Jerez 10.8.12

The word "Tapa" has always been used to describe small dishes to accompany an aperitif, of which Sherry is the indisputable king. Many competitors have appeared, some very well known, but now the CRDO of Cava has launched a publicity campaign with the aim of muscling in on Sherry's prime position using the slogan "Tapas are better with Cava". As if Jerez didn't have enough problems.