7.5.14 Hidalgo Tasting; Award for Beltran Domecq; New bodega for Tradicion; Antique Fino

A tasting of Sherries by Hidalgo la Gitana took place the other day in the Corte Ingles department store in Jerez. It was led by the firm’s PR director, Miguel Gutierrez, and was well attended by the public.

Beltran Domecq Williams, president of the Consejo, has been awarded the “Personality” prize for his dedication to the promotion of Sherry by the magazine Mercados del Vino y la Distribucion.

Juaquin Rivero Valcarce, owner of bodegas Tradicion, which contains an important collection of art, has set up a bodega for the ageing of Fino in old bodegas in Rincon Malillo, in which there is a collection of old photographs showing the history of Sherry.

Antique Fino by bodegas Rey Fernando de Castilla has been highly recommended and given 95 points by leading British wine magazine “Decanter” in its May edition. The magazine said “Thanks to extended ageing in oak, this powerful Fino is darker in hue than expected. There are signs of oxidation on the pungent salty nose, while the intense palate has layers of flavours with fantastic body and smoky roasted almond notes.”

30.5.13 Sanlucar Races Poster; Wine Display in El Puerto Tourist Office

At an event held at the bodegas of Hidalgo La Gitana to coincide with the start of the Feria de la Manzanilla, the official poster, painted by Reyes de la Lastra, was presented for the 168th Sanlucar Race Season. As yet the programme has not been finalised by the Sociedad de Carreras de Caballos de Sanlucar. The races will take place, as usual, on the beach on the 2,3,4 August, and the 16,17,18 August, an unmissable event. Javier Hidalgo himself is a veteran of a good many races.

The Puerto de Santa Maria council Tourism and promotions department has inaugurated a new initiative to inform and promote the wines of El Puerto and its entire viti-vinicultural patrimony. It takes the form of an exhibition of the wines in the Palacio de Aranibar, handy for all tourists visiting the tourist office. There are two display cases containing some 60 products including wines, spirits and vinegars, along with explanatory notes on their production and producers. Excellent idea.

6.1.13 New York Times; Wine Spectator; Reyes Magos

New York Times visits Sherry Country

The New York Times travel section decided to delve into the mystery of Palo Cortado, and visited two bodegas in El Puerto and one in Sanlucar for their report. They visited Gutierrez Colosia and Obregon in El Puerto and Hidalgo La Gitana in Sanlucar, three family-run bodegas who stock these wines, as complex as they are beautiful, to try to understand Palo Cortado.

The NYT discovered (what we all know) that Palo Cortado is a chalk cask marking which identifies the wine in the form of an angled stroke with a short horizontal line crossing it. Juan Carlos Gutierrez told them that he couldn’t tell them how to make PC, it just happens. Sherry is not just any wine; there are factors which can’t be controlled by humans. Manolo Obregon agreed, saying that PC is an accident. It is quite a rare one too, Obregon rarely sell any, but the picturesque bodega attracts many visitors.

Javier Hidalgo, one who really knows Sherry and has written books on the subject, declared that “it is no accident. We make a quite a lot and it has taken generations of family to do it. It lacks the delicacy of Amontillado, the structure of Oloroso and the freshness of Manzanilla. We only sell about 800 bottles of PC a year and that’s more for prestige than profit”. He then put the remains in his glass back into a butt - of Amontillado. When quizzed about this, and would that not change the style of the wine, he shook his head, saying no, it’s like a tear in the ocean. Then he switched off the lights.

Source Diario de Jerez

For actual article:  http://travel.nytimes.com/2013/01/06/travel/sharing-a-sherry-treasured-in-spain.html

Wine Spectator listing for Lustau

The American publication The Wine Spectator publishes a list of the 100 best wines of the year, all having been awarded 90 or more points, and in position 82 is a Sherry - Amontillado Solera Reserva Los Arcos from Emilio Lustau. Other Spanish wines also feature in the list, from Rioja, Almansa, Ribera del Duero and Bierzo.

Reyes Magos (Three Kings) visit Jerez

The Kings' cavalcade hit the streets today, throwing millions of sweets to the children.

Source Diario de Jerez

29.11.12 Decanter Magazine Praises Sherry

Decanter Magazine, in its current (December) edition has given high praise to some Sherries. The article was written by Sarah Jane Evans MW, who knows a lot about Sherry, having written her MW dissertation on the Almacenistas. I can confirm that; I last met her at Vinoble giving a talk on Moscatel. She praises the following:

La Bota de Manzanilla No 32, Equipo Navazos

Manzanilla Pasada Cuevas Jurado, Lustau Almacenista

Manzanilla Pasada Pastrana, Hidalgo la Gitana

Puerto Fino, Emilio Lustau

Fino la Ina, Emilio Lustau

Fino Antique, Fernando de Castilla

Fino Perdido, Sanchez Romate

Amontillado La Bota No 31, Equipo Navazos

Amontillado Antique, Fernando de Castilla

Amontillado Vina AB, Gonzalez Byass

Oloroso La Bota No 28 Bota Punta, Equipo Navazos

Palo Cortado Viejisimo 1/5, Cayetano del Pino

Palo Cortado Vides, Lustau Almacenista

Palo Cortado Wellington VORS, Hidalgo la Gitana

Moscatel Emilin, Emilio Lustau

PX Antique, Fernando de Castilla

PX Noe VORS, Gonzalez Byass

I have tasted most of these, and will post my notes on those not already posted as soon as I can. They are all quite excellent, and you should stock up with them for Christmas!

Amontillado Napoleon 17.5%, Hidalgo La Gitana

Appearance
Deep old burnished gold verging on amber, trace green at rim, legs.
Nose
Elegant and aromatic, toasted almonds and hazelnuts, traces oak and cedar, quite punzante - traces of manzanilla pasada origins. Light hints of old furniture polished with linseed oil and a hint of oxidation, complex and somehow more aromatic than its paler colour would suggest.
Palate
Quite light in weight but compensated by lots of flavour surging through, a gentle trace of acidity, good grip and lots of deep nutty tang, a trace of salinity and bitterness from the flor, clean, quite crisp and very long.
Comments
Delicious. I love it when you can see how a wine has developed. A classic Sanlucar wine. It gets its name from the fact that Hidalgo supplied Napoleon's army with wine during the peninsula War. Be careful, though, because Hidalgo have two wines named Napoleon: this one and a VORS which is much dearer.Without wishing to appear partisan, they also supplied the British army, hence their other wine Palo Cortado Wellington. This solera is from the end of the XVIII century and is filled with Pastrana. Some of this wine, which is close to 20 years old then goes to the VORS solera.

Price

£ 10, 95 (50cl) from Drinkmonger

Oloroso Faraon 18%, Hidalgo La Gitana

Appearance
Amber like old patinated furniture through yellow to a trace of green at the rim, legs.
Nose
Very savoury, gamey, some walnut, slight trace of varnished wood, barrels, hints of seaweed, subtle oxidation, dried apricots and a trace of raisin. Just a flash of youth there too in a complex wine.
Palate
Dry with a decent tangy acidity, and comparatively light but very elegant with a long, tasty and gentle finish.
Comments
A lovely wine, and quite a character; less "oloroso-y" than many and with all the hallmarks of its Sanlucar origins. It is aged in solera for at least 7 years before bottling, developing an extra 1 degree of alcohol in the process. A "Faraon" is a gypsy title for the head of a family. Hidalgo are self sufficient for grapes with about 200 hectares in Miraflores and Balbaina.
Price
£13.50 from Villeneuve Wines in Edinburgh and Peebles (UK agent: Mentzendorff)