City of Bodegas

On Thursday 20^th a series of cultural conferences begins in Jerez, organised by the Consejo Regulador for European City of Wine. The first conference will be led by Jose Manuel Aladro, who has a doctorate in architecture from Seville University and who is a winner of the Foundation for the Protection of Industrial Patrimony of Andalucia prize. The title of the conference, “The Construction of the City of Bodegas, Jerez in the XIX Century” is the same as that of his doctoral thesis, which won a prize as the best research project on industrial patrimony in Andalucia.

The economy and society of Jerez cannot be understood without the wine, one of the principal symbols of the identity of a city which grew from its bodega industry, the principal economic motor in the past and an essential part of its history and culture, on which it has left an indelible mark. By way of recognising this, and as one of the commemorative acts of the European City of Wine year, the Consejo Regulador has organised a cycle of conferences entitled “Jerez, Culture and Wine”. This cycle will cover, on a monthly basis, such diverse topics as history, anthropology and literature, all with the common thread of the wine.

This first conference will cover in particular the years 1830-1875, “the fundamental decades of the economic development of Sherry, which then accounted for about 20% of total Spanish exports”. It will also look at bodega architecture, its technical aspects and its extraordinary influence on the layout of the city. The wine business revolutionised the economy and society of the city, not only in terms of architecture, but also in terms of the huge cash flow of the bodegas, which led to Jerez being the first city in Andalucia with a railway and one of the first with street lighting. Jerez was transformed by its wine into a city at the vanguard.

Aladro says that although the bodega architecture was not particularly innovative technically, it has a traditional beauty, and despite many bodegas having been lost for ever, he supports the re-use of old bodegas for other purposes, for example galleries, supermarkets or restaurants, "because it allows us to remember what we once were".

12.01.14 Fascinating Roman Exhibition in Jerez

A fascinating exhibition is to open on the 30^th January in Jerez’ central square, the Plaza Arenal. The exhibition, sponsored by the bank La Caixa, will be called Romanorum Vita, and will offer people the opportunity to walk down a street and visit houses from AD 79 in the Roman era, just prior to the destruction of Pompeii.

This travelling exhibition, which consists of no less than 11 truckloads will see the reconstruction of Roman houses and will be equipped with all the objects, sights, sounds and smells of that era. There will also be audio-visuals and texts so that visitors can get the maximum out of the show, which lasts till the 4^th of March. Go if you possibly can.

26.11.12 FEE to Hold Congress in Jerez

Jerez is to be the meeting place in May 2014 of the Spanish Federation of Enologists. The biennial meeting will bring together over 300 wine makers. The president of the board of the Federation is from Jerez and he has made arrangements with the Mayoress. This is a great tourism opportunity for Jerez:  the wine must be good if 300 professionals want to meet there. The enologists are hoping that their meeting will coincide with Vinoble (a biennial sweet and fortified wine fair held in Jerez). The city will organise other events as well.

Back from Jerez: Part 1

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.

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.

News from Jerez 31.8.12

The Oenological Station in the Calle Cordoba in Jerez is considered the finest drinks laboratory in Spain according to two provincial government delegates who visited yesterday. The large building is considered a reference point for safety as well as authenticity in drinks.

The Junta de Andalucia (the RegionalGovernment) has invested heavily in the station in recent years, and it is now recognised worldwide. It is not unusual therefore to see samples on its shelves from as far afield as Russia or Algeria. They are asked, for example, to check if the samples contain natural alcohol, if they have been watered down, or if they are of the stated age.

Jose Maria Mateos, the station director, showed the delegates what the machines linked to computers are capable of, for example measuring the wines’ pH, volatility and alcohol content. Only a few years ago this would have taken a technician 15 days, but now takes only a few seconds. While the machines are impressive, they do cost an average of about 120,000 euros. One has an electronic nose, while another can measure radioactivity levels.

Another facility of the Estacion de Viticultura – as it is known in Jerez – is the checking of age of the VOS and VORS Sherries. For this they use carbon 14 which has a life of 4,000 years. Since nuclear testing was banned in 1962 radioactivity levels have been falling, and it is perfectly possible to work out in which year the grapes grew.

Fraud in vinegars has been completely eliminated by being able to detect whether acetic acid is natural or added. Blended wines can be checked to see if they are blended from the stated grape varieties. Soils can be analysed, nutrition is studied, the list goes on, the lab never stops.

News from Jerez 6.8.12

Two items today:

In the light of this year's small harvest, some in Jerez are wondering if the "adjustment" (grubbing up vines to balance supply and demand) has gone too far. The mean years which have seen dozens of growers ruined or close to ruin - and some bodegas too, are thought to be over and the crisis to have bottomed out, but there is little agreement on what steps to take now.

Grape price rises are inevitable, and while bodegas and the CRDO are happy with moderate rises, the growers want compensation for the mean years whose effects can be widely seen. The countryside once dominated by the green of vineyards is now full of bald patches where vines once grew.

The CRDO calculates a quota of 3 litres of wine in crianza for every 1 litre sold guaranteeing 4 years of sales, but some worry that after 4 years there might be shortages - especially after this year's small crop. One can see the wisdom of Grupo Estevez' canny move in buying 400 hectares of old Domecq vineyard. There are now only 6,900 hectares registered at the CRDO, of which only 6013 are in production for Sherry. The remaining 887 hectares are either used for concentrated must or vino de color, or are in a poor state due to abandonment. Unattended vineyards give cause for concern for the spread of infections and insects, the latter prevalent in dry years such as this one. Putting these back into production will cost more than anyone has.

While EU planting liberalisation could help recuperate part of the vineyard area without the need to pay for planting rights - which are still held by the beneficiaries of EU sponsored grubbing up or victims of abandonment - it would take until at least 2018 to come into force.

Construction companies have caused further worries by buying up speculatively vineyards close to the city intending to build. They too, however have been hit by the crisis, and nothing has been built, leaving these vineyards abandoned and uncared for. The demise of Nueva Rumasa has caused Garvey's San Patricio
vineyard to be untended, and it is not alone.



Luckily there is also some good news from Jerez!

Gonzalez Byass is hosting a classical concert performed by The Soloists of London on the 14th August. It will be conducted by Andrew Coman, and is the first of a series of annual events planned by the bodega. The idea is that guests will tour the bodega, stopping at particularly nice spots and enjoy a glass of fine Sherry while the 17 musicians play. Afterwards an a la carte dinner will be served in the open air. Future events will provide a variety of music, including Flamenco and Jazz. Yet another innovation from GB!

News from Jerez 6.7.12

The Consejo Regulador yesterday held a reception for the honorary Spanish Consul in El Paso (Texas) Maria Angeles Alvarez de Gallardo. Jerez and El Paso have been twinned since 1998. The host, Evaristo Babe, head of the brandy division of the Consejo and also of Fedejerez held a tasting of typical wines and tapas from Jerez.

The Consul declared that "Jerez is a marvellous and charming city, from its buildings to its people. It's very noble. I love the horses and, of course the Sherry". Evaristo Babe replied that the reception demonstrated the good relations which exist between the two cities. "It's more friendly than institutional".

News from Jerez 2.7.12

The mayoress of Jerez Maria Jose Garcia Pelayo has announced the completed official programme for the Fiesta de la Vendimia 2012 which will again celebrate the arrival of the grapes and the birth of the new wine. The Fiesta will take place betwen the11th and 16th of September with a wide range of cultural events all celebrating Sherry. The mayoress is pictured above with the new logo and members of relevant committees at the announcement. You still have time to book!!

Bodegas: Williams & Humbert

This famous firm was founded in 1877, the fruit of a romance. Englishman Alexander Williams went to Jerez to try his luck and for a while worked in a humble bodega job with Wisdom & Warter. He fell for a girl called Amy Humbert, also English though resident in Jerez, but his salary could never pay for a family and he begged his employers to help. After their refusal he decided to rent a warehouse and establish his own bodega, helped by Edward Engelbach, a banker with Coutts, and being joined later by Arthur Humbert, soon to be his brother in law. Arthur was expert in international relations, which proved very useful, and their first (modest) order came in from London that same year for 2 half-butts of fino. This is interesting since at that time it was mainly oloroso that was exported in any quantity.

As time passed the bodega was growing and exports increasing to such diverse places as Denmark, the Far East, Malaysia, Ireland and India. The firm now exports to over 80 countries. Williams was later knighted. In 1900 Carl Williams, son of Alexander,  introduced the "Sherry Girl" logo and in 1906 what is now their signature brand, Dry Sack, a blend of amontillado, oloroso and PX. The new century arrived, and in the 1920's they were involved in the establishment of the Consejo Regulador. For a while W&H owned Robertsons, a port firm in Oporto, but sold it to Sandeman, a Sherry firm also involved with Port. In 1920 the firm laid down a butt of wine in honour of the birth of a family member, and this became habitual meaning the bodega now has a collection of butts of vintage wine from every year since, now amounting to over 500.

Nowadays the company owns over 450 hectares of vineyard consisting of 2 plots, Las Conchas in the Balbaina, and Dos Mercedes in the Carrascal and they are experimenting with the production of Moscatel and PX. The bodega complex built in 1974 is also interesting, if rather industrial looking. Built by Rumasa for Bodegas Internacionales, it extends to 180,000 square metres (or about 25 acres, making it the biggest winery in Europe, if not beyond) and is constructed from interlocking reinforced concrete modules in the shape of inverted umbrellas. At the entrance is a large pond with two water spouts. Here ducks spend their days sometimes snapping at dragonflies. As is tradition in Jerez, visiting dignitaries are asked to sign a cask, and here you can see casks signed by the Beatles, the King and Queen of Spain, Queen Elizabeth II, Peter O'Toole...The "Sacristy" (where the oldest wines - most dating from foundation or before are kept) is named after Don Guido, or Guy Dingwall Williams who ran the firm till his death in 1959, (an old PX wine is also named after him) and is full of memories and tradition. Here too is a wine museum; it says a lot for the bodega managers over the years that they kept all the old equipment as it was replaced, though there is no shortage of room. 50,000 butts are stored here.

In 1972 the firm was bought by Rumasa and moved to the new modern bodega from their charming old bodegas mostly in the Calle Paul. Much of these remains, but their office building and one bodega (which stored the Pando solera) are now integrated into Hotel Los Jandalos, another bodega is now a museum of nativity scenes and another is a youth club. Rumasa was finally expropriated by the Spanish Government in 1983, as they dismantled its labyrinthine wrongdoings. It was then re-privatised in 1985 from the Patrimonio del Estado and bought by the Riojan entrepreneur Marcos Eguizabal, who sold it on to Luis Paez who were helped by Dutch supermarket chain Royal Ahold and sold to Jose Medina y Cia. in 1995. There were initial problems with the rights to the brand Dry Sack which the Ruiz Mateos family (of Rumasa) had tried to secure, but the Medinas have re-dynamised W&H and it is now one of the leading bodegas again, exporting 90% of the 9 million bottles of Sherry produced.

Jose Medina was established in 1971 by 4 brothers: Jose, Nicolas, Jesus and Angel Medina Cachero who worked in bodegas and wanted their own. Their business grew mainly from exports by means of collaboration agreements with various big buyers. In 1979 Royal Ahold agreed with them a partnership through an associated company, Luis Paez. This and subsequent agreements helped Medina consolidate becoming a leading exporter and they bought out Luis Paez, along with various brands such as Bodegas Internacionales and Gran Duque de Alba brandy. In 1995, with the purchase of W&H, they grouped all their businesses under one umbrella, W&H, and signed long term agreements to supply Ahold and its subsidiaries with Sherry. So now W&H is entirely Andaluz owned!

Since then they have diversified into table wines from other regions of Spain such as Rioja, Ribera del Duero, Rueda, Rias Baixas, and local Palomino table wine (Estero). There is also Rum and a cream liqueur version of the brandy. Then there is Medina del Encinar, their own brand of fine cheeses, Iberico cured pork, and their own distribution company (Sovisur).

What with the scale of the bodegas, there is room for events, and all sorts can be arranged there, for example parties, weddings, conventions etc, there is an equestrian show and a lot more!

Range:

Manzanillas: Manzanilla Alegria, Collection Manzanilla,
Finos: Dry Sack Fino, Collection Fino, Don Zoilo, Fino en Rama Vintage 2006, 2009, 2012... Pando

Amontillados: Collection 12 Years Old, Jalifa VORS 30 years, Vintage 2003,

Blends: Dry Sack, Dry Sack Solera Especial 15 years

Palo Cortado: Dos Cortados VOS 20 years

PX: Don Guido, Collection PX 12 years, PX Cedro

Olorosos: Collection 12 years, Lacave, Vintage 

Sweetened olorosos: Walnut Brown, Canasta Cream,  Collection Cream

Sweetened Amontillado: A Winter's Tale, As You Like It

Also some old Vintage Sherries, mostly Olorosos

{Some old brands: Carlito Dry Amontillado, Cedro Medium Dry, Molino Manzanilla}

Visits

Yes, with advance booking

Contact

Address: Autovia Jerez-Puerto de Santa Maria, Km 641.7

11408 Jerez de la Frontera, Cadiz

Tel: (+34) 956 353 400

Web: www.williams-humbert.com

News from Jerez 25.6.12

A very small harvest is expected this year, possibly the smallest ever. This has led the independent grape growers to ask 33 centimos per kilo, 10% more than last year, and double that of two years ago. The shortage is due to two factors: the reduction of vineyards in production to equalise supply and demand, and the drought suffered this year with 40% less rain than usual. Some bodegas are worried about getting enough raw material to replace stocks.

The growers, who control little more than 20% of the vineyards (some 1,500 hectares of the now reduced total of around 6,400 registered with the Consejo Regulador) now find themselves in a powerful position against the bodegas who may have to compete on price to secure grapes.

After a decade of poor prices which hit a low of 15 centimos per kilo in 2010 - the lowest in Europe - some growers found it cheaper not to bother picking the grapes at all. This year they will have a respite and might even make some money.

The highest grape price was in 2002, the result of a strategic plan put forward by the Junta de Andalucia when a price of 30 centimos was agreed. This backfired though, when the National Competence Commission ruled that this represented a cartel, and the Sherry organisations were fined 500,000 euros. Fedejerez, the bodegas' organisation then let individual bodegas negotiate their own prices.

The notion of "Terroir" and "Noble Wines"

This is very interesting from a viticultural point of view and concerns wines and vineyards from all over the world. Recently the Academie Internationale du Vin (AIV), an august and learned body which counts as members leading winemakers, wine journalists and critics, wine scientists and Masters of Wine, held a symposium in front of invited members of the press on this very subject.

In case you didn't already know, Terroir is a French word (Terruno in Spanish) which enshrines the principle of place in a wine or the environment in which it was made and which gives it its unique character. Different place different wine. Soils can vary in even a small area, so plants will too, so will the wildlife and wild yeasts. Microclimates vary too as does the topography. It is amazing how different two wines made in neighbouring vineyards can be, even when made with the same grapes and methods. The reason is terroir.

So what is a Noble Wine? Well, according to the AIV it is "A natural wine, traditional in concept, from high-quality vineyards which give it an extra dimension of elegance, complexity and personality and perhaps more importantly, capacity to improve over time". France has its Grand Cru and Premier Cru system, Germany its Einzellagen, but does Spain have such terroirs, they asked. Victor de la Serna, a famous Spanish wine journalist, critic, vineyard owner and member of the AIV gave his view. (I have edited out quite a lot which was about other Spanish wine regions, but this is what he said about Sherry - abridged a bit):

Spain has always sold wines either by a brand name or the name of the production region along with the production method (eg Rioja Reserva or Manzanilla La Gitana). Individual terrunos have long been identified, but their produce has traditionally gone into the melting pot with bought-in grapes and so their individual characteristics have been lost. Plenty of good wine, but less personality.

There have always been great terroirs in Spain, which happens to have the greatest amount of calcareous soils, in the world, ideal for wine. There is also a great range of altitudes which often compensate for the southerly latitudes, and, despite much grubbing-up of vines in the 1970s, still some old vines. Another proof of these soils' quality must be the fantastic longevity of Rioja wines. All that needs to be done is to better get to know these terroirs and make more terroir-specific wines instead of blending away their character. The human component is as important as soil and climate in making a Grand Cru.

In the case of Jerez, the great vineyard terroirs have been identified for thousands of years: there is good reason to believe that the great Macharnudo vineyard was already planted 3,000 years ago. A bit before the French Grands Crus!! Roman writer Columela knew all about the quality of the local albariza soil. Different areas of albariza in the Jerez area benefit from the sun's heat, cooling sea breezes, more freshness from altitude, or humid salty breezes depending on proximity to the sea, altitude or exposure. For example the humid salty breezes help the flor, the wines ageing in solera and the finished Manzanilla to develop its unique character in Sanlucar.

Over the last 40 years or so, terroir has largely been forgotten for two reasons: Firstly the long crisis in Sherry sales has seen bodegas close and brought the uprooting of vines to equalise supply and demand, and secondly mechanisation and modernisation, while reducing the price of Sherry, has introduced fermentation in stainless steel and selected yeast. If the region is to be reborn, albeit smaller but with its traditional qualities recuperated, it will be because more bodegas revert to the old ways, only defended still by Valdespino: single vineyard wines, fermentation in butts and natural wild yeast.

How right he is. Sherry, of course has always been a Noble Wine!
Let's drink a toast to Sherry with a glass of Valdespino!!

News from Jerez 23.6.12

Department of Employment approval appears to be imminent for the agreement between the workforce and the administrators of Bodegas Valdivia to terminate 10 out of 12 employment contracts. According to sources  who know, this is a likely prelude to liquidation, a fate also faced by Garvey's 2 main bodegas: Complejo Bodeguero Bellavista and Zoilo Ruiz Mateos, bought from Nueva Rumasa by Back in Business. The workforce have reluctantly agreed mainly because they have faith that Valdivia will be bought by another firm. Three are said to be interested, including an american multinational who would retain the workers.

Moving on. According to the latest report from Rutas del Vino de Espana (Spanish touristic wine routes) which covers 2011, the Jerez area is the most visited with a total of 480,767 visitors. The Rutas del Vino comprise 21 routes and 546 bodegas, and are to be thoroughly recommended.

News from Jerez 22.6.12

More trouble for the Ruiz Mateos family. Their ex lawyer and also the Guardia Civil have linked them with illegal payments to ex trade union leader Juan Lanzas for securing EREs for 5 Nueva Rumasa companies, 3 in Jerez. EREs (Expedientes de Regulacion de Empleo) are legal proceedings by which a company in difficulty can legally dismiss staff, who will get certain worker rights. It appears that Lanzas was receiving regular "dirty money" cash payments of 20-25,000 euros, all in 500 euro notes, in exchange for abusing his position along with a high ranking civil servant in the Junta de Andalucia. The latter is believed to be married to one of Ruiz Mateos' daughters.

Interestingly, the ex president of the Consejo Regulador of Jerez, Antonio Fernandez had to resign for irregularities with EREs.

Better news:
A festival of flamenco called La Luna de San Juan-Lustau will take place in 4 of Jerez' most traditional squares on the night of San Juan. It is co-sponsored by Bodegas Emilio Lustau. The strains of the cante jondo (the deep song) will ring out from 10.00pm. Go if you can!

News from Jerez 17.6.12

Jerez's annual Fiesta de la Vendimia (Harvest Festival) will take place from the 11 -16 September. The festivities start with the Fiesta de la Buleria (a Flamenco Festival) on the 8th, and on the 11th the symbolic treading of the grapes at the Cathedral. Many other events follow such as tastings and a gastronomic fair from the 12th - 16th - which was so successful last year it is now extended to 5 days. There is also a programme of sport, equestrianism, exhibitions, special bodega visits, and more still to be arranged. The Mayoress, Maria Jose Garcia Pelayo noted that last year's event was as good as usual despite a saving in costs of 60% due to the crisis, and hopes that this year more private business would be involved in this magnificent opportunity to promote Jerez and all it stands for. This is well worth attending.

 Meanwhile in Madrid, the Tio pepe sign has now been offered accommodation on various buildings in the Puerta del Sol, and negotiations are ongoing. They have full local and regional government support, and in only a week the online supporters have received 26,000 signatures. The Puerta del Sol was yesterday the scene of a demonstration by the "national association of supporters of Tio Pepe forever in Puerta del Sol" which was slightly marred by scuffles with francoist opponents.

News from Jerez 11.6.12

Two items today:

Firstly, the mayor of Jerez, Maria Jose Garcia Pelayo has announced that the council will shortly approve a resolution to name a section of the N-IV Cadiz-Madrid road after Tio Pepe. It will be called Avenida Tio Pepe in recognition of the brand's promotion of Sherry, its sponsorship of the annual Horse Fair and its attraction to Jerez of so many visitors. Gonzalez Byass is Europe's most visited winery.

Secondly, after the embarrassment of the last president of the Consejo Regulador being imprisoned (albeit not for anything related to Sherry), the need for a new president is becoming urgent. This person will ideally be suitable to all parties of the Consejo: the bodegas, the grape growers and the cooperatives. The successful candidate should have the following qualities: be respectable, acceptable to all parties, have plenty of local experience, know how to represent all interests, have a sound commercial understanding, speak at least one foreign language (as 75% of Sherry is exported), have skills in dealing with both local and national government and manage to achieve the best consensus. The director, Cesar Saldana has done a good job as acting president, but the position needs to be filled soon.

Tio Pepe Fino en Rama 15%, Bodegas Gonzalez Byass

Appearance
Rather deeper colour than normal Tio Pepe, mid strawy gold, and not as bright (due to lack of fining and filtration, legs.
Nose
Has a certain intensity and depth, less "punzante" (sharp in attack) than normal Tio Pepe and more complex. Quite broad with very slightly floral notes eg camomile, perhaps less saline, but no lack of Flor. Beautiful.
Palate
Quite full with a gentle tang despite low acidity, very dry and full flavoured, quite savoury - almost to the point of trace yeast autolysis, hints of membrillo (quince) and palomino fruit with slightest hint of oxidation. Flavour lingers on the palate leaving a dry sensation - and the strong desire for another glass!
Comments
This 3rd edition of Tio Pepe en Rama, drawn in Spring when the Flor is thickest, commemorates the 200th anniversary of the birth of the founder Manuel Maria Gonzalez Angel. It comes from a selection of butts from the 4 oldest fino soleras known as "the casks of great aroma", the best of which Manuel Maria used to mark with a chalk star. The wine is sold as it once used to be: direct from the cask without fining nor filtration. (Though these operations provide better stability, they do remove some of the wine's subtlety and intensity). En Rama wines should be enjoyed within about 3 months of bottling, so don't waste a minute in obtaining yours!

I tasted the normal Tio Pepe alongside the En Rama, and they are like chalk and cheese. Normal TP has very little flavour or subtlety after the En Rama, yet is lovely beforehand, so one can see how much is lost in fining and filtration. Also the En Rama was from a specially selected limited range of casks, as opposed to hundreds. It just shows how good Sherry must have been before technology took over.
Price About £15-16 - And worth every penny!

Tio Pepe Fino 15%, Bodegas Gonzalez Byass

Appearance
Fairly pale, bright, strawy gold, legs.
Nose
Noticeable Flor, very fresh with slight salinity, hints of straw, dried flowers and light Palomino fruit.
Palate
Very dry, quite low acidity yet slightly tangy with just a trace of bitterness from the Flor, very clean with good length, and certainly stimulates the appetite. Unashamedly dry, for real Fino aficionados.
Comments
A classic. No nonsense, ultra refreshing and wonderful with tapas. The world's biggest selling Fino, not surprisingly, and very good despite the scale of its production. It came from an original solera laid down in 1849 with three criaderas and a solera but which has grown to 22 soleras containing some 21,750 butts housed on two floors of Jerez's only three storey bodega and various other bodegas too - there are eight in Las Copas. The wine therefore has to be a blend from the various soleras. So there's plenty of scope for wine for the Tio Pepe en Rama, and indeed the Una and Dos Palmas.

Manuel Maria Gonzalez Angel, the founder, named the wine after his uncle (Sp: tio) Jose (pet name Pepe) Angel y Vargas, who encouraged him to make Fino. Uncle Jose often visited and advised his nephew and had a key to the bodega, and being from Sanlucar, he expected Manuel to have some Manzanilla for him. Manuel did this and this Manzanilla formed the basis of the Tio Pepe solera.

Price: £9-10  Available everywhere.

The Rumasa Saga: part 2

Jose Maria Ruiz Mateos was an entrepreneur to his fingertips, and he started up all over again in 1990 using funds he had managed to keep from the taxman. Nueva Rumasa, however, was a group of companies and not a holding company as had been Rumasa, and he issued millions of shares, promising returns of 8%.  He began buying up companies in a variety of sectors including construction, a football team, property, food companies, and of course bodegas.

He bought Garvey for a second time in 1997, Jose de Soto (which was now owned by Garvey), Valdivia, Zoilo Ruiz Mateos (again) and CAYDSA, an old firm in Sanlucar whose name was changed to Teresa Rivero after his wife, and non Sherry bodegas Cavas Hill in Penedes, Marques de Olivara in Toro and Campo Nuble in Ribera del Duero. In 2004 Ruiz Mateos was diagnosed with Parkinsons and gradually delegated management of the group to his six sons - though he was pulling strings in the background - but they proceeded to run it corruptly and irresponsibly. In 2005 Jose Maria was jailed for 3 years for concealment of assets.

By 2010 ten of the biggest of the group´s companies (out of around 100) were declared bankrupt with debts totalling 700 million euros owed to investors - many of whom would lose their life savings - and the tax man. Four of the group´s own executives raised a court action alleging fraud, so Jose Maria and his sons found themselves back in court.

In September 2011 a company called Back in Business owned by a valenciano Angel de Cabo and which specialises in buying up and restructuring ailing firms bought Nueva Rumasa for 1.5 billion euros in a "very complex process". The details of the deal were not released but a promise was made to meet all commitments to shareholders and the workforce. There may be interest from competitors in buying component companies which might offer hope to the approximately 9,000 workers, and indeed some of the food companies have already been sold.

It now seems that the courts are highly suspicious of Back in Business, and suspect that the "complex process" was an exercise in obfuscation of dodgy dealings. Certainly all six sons are in jail having been convicted of fraud, money laundering, concealment of assets and non payment of tax. Jose Maria died in September 2015

News from Jerez 1.6.12

Things are not happy in Jerez. The town council has run out of money, and health workers as well as public workers have taken to the streets to protest about more than a year of cuts, delayed pay and the threat of redundancies. Even the annual Feria has been scaled back.

The fantasticVinoble international sweet and fortified wine fair which takes place every two years in the Alcazar has been cancelled due to lack of council funds.

The Consejo Regulador of Jerez is looking for a new president as a result of the resignation of Antonio Fernandez, and is hoping to appoint somebody by the end of June. Sr Fernandez, in his other role as a minister of employment in the Junta de Andalucia, has been charged with certain falsifications and is in custody after bail was refused.

All this, and the woes of Nueva Rumasa and the potential redundancies....me hace llorar!

News from Jerez 12.5.12

Four ex-executives of Nueva Rumasa have blown the whistle on the company, accusing it of massive levels of fraud and implicating its owners, the Ruiz Mateos family. Its debt to the tax man has grown to 290 million euros since 2006 and comprises unpaid corporation tax and VAT. The ex-executives are offering to appear as witnesses at the inevitable trial.

Nueva Rumasa, and particularly its owners are no strangers to scandal, especially of the false and imaginative accounting type. The company is in serious trouble, with some of its subsidiaries virtually bankrupt. It looks very much as if Nueva Rumasa will go the way its predecessor, Rumasa did in the 1980's. Watch out for some colourful events!