Eating Well in Sanlúcar

Its location largely dictates the kind of food on offer in Sanlúcar: lying on the shore of the Guadalquivir Estuary and close to the Atlantic, seafood is what it does best, and Manzanilla is naturally what accompanies it best. The town is noted for the quality of its potatoes and the langostinos even have a Denominación de Origen, and there is an incredible variety of fine seafood landed at the quayside of Bonanza, just a little upstream from Sanlúcar. Not only is the quality of the raw material excellent but also that of the cuisine, and many good restaurants can be found along the beach in the Bajo de Guía area from where one can contemplate the Coto Doñana and centuries of history. The general standard is very high and the following are just some of the best places to eat.

El Mirador de Doñana, Avenida Bajo de Guía, 0

Traditional Sanluqueño cuisine made from local produce freshly sourced every day. The philosophy is respect for the produce and its pairing with the local wine.

Restaurante Poma, Avenida Pórtico de Bajo de Guía, 6

There are three dining areas and the  walls are decorated with all sorts of objects connected with the sea while the cuisine specialises mainly in seafood and shellfish stews.

Casa Bigote, Avenida Pórtico de Bajo de Guía, 10

One of the oldest and most famous, established in 1951. There is a tapas bar and a proper restaurant with just about everything one can imagine from the sea and beautifully cooked.

Restaurante Avante Claro, Avenida Pórtico de Bajo de Guía, 4

Traditional Andalusian seafood cuisine with a few modern touches including vegetarian options. Bar and restaurant inside with a terrace facing the estuary.

Gastrobar-Restaurante El Espejo, Calle Caballeros, 11

Located in an XVIII century mansion with a beautiful patio opposite the Orléans-Borbón palace. Chef José Luis Fernández´menu is less seafood dominated with plenty of organic vegetables and meat too, and the wine list is excellent.

Taberna Argüeso, Calle Mar, 2

An adjunct to the Argüeso bodegas offering a fusion of traditional and vanguard with classic local seafood dishes, retinto beef, almadraba tuna, ceviche and sushi.

Casa Balbino, Plaza del Cabildo, 14

Situated at no. 30 in the 100 best European “Gourmet Casual” restaurants section of Opinionated About Dining and famed for its tortillitas de camarón, it also offeres classic Sanluqueño fish, shellfish and seafood stews.

Barbiana, Calle Ancha, 2

Naturally the excellent Manzanilla Barbiana is served here, along with classic local tapas such as papas aliñás con melva, ensaladilla de langostinos, calamares rellenos and galeras cocidas.

Taberna der Guerrita, corner Calle San Salvador and Calle Rubiños

This is both a friendly local bar and a temple to Sanlúcar wine with an enormous range and even a shop. The food is great too with all sorts of local seafood, pork, duck and beef.

Chiringuito Alfonsito, Callejón de Guía,45

A chiringuito is a beach restaurant and here fish is grilled or cooked on skewers stuck into sand in a little old boat. They offer rice with lobster, sardines, and all kinds of seafood.

Casa Perico, Salvador Gallardo, 27

This is a classic Sanlúcar bar, tapas bar and restaurant serving all kinds of well cooked traditional seafood generously and unpretentiously and at a reasonable price.

Weisshorn, Calle Sevilla, 30

Named after a rice ship which sank in the estuary, this is an amazing place. The restaurant specialises in the arabic cuisine of old Andalucía and offers vegetarian options, while they also have a distillery making gin and vodka and even an adjacent electric guitar maker.

Bodegas La Cigarrera, Plaza Madre de Dios

Imagine dining in a bodega! The atmosphere of this XVIII century bodega with its patio is lovely and the food is classic traditional Sanlúcar fare. They will even cook fish you bring with you for a modest price.

Lantero, Calle Ancha, 51
This is more of a modern wine bar with a good wine list and offers ibérico pork and quality beef as well as seafood dishes. They also offer a wide range of tapas.

 

Manzanilla 15%, Covisan

Appearance
Bright pale golden straw with golden highlights.
Nose

Fresh and attractive with lots of gentle strawy grassy herbiness and a note of camomile - even a faint trace of lemon peel - up front followed by some sourdough then some salty olive brine. This is not a particularly old wine, and while there are some light flor notes they are not especially pronounced.

Palate

Broadly similar on the palate and there is a certain zestiness helped by a yeasty saline minerality. The faintest oxidative note is there, giving a very gentle savoury character, and there is a certain flor bitterness. There can be no doubt that this comes from coastal vineyards.

Comments

This wine, which has a lot of character for the money, comes from the well-equipped Cooperativa del Campo Vitivinicola Sanluqueña or Covisan, which is next door to La Guita's installations at the Pago de Sanlúcar Viejo in the Barrio Alto. The cooperative, which was established in 1968, supplies some of La Guita's grape requirements, and of its own production, over 80% is Manzanilla. Most of this is sold on draught to people bringing their own containers, but they also bottle some.

Price
2 euros per half bottle ex bodega

Francisco Yuste: Manzanilla Needs to be Better Known Outside Spain

This interesting interview with Francisco Yuste by M Gutiérrez appeared in Wednesday’s Diario de Jerez. 

Where and when did the story of Bodegas Francisco Yuste begin?

I have always been attracted to the world of bodegas since I started working as a very young man with my father. My dream was to one day live in a bodega and I have been lucky enough over the years to be able to realise that dream. My passion for Sanlúcar and Manzanilla drove me to buy up wines from bodegas which were sadly disappearing and to recuperate the bodega buildings which were and still are Sanlúcar’s heritage. What began as a hobby is now a business for which I have high hopes; our wines have a great future.

Francisco Yuste with his beloved La Kika (foto:Fito carreto)

When did you start adding bodegas to your business portfolio?

Since I bought the first bodega in Sanlúcar in 1989 I haven’t stopped investing in recuperating the town’s bodega heritage, both in wine and in bodegas. The first was the bodega Santa Ana in the Barrio Bajo of Sanlúcar, where I now live with my family, after a refurbishment which took over two years. After that I bought the bodega Los Ángeles in the Barrio Alto and the bodega Miraflores which is close to the Pago which gives it its name. These bodegas are all dedicated to the production of Manzanilla. In Miraflores we also have a brandy bodega where we keep the treasures produced by the lost bodega Pedro Romero, Punto Azul Prestige and Heritage as well as the soleras of Pedro I and the Ponche and solera rum.

In the bodega Los Ángeles we nurture some of the oldest wines in the world; the soleras of the Conde de Aldama which date back to 1740, and in my house, the Bodega Santa Ana, we nurture one of the Manzanillas with the longest ageing under flor in Sanlúcar; Manzanilla La Kika, named in homage to my mother, and which has consistently been winning awards since its launch.

It is not all bodegas though; 20 years ago I bought the Viña Alamedilla, 46 hectares of vineyard in the Pago Carrascal near Jerez which I look after like a garden. The last important investment was the purchase of the historic Bodegas Herederos de Argüeso in 2016, with soleras like Manzanilla La E, probably the Manzanilla most widely consumed in Sanlúcar and which for the moment is only available on draught. And of course the iconic Manzanilla San León, which won the Manzanilla Trophy at the International Wine Challenge.

Which would you say is your star product, the one most popular with the public?

The star product is Manzanilla. It is a genuine Sanlúcar product and there are very few bodegas which manage to produce this wine under constant flor all year round. If I had to choose between our Manzanillas Señorita Irene, Aurora or La Kika, I would choose all three, but the wine which is the greatest treasure of those I have rescued over the years is the Amontillado Conde de Aldama, voted best Amontillado Sherry in 2017 and of great pride to us for its Sanlúcar origins. It is a wine averaging over a century of age and represents the maximum such a wine can achieve, and well worth tasting at least once in one’s life. Many people come and visit the bodega from all over the world, attracted by its perfume. There is definitely a before and after when tasting this wine which is derived from Manzanilla.

Which are the most important markets for Manzanilla in the world?

Europe, the United States and Japan are our principal customers, however we have a long way to go with exports. In Spain, sales of Manzanilla alone exceed all the styles produced in Jerez, but this national trend is not reflected in the export markets.

Manzanilla, which has had its own Denominación de Origen for over 50 years, needs specific promotion so that more people outside Spain get to know it, but it is the Consejo Regulador in Jerez which decides on promotional funding. Personally I can’t remember a single promotional campaign abroad specific to Manzanilla, and as we all know, if it is not promoted it just doesn’t exist.

Despite all this, Manzanilla sales continue to grow year on year even though Sherry sales are declining, and this is due to the enormous quality of the wines of Sanlúcar, where biological ageing began.

19.9.17 New Manzanilla Committee

The Red Room of the town council building in Sanlúcar today hosted a meeting of all the 40 bodegas which produce and sell Manzanilla at the behest of Víctor Vélez, director general of Bodegas Barbadillo, who feels that Manzanilla needs better representation at the Consejo Regulador. The idea is to create a “Mesa de la Manzanilla” or Manzanilla Committee to defend the Manzanilla Denominación de Origen, though its definitive constitution will need the approval of the Consejo which governs both DO Jerez and DO Manzanilla. Víctor Vélez is the only representative of the Manzanilleros at the Consejo.

The plan is to create a trade forum which can unite to debate Manzanilla matters and which would include a representative of the Consejo. According to Vélez “there are many bodegas, some of them quite important ones in Sanlúcar, which are not represented at the Consejo as they are neither members of Fedejerez nor the association established by Barbadillo and Delgado Zuleta”. Despite accounting for 21% of total sales of Sherry, Manzanilla has just the one representative at the Consejo. “We want these bodegas to be able to collaborate and express their views at a forum of debate and I will take into account any decisions or proposals they make at the Consejo”. We want the bodegas which are not represented to feel that at least they are being listened to.

Vélez pointed out that while sales of Sherry and Manzanilla had fallen from 70 million litres in 2001 to 33 million today, Manzanilla had suffered a bit less, remaining reasonably stable with slight growth, but the market is very competitive and international sales still need to be increased. Currently 64% of Sherry sales go for export yet barely 8% of Manzanilla sales go abroad. There are many challenges which face the new Manzanilla Committee, the main ones being communication, export and promotion of Manzanilla.

The Committee will consist of seven people, representing Barbadillo, Delgado Zuleta, Grupo Estévez, one of the cooperatives, a bodega not necessarily based in Sanlúcar but which markets Manzanilla and two delegates from the Professional Association of Artisan Bodegas of Sanlúcar. Meetings will be held monthly before the plenary at the Consejo.

Recent Adventures in Sanlúcar

Just to give you an idea of how wonderful the people of Sanlúcar are, here’s what happened at the weekend. I had booked to attend iNNoble, an unmissable event full of small wine producers, and the Día de la Manzanilla in general. After hours trying to find accommodation I finally secured it at Hotel Barrameda, only to arrive and find I’d stupidly booked for July, not June. Marta, the receptionist, was extremely kind and phoned all the hotels, pensions etc. on my behalf, but without success. At least I have a room booked for July.

So I decided to go to Taberna er Guerrita (above) and consider what to do over a glass or two of their excellent Manzanilla. Having succumbed to the temptation of Armando’s little shop, I got talking to some local chaps and my predicament soon came out. After buying me another drink, Juan said not to worry, he knew of a chap who was installing a few rooms in his delightful bodega/bar, and in no time we were in his car en route to La Herrería (below) in the Barrio Alto. 

The owner, the charming Félix, did indeed have a room which, though not 100% complete, was more than good enough, especially at the price, and what’s more he could offer food and drink, even parking. He showed me a great bar called Ke Arte with lots of live flamenco, so I spent some time there and ended up going for a paseo with some of its customers! Back at Félix' bar we got talking and I mentioned I should really move to Sherryland instead of endless driving, hotels and speeding tickets. Then he introduced me to a man in the property business who might well have something suitable. A few drinks later and we’d arranged to meet up.

Fernando Angulo

Next day was iNNoble at the Posada del Palacio which was fantastic (see separate post), and after the morning session and an excellent lunch with Borja of the Tienda del Jerez and his wife, I returned to my room for a siesta. At around 6.30 I was awoken by my name being shouted from the patio. I rushed downstairs to find Fernando Angulo of Viticultores Alba waiting with a sample already poured. And what a sample – completely hand-made sparkling Palomino which was his best yet.

Amusing signs like this were everywhere at iNNoble

We hopped into Fernando’s car which took us to the second session of iNNoble, not slowly, but there was no time to waste. As we arrived we noticed the sky was a very odd colour and we speculated about everything from a storm to the end of the world. It was only later, over a drink with Borja that we noticed ash falling from the sky, and it turned out to be from a very serious forest fire in Huelva – some 70 kilometres away – but it was threatening the Coto Doñana. It destroyed 10,000 hectares in the end, but thankfully Doñana was saved.

Then there was a tasting of, you guessed it, Manzanilla, in the Plaza del Cabildo led by none other than Antonio Barbadillo, which was well attended and great fun. As the benefits of the siesta wore off I repaired to nearby Barbiana for a nightcap and some Ibérico ham before tackling the steep Cuesta de Belén back to the Barrio Alto, and an extremely sound sleep.

Monday morning, began with a visit to Covisan, one of the wine cooperatives where the capataz himself showed me round the bodegas. Unlike some bodegas they actually make the wine here using impressive modern equipment; a sea of stainless steel tanks, presses and filtration plant. They also have an ageing bodega with huge soleras mostly for Manzanilla, but also Amontillado Oloroso and PX. The coop supplies wine to many bodegas as well as having its own brands. We had a great conversation about BIB, the Consejo, the coming harvest and many other matters. Viva Sanlúcar!

Manzanilla 15%, Sánchez Romate

Appearance

Pale strawy gold, light legs.

Nose

Lots of salinity and a real maritime air, this could only come from Sanlúcar. While it still shows some signs of youth, that slight fruitiness balances nicely with a hint of flor bitterness and wild herbs giving the wine a bit of character.

Palate

Light in feel but plenty of up front flor rather than acidity, though there is a touch, and a trace of that Manzanilla wildness, clean, dry and salty with a decent clean finish.

Comments

Sánchez Romate offer two Manzanillas, the up-market one, Viva la Pepa, and this more everyday yet very good version, aged for over three years. Being based in Jerez, Romate buy the wine in from an almacenista in Sanlúcar, as is the practice.

Price
5.00 euros from Licores Corredera

21.4.16 A Very Thirsty Feria de Sevilla

The Feria de Abril in Sevilla consumed record amounts of Manzanilla this year, with Barbadillo alone selling 440,000 half bottles of Muy Fina and Solear, an increase over last year of 13%. For their part, La Guita reports the sale of 680,000 half bottles, also a decent increase. The wines of both bodegas were available in 600 of the slightly more than 1,000 casetas.

The products of many other bodegas were also available, though not in such quantities, with Manzanilla being the preferred drink of the Feria, and there was no shortage of advertising and promotion of it. Probably some 1.5 million half bottles were sold in total, meaning each caseta got through roughly 1,500 half bottles in a week - quite a lot of this in the form of the “rebujito”, Sherry mixed with 7 Up or Sprite. That is some going, but at least Sherry is good for you.

Typical Feria scene (foto:sevillaabc.es)

Fino will soon get its turn however, being the preferred wine at the forthcoming Ferias of Jerez, El Puerto and Rota. Then it will be the pilgrimage of El Rocio, another Manzanilla event. All the while, Sherry in general has been setting Valencia on fire, which will hopefully generate a further increase in sales.

6.1.16 Manzanilla Rebels Publish Manifesto

The Professional Association of Artisan Bodegas of Sanlúcar has produced a manifesto “in defence of Manzanilla and the wine producing traditions of Sanlúcar” in which they demand “greater power of decision making” for the Manzanilla DO within the Consejo Regulador, and “respect for its traditions looking toward the future” which would imply the protection of the open sale of BIB wine.

In a note, the Association which was recently constituted to promote, preserve, improve and defend the wine producers of Sanlúcar, calls on the support of citizens in the face of a “situation of continual defencelessness against the persecution and harassment they have been suffering in recent months.” The objective is “to permit the sale of BIB wines as the principal means of supply to despachos (shops selling draft wine) bars, restaurants and tabancos.”

They are also seeking from the Junta, the body which regulates and oversees the Consejo, “legislation which provides the DO Manzanilla with the equality they should have with DO Jerez at the Consejo,” even, if that could be achieved, “the creation of an independent Manzanilla committee where those with no interest in Sanlúcar would no longer have control in decision making.”

Typical BIBs (foto:diariodejerez)

To spread awareness among the citizens of the “gravity” the elimination of BIB wines by Fedejerez, a body which comprises mainly Jerez bodegas, would have, they will initiate a campaign collecting signatures of support for their manifesto. It declares that the wine producers of Sanlúcar form an “integral part of the Marco de Jerez and are the only people responsible for the production of Manzanilla,” and that they have been “losing bodegas and vineyard at an unsustainable rate over the last 30 years.”

The “politics of resistance to change” which “cling to the prestige of the past without recognising the complications of the present and resist looking to the future” bring, in their opinion, “an ever more obvious concentration in the wine producing sector, and with it the loss of producers and of jobs.” They say that the bodegas of Sanlúcar, “always watchful of the quality” of the product and “never forgetting our roots and traditions” must adapt to the demand of the markets, both at home and abroad. They point out that the Fedejerez proposal of “banning BIB” would bring with it “the disappearance of a deeply rooted and traditional means of selling wine in the city of Manzanilla.”

Therefore they ask that the proposals of the bodegas in the DO Manzanilla be “heard, listened to and respected” in their own Consejo Regulador.

25.11.15 Consejo Urges Junta to Act

After a plenary meeting yesterday the Consejo issued a statement approved by a large majority in which it categorically rejects accusations of harassment and discriminatory treatment which certain bodegas in Sanlúcar have accused it of in the press. The statement “deeply regrets the deliberately disobedient attitude towards the regulations and the media misinformation they are emitting with declarations which are not only totally false but which also gravely damage the image of our DO.” The Consejo reiterated “the need for all producers who form a part of our DO to respect the rules as any infractions known to the Consejo will continue to be pursued and prosecuted in fulfilment of its legal function.

A note released at the end of the meeting the Consejo “urges the Junta de Andalucía to urgently exercise its legal powers in defence of the DO and insist on compliance with the law, prosecuting infractors and thus putting an end to this lamentable situation of judicial insecurity.” The BIB conflict took up most of the last plenary of the year and there was no lack of tension resulting from not only the open confrontation of the rebels with their decisions to use a prohibited container and to use it to sell Manzanilla, but also the initiation of prosecutions by the Junta, but whose lack of pronouncement on the roots of the issue is only further stoking things up.

Argüeso Manzanilla La "E" is only available in bulk

The Consejo tried yesterday but without success to get some kind of explanation from the Junta vice president of the judicial insecurity caused by the BIB used illegally by Sanlúcar bodegas, who claim to have its support. Evaristo Babé, president of Fedejerez referred at the end of the meeting to the text of the statement and said he had confidence in the Junta’s decision.

At the meeting a professor of applied economics considered expert in such matters had been commissioned to give his opinion which was that use of BIB exclusively in the catering trade cannot be considered “direct consumption” as the rebels interpret the regulations. The rebels say that the catering trade acts as an intermediary between the bodega and the consumer and that is not direct consumption - which would require glass containers. The expert agreed with the Consejo and Fedejerez that direct consumption is the opposite of indirect consumption in which the product might be used in cooking for example.

26.10.15 Junta Declares Bag in Box Illegal

Bodegas in Sanlúcar which continue to sell de-classified Manzanilla in BIB will be prosecuted by the Junta, which has noted that the sale of these products without a Denominación de Origen (DO) is illegal and has already been denounced by Fedejerez and the Consejo Regulador. At the last full meeting of the Consejo BIB was again refused authorisation. Now the Junta’s technical and legal people from the Agriculture Department have taken samples from the bodegas reported to it. They say there is clear infringement of the rules in terms of labelling and offenders could be fined between 3,000 and 50,000 euros depending on the seriousness of the offence.

BIBs for sale in a bar (foto:diariodejerez)

The Junta has already informed offenders that proceedings have begun and they have 15 days to answer the allegations and a period of 10 months for a resolution. Two types of offence have been detected: those which infringe the DO by the use of protected terms such as “fina” or “en rama” or protected imagery such as the harvest or rows of barrels which allude to Sherry, and those which infringe law 2/2011 with respect to the quality of agro-alimentary goods.

In the latter case the rules state that biologically aged wines with an alcoholic strength of 15% can only be sold under the umbrella of the authorised DOs of Sherry, Montilla and Condado de Huelva. By choosing to de-classify their wine to sell it in BIB producers are not covered by the DO and lose the right to sell it as wine. At the last Consejo meeting Fedejerez lamented the time it was taking for the Junta to act on its complaints against the Manzanilla producers.

Bodegas: Viña La Callejuela

After working in the Sherry vineyards for 20 years as his father had done, Francisco Blanco Martínez, fondly known as “El Blanquito” set himself up in a small artisan bodega in the barrio alto of Sanlúcar in 1980 to sell wine to the bodegas. During the next decade he gradually bought various parcels of vineyard in El Hornillo, Macharnudo, Añina, Las Mercedes, La Callejuela and La Casilla among others totalling over 28 hectares. In 1997 with his two sons Pepe and Paco already working with him, Francisco moved the firm to the elevated ground of the pago El Hornillo on the eastern outskirts of Sanlúcar, where they built two bodegas now containing 700 butts with pressing, ageing and bottling facilities among the vines.

They had only been selling in bulk till they decided to create their own brand “Callejuela” which was first bottled in 2005. Since then they have created a range of wines under that label, though 40-50% is still sold in bulk. The vines, all planted in albariza, were only Palomino until 2015 when they planted some Tintilla and, to ensure that all the wine in their range comes from their own vineyards, some Pedro Ximénez. They are also experimenting with some almost extinct vine varieties. Above all they believe in the vineyard, the vine and the land as being the key to a good wine and many of the wines are from single vineyards. This strictly family bodega is ably assisted in winemaking by the outstanding oenologist Ramiro Ibáñez. It is a marriage made in heaven: a combination of a gifted and imaginitive oenologist and highly skilled growers with interesting vineyards and open minds. They are all becoming real celebrities and deservedly so.

The range consists of:
Manzanilla:

Manzanilla Fina Callejuela, Manzanilla Madura Callejuela and the Manzanilla de Añada which was produced from 11 exceptional butts from the 2012 vintage, one of which is bottled and released each year, so there are very few bottles available and there is a lengthy waiting list for this limited quantity which is a year older and more complex with every annual release. Then there is the Manzanilla Pasada Blanquito and the new range of 3 single vineyard vintage Manzanillas.

Others: 
Amontillado, Oloroso, Cream, PX

Older Wines: Oloroso El Cerro, Palo Cortado Quinario, Amontillado La Casilla. There is only one small annual saca for these.

Table Wines:

They make fine and interesting table wine in each of their vineyards by exactly the same method so the only difference is the vineyard itself: La Choza (Macharnudo), Las Mercedes (Añina), Hacienda Doña Francisca (Callejuela) and Blanco de Hornillos (Hornillos)

Address: Camino del Reventón Chico, 27 Sanlúcar de Barrameda, Cádiz

Telephone: (+34) 617 492 483/607 837 354

Website: www.callejuela.es

Visits? Yes, by appointment