1
Q
Location
A
- Andalucia
- southermost spain
2
Q
Climate
A
- warm mediteranean climate with high levels of sunshine
- rainfall is high when compared to most of spain. mostly falls in the autumn and winter
- two winds play an important role here, levante (hot) and poniente (cooling)
- the easterly wind blow dries and vacuum cooks the grapes on their stalks during the critical ripening stage
- results in a dramatically different metabolization fo fruit sugars, acids and aldehyds which produces a wine with an unusual balance peculiar to Jerez
- The poniente wind allows the growth of several saccharomyces strains in the microflora of the palomino grape. the is the flor which without thre would be no fino sherry
3
Q
Soils
A
- Albariza (limestone - deep and lime rich. white color also refelcts sun on to the lower parts of the vines)
- Baros (clay - produce second rate sherries)
- Arenas (sand - produce second rate sherries)
- Almost all vineyards planted on albariza
- great water retention but high risk of chlorosis
4
Q
Vineyard
A
- soils are ridged in teh winter to maximize the capture of water
- classic pruning method is Vara y Pulgar (single guyot) within limited training
- there is a push towards more of a modern wire trellising as this facilitates mechanical harvesting although most of the crop is hand harvested
- some level of canopy shade is important to protect the fruit from sunburn
5
Q
Grapes
A
- Palomino
- Muscat of Alexandria (Moscatel)
- Pedro Ximenez
6
Q
Vinification
A
- Harvest (tradition has picking the first week of september. Palomino grapes were left in the sun for 12-24 hours, PX and Moscatel for 10-21 days. Older vines were picked before younger ones and PX and Moscatel were picked first all because they required longer sunning. At night the grapes were corvered with grass mats as a protections against dew. Sunning is called soleo and primary purpose was to increase sugar content while reducing malic acid and tannin. Some producers now harvest the second week of sept. and forgo soleo for all grapes but PX and Moscatel. Grapes left in the sun for far fewer days than 10-21)
- Yeso (small portion of gypsum is added to precipitate tartrate crystals. process is of drying out. noticed this partually because of the albariza dust which has a high calsium carbonate content that would do the same task)
- Pressing (4 laborers were placed in a lagare to tread the grapes with boots containing nails. Each person tramped 36 miles on the spot during a typical session from midnight to noon. Now automatic horizontal, pneumatic presses are common)
- Fermentation (some ferment is small oak casks filled only to 90%. After 12 hours the fermentation starts and contineuses between 36-50 hours at 77-86. 99% of sugars are converted at this point. after 40-50 days, process is complete. Current methods use stainless steel and yield wines that are 1% higher in alc than those in cask due to the absence of evaporation and absorption.)
- Flor
- Cask Classification and fermentation (cellarmaster will sniff each cask and mark w/ chalk a note on how each cask is progressing. lower grade wines (little to no flor) are fortified to 18% to kill any flor thus determining the character from there on out. while flor protects the wine it is not invincible and will be at risk until it’s fortified to 15.3% which is the norm for fino and not truly safe until bottled. a 50/50 mixture of pure alcohol and grape juice is used however some use mature sherry for fortification instead of grape juice)
- Further cask classification ( wines often racked prior to fortification and always after. 2 weeks later, they undergo a second more precise classification. no further fortification or action will take place until 9 months have elapsed after which they will be classified regularly over a period of two years after which the final style is determined
7
Q
Vinos Generosos
A
- generous wines defined by CR as dry wines (max 5g/l) produced from the total fermentation of must, isially palomino grapes, at the end of which process, flor appears on teh surface of the base wine
- decision to fortify the base wine to either 15 or 17% determines the type of ageing whichteh wine will later undergo
5 types are:
- fino
- amontillado
- manzanilla
- oloroso
- palo cortado
8
Q
Fino
A
- one of two types of wine made naturally in a sherry bodega
- also a style of sherry, filtering and bottling a fino, the palest, lightest, driest apart from Manzanilla
- product of the fino type of sherry preserved and influenced by the film formin yeast flo
- may be made in any of the 3 sherry towns althought Fino De Jerez is the most common
- those made in Puerto de Santa Maria are called Porto Fino
- most Fino sold in splain has an alc. strength of about 15.5% and it bone dry
9
Q
Amontillado
A
- a fino sherry becomes an amontillado when the flo dies and the wine is exposed to oxygen
- happens automatucally if a find type of sherry is fortified to 16% since flor cannot work in taht high of an alc
- wine turns amber and tastes richer / nuttier
- it’s truly aged Fino
- cheaper amontillado’s are created artificcially by blending and usually sweetened
- tend to be medium
10
Q
Palo Cortado
A
- traditional and fully natural style of sherry based on a fluke of nature
- wine pre-selected for fino or amontillado
- these delicate wines never develop flor and end up ageing in oloroso fashion
- wines and an intermediate style, elegance of an amontillado with the power and the body of the oloroso
- rarest category of sherry
- they are dry
11
Q
Vinos Dulces Naturales
A
- term for fortified sweet wines
- made when brandy is added to cut the fermentation process
12
Q
Vinos Generosos de Licor
A
- defined in the regulations of the Consejo Regulador as wines obtained from the traditional process of cabeceo or the blending of Generosos wines with naturally sweet wines or in certain cases w/ concentrated must.
- wines vary with different degrees of sweetness, always with a sugar content of over 5 g/l
- according to the type of generoso wines used as a base and final levels of sweetness of the blend, the following types are obtained:
- Pale cream (fino w/ some sweetness)
- Medium (DO says any sherry w/ sugar over 5 g/l and up to 115 g/l can be called Medium. 5-45 Medium dry. 45 -110 Medium Sweet)
- Cream (semi sweet from oxidative ageing and involves the blending of oloroso (in was it known as cabeceo) with PX. Commonly known as sweet oloroso)
13
Q
Pale Cream
A
- highly successful brand laucnhed by Croft in the 1970’s
- essentially cream with with the color removed by charcoal or other treatments
- may also be sweetened by Fino
14
Q
Medium
A
-
15
Q
Cream
A
- brand name started when someone was tasting a new unnamed brand/ “If that is Milk, then this is Cream.”
- sweetest darkest style fo sherry
- created for sweettooth UK market by Harvey’s of Bristol
- most successful sherry in the workd
- product of blending blah sherries w/ sweeteners and colored wines
- have RS = to 4.5-6.5 baume
16
Q
12yr
A
- part of age certification system adopted by the Consejo REgulador
- those that don’t qualify for VOS or VORS but are worthy and subjected to prolonged periods of ageing and of fine quality
- average age between 12-15 and exposed to either total or partial oxidative, physico chemical ageing process
- certification applies to the whole system of criadera and solera from whence the wine submitted for certification is drawn
- sherry firm submits an application to the CR of the stocks to the brand for which they’ve requested an indicatino of age
- wines undergoing crianza ageing must be clearly defined in the bodega and the annual sales quota assigned to them will be proportinal to the qunatitiy of stocks held: 1/12 in teh case of 12yr old and 1/15 in the case of 15yr old
17
Q
15yr
A
- part of age certification system adopted by the Consejo REgulador
- those that don’t qualify for VOS or VORS but are worthy and subjected to prolonged periods of ageing and of fine quality
- average age between 12-15 and exposed to either total or partial oxidative, physico chemical ageing process
18
Q
VOS
A
- part of age certification system adopted by the Consejo REgulador
- “Very old Sherry”
- these are sherries over 20 ys old
- system created in 2000
- certification based on individual lots (sacas) of thie type of wine issuesd by the different sherry firm
- certification by the CR is granted not to a specific brand or type of wine but to each intidivual batch drawn from the corresponding solera, with an average age over 20 or 30 years
19
Q
VORS
A
- part of age certification system adopted by the Consejo REgulador
- “Very old Rare sherr”
- these are sherries over 30 yrs old
20
Q
Anada (vintage)
A
- static ageing system (as opposed to the dynamic criadera and solera system)
- sherry wines from a particular harvest are seperately agesd and at no time blended with other wines from different years
- select years, sherry firms select particular lots which meet specific standards which are then aged according to the vintage system
- climatic conditions, the grapes, vinification process all play into this classification
- once fortiried and in cask it will commence the oxidative ageing process
- flor will need constant doses of nutrients to survive which means the cask must be refreshed w/ young wine
- the casks used for vintage sherry’s are stoppered and sealed by the Consejo Regulador this limiting the circulation of air within the interior of the caks and conseqiencyt any chance of he yeast breathing
- requires the existence of a procedure which guarantees the wine as been stored w/o any manipulation
- it is necessary to ensure the wine as been kept in wooding casts, butts, bucoys, thoroughly stoppered, sealed and under teh supervision of hte Consejo Regulatdor
21
Q
Trade Structures
A
- CR
- quota system im place for every sherry firm
- percentage of existing stock to which each fuirm is allowed to sell during each campaign
- allows the CR to gaurantee the minimum age of all sherries
- demands that for each liter of sherry sold by a DO sherry firm, 3 liters of the same must remainin stock in it’s ageing bodegas
- guarantees that all wines sold are at least 3 years old
- same with certified aged wines. for every liter of 20yr old, there must be 20liters in the correspondding crianza
22
Q
Sherry
A
-
23
Q
Andalucia
A
- southern most spain
- encompassing 8 provines and the DO regions Jerez, Malaga, Montilla-Moriles, Sierras De Malaga and Condado De Huelva
- the hottest part of spain
- associatied with strong alcoholic wines
- mainly associated w/ fortified wines
24
Q
Jerez de la Frontera
A
- in andalucia, the center of the sherry world
- ## Jerez is name of the DO which produces sherry
25
Sanlucar de Barrameda
- one of the three towns sherry is produced. Manzanilla is made here.
- delicate pale, try sherry
26
Puerto de Santa Maria
- Puerto fino is fino sherry matured here
27
Consejo Regulador
- it's the regulating council
- spanish wine law is administered through a network of Consejos reguladores representing each and every DO
- they compromise vine growers, wine producers, merchants whi between them decide on the ground rules for their region
28
Almacenista
- term for a sherry stock holder who sells wine to shippers
| - used as a marketing term for the sherry firm of Lustau who buy in and bottle wines from almacenistas
29
Domecq
- Purchased by Beam
- run into the ground by beam
- shrinking markets couldn't compete with the big spirit brands
- oldest and most noble sherry house
- Beam sold off port Cockburn and then sold off La Ina, Domecq's most famous brand to Gonzalez Byass then Lustau
- With Harvey's they were sitting on VORS sherries which were undervalued and a steal
30
Gonzalez-Byass
- owners of Tio Pepe, the most loved and lightest dry Fino in all of spain
- largest producer of sherry
- created in 1835
- still family run
- first shipment was to Robert Byass, would would later become their UK agent
- Tio pepe brand was born by the mid 1800's
- just over 3300 acres owned and close to 2k more controlled by independent farmers
- began releasing vintage dated dry sherries in the mid 1990's
- also produce brandy Lepanto
- Aquired the spanish interests of Croft in 2001 and has expanded to Spain including a Cava producer Cavas Vilarnau
31
Harveys of Bristol
- owners of the most significant brand of sherry and the creators of an entier style of sherry, Cream (Harveys Bristol Cream)
- competitor is Averys
- once powerful force in Jerez during the mid 20th century
- acquired Cockburn in the 60's
- Series of takeovers led to the decline of the business. It's focus was put on it's fortified line of Special reserve and Cream as the fine wine portion of Harvey's was abadonded after the Showerings takeover
- Sold to Beam in 2005 and run into the ground
- in the 70's sold a million cases a year to UK alone
- creatino of the Brits
- most respected names in wine from the UK merchant side. Several early MW's worked for them
- sales are now about a 1/4 of what they used to be
32
bodega
-spanish term for wine cellar, winery or tavern / grocery store that sells wine
33
solera
- fractional blending system
- solera consists of a stock of wines in cask split into units of equal volume but different maturation
- oldest stage is called the solera, each of the younger stages that feed it is a criadera or nursery
- there are up to seven criaderas in a sherry solera and up to 14 in a manzanilla solera.
- up to 1/3 (legal limit) of the solera may be droawn off for blending and bottling
- some bodegas may restrict their very high quality old solera's to 1/5
- the amount drawn off of the mature solera is preplaced by an eqaul voume from the first criadera which in turn is topped of by the second criadera and so on
- when the last criadera is emptied of it's 1/3, it is refreshed by an identicay quanity of anada or "new wine"
- this comprosies like-classified sherries from the current years production aged up to 36 months
34
flor
- a strain of saccharomyces yeast that appears as a grey white film floating on the wines surface and it occurs naturally in teh microflora of the palomino grape grown in the Jerez district. All thanks to the ponionte winds
- it is found in almost every vat of sherry and manzanilla
- weither it can dominate the wine and develop as flor depends uon the stregnth of the Sacch and the biochemical conditions
- effect of flor is to absofb remaining traces of sugar, diminish glycerin and volatile acids and greatly increase the esters and aldehydes.
What flor needs:
- alc strength between 13.5-17.5 (15.3 is opt)
- temps between 59-86
- sulfur dioxide less than .018
- tannin content less than .01
- virtual absence of fermentble sugars
35
arrope
- syrup used for sweetening wine, especially sherry
| - made by boiling down and this concentrating unfermented grape juice
36
Palomino FIno
- most closely associated w/ Jerez and sherry
- declining in importance
- sucseptible to downey mildew and anthracnose
- reposnds best in warm, dry soils
- loose generous bunches of large grapes, best for table grapes
- yield relatively high even w/o irrigation
- low in both acidity and fermentable sugars
- good for sherry producers as they bix the grapes at around 19 Brix
- must has a tendency to oxidize (which is ok)
- makes flabby wines unless acidified
- also grown in Galicia and Castilla y Leon where planted after phylloxera but losing to local varieties
37
PX
- white grape found especially in Montilla-Moriles
- Producers in jerez regularly import the dark super sticky wines made from PX grown in Montilla to sweeten blends
- many now sell varietal PX under their own label
- thin skinned grapes traditionally dried in the sun
- generally lower in acid and alc than palomino fino (which is more productive and less disease prone)
- PX was grown on a total of fewer than 21l acres, virtually all in Montilla Moriles
38
Muscat of alexandria
-
39
Manzanilla
- style of sherry from sanlucar de barrameda
- very pale and light, dry style of wine that is heavily influenced by flor yeats but manzanilla is made in the particularly humid maritime air of Sanlucar which tends to result in a thicker layer of flor, a slower maturation process, lower alc content and higher acid.
- grapes are picked slightly less ripe than for fino
- most is lightly fortified to 15%.
- there are variations where flor dies and can create a Manzanilla Olorosa and Manzanilla Pasada (amonitillado)
40
Amontillado
- created when Fino wines have the flor die off
- can happen if fortified to 16% alc
- turns amber and is nuttier
- it is an aged Fino
- cheaper amontillado's are a blend and artificially sweetened
- tend to be medium
41
Oloroso
- stronger richer type of wine
- commercial style of sherry
- pure oloroso is dry, dark, nutty that's bottled oloroso
- often labeled dry oloroso
- oloroso is also marketed as sweet dark blend of basic sherry plus coloring and sweetening wine (somewhere btween amontillado and cream)
- can have very alcoholic strength anywhere between 18 and 20%
42
PX (wine)
- dark sticky ultra sweet varietal fortified wine
- montilla moriles is the usual source of the top quality wines and can be almost as dark and viscous as molassas
- generally lower in alc than the sherrries of jerez
- predominantly produced as a sweetening agent
- can be compared to some of the oldest and rarest Australian Muscats
43
Sherries of certified age
- CR only certifies sherries of the highest quality which have been aged for an extraordinary amount of time
- compliance also states they must belong to one of the following types: Amontillado, Oloroso (sweet / dry), Palo Cortado or PX
- VOS or VORS must submit their wines to an independent tasting commitee
- these are specialists who have no connection to sherry firms in the Jerez region
- taste the samples from teh saca to validate that it's not just to certifu the specific age but also to verify that they meet the exceptional standards ot quality
WSET Unit 6
flashcards
Decks in class (5)
# Cards
