Category: jerez

Bodegas Lustau | Vermouth with a View

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After a period of decline, vermouth (a fortified aromatic wine) has been enjoying something of a comeback recently, with a number of producers entering the market with a variety of “craft” vermouths. One of these, the respected sherry-house Lustau, brought out its first red vermouth at the end of 2015, and has followed it up with a white vermouth, launched in Sevilla at a special event on May 10th.

I was fortunate enough to receive an invitation, which also resulted in another first, as the presentation was being held in the new Sevilla Tower across the river next to the old expo site. Personally I think the building is an eyesore on the Sevilla skyline, but I have to admit the view from the 21st floor (halfway up) was pretty spectacular, and as usual at these events I met up with some old friends and made some new ones.

Lustau white vermouth: fino & moscatel

Stars of the show were, of course, the two Lustau vermouths. The new white vermouth is blended from fino and muscatel sherries, and is slightly less sweet than the existing red, which is blended from amontillado and PX sherries. Both are flavoured with a variety of aromatic botanicals and spices. I think the red is still my favourite (although a close decision), but if you haven’t caught the vermouth bug yet try one of these in your local bar. You might well become a convert.

Lustau red vermouth: amontillado & pedro ximénez

Lustau reps Estanis Bobadilla & Juan Mateos Arizón

vermouth cocktail recipes

Bodegas Lustau

Sherry On Top

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sherry on top

Last night (July 6th) I had the good fortune and privilege to be invited to the first of a new season of music & wine events in Sevilla with the title Sherry on Top. Organised by the Consejo Regulador de los Vinos de Jerez, in conjunction with the Asociación de Hoteles de Sevilla y Provincia‘s #summerHOTELtime initiative, it aims to attract people to some of Sevilla’s best hotel rooftop terraces with a programme of live music, sherry tastings, and exclusive sherry cocktails designed by the hotels’ bartenders.

sherryontop (1)

Last night’s event was held at the Hotel Inglaterra in Plaza Nueva, one of Seville’s most popular rooftops. Comfortable and elegant, with fabulous views of the Town Hall, El Salvador Church and the Cathedral, it was a pleasant place to spend a balmy evening out of doors, and many of the great and good from the worlds of sherry and hospitality were there, including the newly re-elected head of the Consejo Regulador, Don Beltrán Domecq. As always at such events it was also a good opportunity to renew acquaintance with old friends and make a few new ones.

The tasting was hosted by Carmen Aumesquet and Pepe Ferrer, and featured a Fino, an Oloroso and a sherry Cream cocktail. Live music was provided by Los Quiero, who turned out to be rather good, playing music from the 50s-60s-70s, including some forgotten favourites.

sherryontop (2)-001

Altogether a very nice evening, and I hope to attend a few more of these events over the summer, on from now until the end of September. Check the links below for the upcoming venues and performers and be sure to reserve your spot as space is limited. Salud!

Sherry On Top Webiste
Sherry Wines Facebook

Tío Pepe en Rama 2016

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en rama 16

After having to miss this year’s presentation of Tío Pepe en Rama 2016 (because of this!) I found myself having a post-shopping pre-dinner glass of wine up at Gourmet Experience and my pal Silvia stopped by. Silvia not only runs the place at GE but her father Antonio Flores (AKA the winemaker poet) is the master wine blender at Gonzalez Byass and is also the guy responsible for Tío Pepe en Rama. Turns out Silvia missed the presentation too (she was only able to stop by for a quick hello before it all got going) and she insisted I try a glass. And well, it was damn fine. Thank you Silvia!

Tío Pepe en Rama 2016 was first selected in October from 100 of the best casks from two of the oldest Tío Pepe soleras, Rebollo and Constancia, and finally bottled (16,000 in total) in April from the top 60 out of those initial 100 casks.

A wild unfiltered wine, with all its yeast and organic contribution. Yellow, pale, golden tones, cloudy (yeast in suspension). The nose is pure albariza, salinity, nuts, bakery aromas. Tasty, intense, long, salty and slightly bitter finish. Or as Antonio would say… el sol de Andalucía embotellado (bottled Andalusian sunshine).

You can order Tío Pepe en Rama 2016 from the Gonzalez Byass online store or (in Sevilla) buy it at El Corte Inglés Gourmet Experience Duque.

Tío Pepe en Rama 2015

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tio pepe en rama 2015[click on image to enlarge]

Three blog posts in a row about sherry! After starting last week with the Manzanilla 50 Years celebration at Hotel Alfonso XIII and then the Feria de Vinos Generosos at Voraz, this week it was the presentation of the 6th release of Tío Pepe en Rama (Bodegas Gonzáles Byass), held at the gorgeous Casa Guardiola.

Tío Pepe en Rama is a limited edition unfiltered/unstabalised fino chosen each year by master wineblender Antonio Flores @Hacedordevinos (AKA the winemaker poet) from two of the oldest Tío Pepe soleras, Rebollo and Constancia. Sixty casks made the final selection (from the 600 initially chosen by Flores last October) and were bottled on April 13th. This is the fourth time Sevilla has had the honour of being selected as the site for the first presentation of this unique wine, fittingly each time on the Monday of the April Feria.

We were treated to a special tasting by Antonio Flores in which three sherries were paired with flamenco: Tío Pepe en Rama with Bulerías de Jerez, AB Amontillado with Alegría de Cádiz, and Del Duque 30 year old VORS amontillado fino (“Tío Pepe grown up”) with Sevillanos [short Instagram video here]. It was a delight to be taken through the different ages of Tío Pepe (amontillados begin life as fino or manzanilla), though of course the star of the show was the youngest member of the family. Flores calls Tío Pepe “bottled Andalusian sunshine” and the en ramas allow people to enjoy a “straight out of the cask” sherry experience. This year’s edition has more nutty and yeasty aromas than the usual Tío Pepe. Fresh, citrusy and saline, it’s excellent with salty foods like almonds, olives, oily and smoked fish. Oh, and Bulerías.

Feria de Vinos Generosos Andaluz

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generosos andaluz

Another day, another sherry tasting, although in this case not a standard, formal kind of tasting. This was, in fact, the first edition of the Feria de Vinos Generosos Andaluz (Andalusian Fair of Fortified Wines), held at Voraz on the edge of Parque de los Principes in Los Remedios.

hidalgo

It was a nice day for it too; one of those balmy spring days that’s perfect for an afternoon out of doors, meeting the great and the good of the world of sherry, old friends, and our hosts Juan and Jeanine of La Azotea, while sampling a good selection of top class wines represented by bodegas such as Lustau, Hidalgo, Barbadillo, Sacrista AB, Gongora, and others.

potaje

For a 10€ entry fee you could sample as many wines as you liked, and enjoy the snacks on offer. These included lots of tasty jamón, various cheeses, and a massive potaje of white beans and prawns that was prepared outdoors by the Voraz chefs – just the ticket after a few sherries. If you were still feeling peckish you could pop into Voraz and order a tapa or two.

ronquero

We also got to see a ronqueo – the precise and skillful cutting up of a tuna by Rafael from La Almadraba (you’ve seen Rafael here before). Performed by an expert, it took less than 30 minutes to turn a 180kg fish into its component parts, ready for the kitchen. Moments later it was also being served as complimentary snacks.

voraz atun I love these kind of events that let you speak directly to the producers/distributors and allow you to sample a variety of wines in a relaxed and casual ambiance (from “just a drop please” to “I’ll have more of that!”). Hope this becomes an annual event.