1 - Sherry Wine Law and Wine Business

Question 1

Types of Businesses engaged in production

Answer 1

• Zona de Produccion was 6989 in 2016
• average vineyard holdings are small under 3ha
• 40% of vineyards are owed by the members of co-operatives 2935ha
• independent growers 1957ha
• shippers 2097ha

Question 2

1-of3-Categories of companies involved in the production of sherry

-bodegas da la zona de produccion or production bodega

Answer 2

• usually large cooperatives
• press grapes and fermented the must into base wine
• must be located in the zona de produccion
• but don’t need to be located in the zona de crianza
• often owned by companies with other registers
• but can be independent and sell the basic wine
• may sell other wines but can not be quality DO Jerez-xeres-sherry or DO manzanilla- sanlucar de barrameda

Question 3

2-of3-Categories of companies involved in the production of sherry

-bodegas de crianza y almacenado or ageing and storage bodega

or

-almacenistas

Answer 3

• mature the wine
• must be located in the zona de crianza
• normally stock small amounts of wine they mature
• the wine must be sold to (bodegas de crianza y expedicion)

-reduction of almacenistas because shippers hold more stock and don’t need stock from almacenistas

Question 4

3-of3-Categories of companies involved in the production of sherry

-bodegas de crianza y expedicion or ageing and shipping bodegas

or

-shippers

Answer 4

• only permitted to export and sell DO Jerez-Xérès-Sherry or DO manzanilla - sanlucar de barrameda
• must be located in the zona de crianza
• permitted to mature the wine which may come as young wine directly from -bodegas de produccion- or may come as matured wines from the -bodegas de crianza y almacenado-
• the stocks from the -bodegas de crianza y almacenado- may be blended with the shipper’s own stocks to add to the volume and complexity
• the wine normally sold under the shipper’s own brands
• minimum stock holdings 500hL

Question 5

Consejo regulador

First registered in Spain 1933

Answer 5

• maintains all vineyards registers
• set parameters such maximum yields
• minimum alcohol levels for base wine
• oversees the stock rotation in the bodegas
• verifies and authenticity of age-dated sherry
• responsibly for wine legislation and labelling terms
• major promotional body (events and educational)
• responsible for campaign to have DO Jerez-Xérès-Sherry and manzanilla Sanlúcar de barrameda

Question 6

Sherry sales

Gradual decline in the last four decades

Answer 6

-peak sales 1970s 150 million L
-global sales 2006 56 million L
2016 34 million L
-stock holding in bodegas from 225 million L down to 130 million L
-sweet sherry sales 2006 12.5 million L
2016 7.4 million L
-medium sherry sales 2006 11.8 million L
2016 7.5 million L
-fino 2006 14 million L
2016 7.6 million L
-manzanilla 2006 8.5 million L
2016 7.1 million L
-palo cortado and PX aged are the most profitable to most of the shippers

• 2016
• Spain 12 million L
• uk 9.9 million L
• holland 5.7 million L
• germany 2.3 million L
• usa 1.2 million L