2: Sherry

Question 1

Where is Sherry made?

Answer 1

in the area around the city of Jerez in Andalusia

Question 2

To when does the history of growing grapes and producing wines in the Jerez area date back?

Answer 2

to the rule of the Phoenicians

Question 3

What happened during the period of Moorish rule from the 8th to the 13th centuries?

Answer 3

wine consumption was prohibited, but vineyards and wine production continued

Question 4

After Jerez came under Christian rule in the 13th century, what happened to the wine industry?

Answer 4

• both domestic consumption and exports grew rapidly as English, Irish and Flemish traders began to ship the wines
• wines further benefitted from free trade agreements with France and England

Question 5

When did they start shipping large volumes of Sherry to America?

Answer 5

after Christopher Columbus had discovered America from his base in Andalusía

Question 6

What 2 historic events devastated the Sherry industry?

Answer 6

• the Peninsular Wars

- the plague of phylloxera

Question 7

When were regulations set to control the production and trading of Sherry wines? Why?

Answer 7

• 1933
• popularity of Sherry in the late 19th and early 20th centuries meant that other countries began to produce their own, often poor-quality

Question 8

What is the name of the Regulatory Council that set the regulations for Sherry production?

Answer 8

Consejo Regulador

Question 9

What happened to Sherry sales during the Second World War? What happened after that?

Answer 9

• fell

- recovered

Question 10

When did Sherry sales reach their peak? How much was sold?

Answer 10

• 1970s

- 1.5 million hL (1979)

Question 11

What was a problem during the boom years?

Answer 11

• the production of Sherry rose dramatically
• demand decreased
• surplus of cheap Sherry that had not been produced with quality in mind

Question 12

What company played a key part in the supply and demand fluctuations in Sherry?

Answer 12

Ruiz Mateos S.A., also known as Rumasa

Question 13

How did Rumasa start? How did it become so powerful?

Answer 13

• almacenista, before starting to ship its own Sherry in 1950
• supply Harveys of Bristol with wine
• major supplier for their Bristol Cream
• taking over a number of Sherry bodegas, hotels and banks

Question 14

How did Rumasa drive down Sherry prices?

Answer 14

through consolidation of production facilities

Question 15

What lead to Rumasa’s downfall? When?

Answer 15

• 1983
• government nationalised Rumasa claiming that it owed millions in unpaid taxes
• Sherry bodegas were sold causing a substantial rise in unemployment and social unrest

Question 16

How did Rumasa’s downfall impact the Sherry industry?

Answer 16

a large number of other bodegas closed or were sold and merged as they were unable to sustain themselves in a marked burdened with large quantities of low-quality wines and a market that was based on inexpensive brands

Question 17

At a high level, that does the Consejo Regulador do? Why?

Answer 17

• brings vineyard plantings, stock levels and sales back into balance
• promote the quality of Sherry