Sherry Flashcards
Etymology of Sherry
From Sherish = Arabic for Jerez de la Frontera
Sherry triangle
7000ha under vine between 3 communes:
Jerez de la frontera
Sanlucar de Barrameda
El Puerto de Santa Maria
Varieties permitted for Sherry production
Pedro Ximenes
Palomino fino
Moscatel fino
+ palomino de Jerez ( not commonly used)
Governing body in Sherry production
The consejo regulator , since 1935
What is Sherry?
Fortified wine and a blend , no single vintage
Bodegas de crianza y expedition
Control the production and the shipment of Sherry
Nowadays also owns large vineyards themselves
Main type of soil in Sherry
Albariza
60-80% chalk / white / absorb and jold moisture and reflect sun , preventing the soil from drying out too much
Classified as JEREZ SUPERIOR
Jerez superior
Areas with Albariza soils / divided in PAGOS
PAGOS (Sherry)
Single vineyards
Approximately 150 registered with the Consejo Regulator in the whole Sherry region
Palomino fino
Planted on Albariza soils
Accounts for 98% of the plantings
Pedro Ximenes
Used for blending, sweetening and colouring
100% PX also produced: dark brown , very sweet, highly concentrated
Majority grown in DO Montilla-Moriles
(Less humid, less rot)
Dried in the sun (Asoleao)
Matured in SOLERA in Jerez
Moscatel
Grown in coastal areas / used for sweet wines and as a sweetening agent
2 types of soil( both inferior to Albariza):
- Arenas: clay + sand + limestone + 10% chalk
- Barros: clay + decomposed matter + 10% chalk (more fertile)
The 2 winds in the Sherry region
LEVANTE: hot easterly / dries the grapes during ripening
PONIENTE: cool westerly / allows the growth of FLOR in the Bodegas
Vinification of Sherry steps:
Harvest
Pressing
Classification of the must
Fermentation
Fortification
Classifications
Blending (by SOLERA system)
Time of harvest and handling of the grapes for sherry
Harvest in late august / September
Palomino grapes are picked and pressed
PX are picked and dried for 1-2weeks on mats until they reach semi-raisin state (SOLEO)
Grapes are de stalked and sieved
Max of Litres of must per kg of grapes (sherry)
70L/100kg of grapes
3 sections of pressing (sherry)
PRIMERA YEMA: free rum juice
SEGUNDA YEMA
MOSTO PRENSAS: used for unclassified wine or distilled
Fermentation of sherry
After 3 days most of the sugar is fermented
The wine is then drawn off into stainless steel to complete fermentation (traditionally Botas = casks)
Vats not filled to the top to allow Flor to grow
By the end of November the wine is dry / 11-12.5% abv
In January wines are classified as either Fino or Oloroso
Fortification of Sherry
Wines are fortified according to their classification:
OLOROSO: fortified to 17-18% = no Flor = OXIDATIVE MATURATION (either left dry or sweetened)
FINO/MANZANILLA/AMONTILLADO: fortified to 15-15.5% = Flor = BIOLOGICAL MATURATION
Flor
Prevents air from getting to the wine an oxidating it
Feeds of nutrients and alcohol in the wine
Maturation of sherry under Flor
Wines are racked into American/Canadian oak BOTAS (600L)
Only 500L is racked in order to allow Flor to grow
Classification of sherry after maturation
Wines are left for up to 12 months suiting which they are know as SOBREDABLA and then classified into:
-FINO (uno palma, dos palma, tres palma)
-PALO CORTADO
-OLOROSO
FINO SHERRY
Wine continue biological aging in 500-600L Botas / used for Fino , Manzanilla, Amontillado
PALO CORTADO
Evolves from Fino / Fortified to 17-18% that destroys Flor / oxidative style
OLOROSO SHERRY
Fortified to 17-18% / racked into 500-600L Botas / no air space left = no oxidation
Solera system
Fractional blending method
Criaderas = scales / min 2 + solera
Min 3 years + 1 day in the solera system
High quality = 5 to 8 years
Sweeting of Sherry
Done by addition of PX or VINO DULCE
VINO DULCE = fermenting PX or Moscatel to 5% then arresting fermentation by adding grape brandy
Darkening of Sherry
Addition of Arrope / vino de color to the wine
Boiling mosto from PX grapes to 1/3rd of the volume (SANCOCHO) or 1/5th of the volume (ARROPE)
Cabeceo
Final sherry blend
Venencia
Special small cup with long handle used to taste sherry
Copita
Traditional sherry glass
Sherry aging
Min 2 years
2/3 matured in Jerez
Sanlucar = Atlantic influence = PONIENTE = good for Flor
Manzanilla Sherry
Very dry, salty, bitter, yeasty
Same as fino / must be matured in Sanlucar de Barrameda
Fino sherry
15.5-17% / slightly less dry than Manzanilla
Amontillado sherry
Amber colour / hazelnut character
Min 2 years aging under Flor
+ min 2 years oxidative maturation after fortification killed Flor
Min 16% / must be dry
If sweetened = must be sold as MEDIUM CREAM / CREAM SHERRY
Palo CORTADO sherry
Cross between fino and amontillado
Rare / very expensive
Initially matured under Flor
Oloroso sherry
Rich and complex / slightly baked oxidative flavour / fortified to 17-18% / usually dry
Natural sweet wine (sherry)
From sun-dried PX or Moscatel grapes
Fermented to
5% abv then fortified to 15-22% with RCGM
PX= brown colour/ highly concentrated / very sweet / dried fig / dried apricot / dried raisin / liquorice
MOSCATEL = less dark / dried fruit , grapey
PALE CREAM SHERRY
Dry wine under Flor fortified to 15.5% with RCGM
MEDIUM CREAM sherry
Similar to pale cream but amber in colour
Blended with Natural sweet wine and/or RCGM / fortified to 15.5-22%
CREAM sherry
Oloroso+ sweetening and colouring (PX)
East India sherry
Originally sherry used by sailing ships as ballast
Now owned by Bodega Lustau
Alamacenista
Sherry stockholder / investors
VOS sherry
Very old Sherry
20+ years in Botas
VORS sherry
Very old and rare Sherry
30+ years in Botas
En Rama sherry
Sherry kept for several years without going through solera system
