In the (much younger) past, David would spend his birthday with my brother, exploring a city and its beers. Eventually this extended to a long weekend, with more exotic locations and different friends. This year he has opted for a long month in the sherry area of Cadiz and El Puerto de Santa Maria, a place we both love and know from our Samson and Suzi travelling days.
We arrived two weeks ago and have just been joined by some family and friends. We’ve rented an apartment right in the town centre, a 5 minute walk from the highly ornate Basilica which is the central point for all of the town’s Easter Penitence parades. We have a second floor view over a pedestrianised area that leads directly to the Plaza Espana, in front of the Basilica. It was imperative that we introduce them to sherry, a drink usually synonymous with people of an older age but drunk in Spain in this area by every generation so we booked into a tour of the Guiterrez Colosia Bodega, right on the banks of the Guadalete river.
Historical info first- the sherry vineyards are located in a specific area around Cadiz, created by chalky soil and seawater sediment, dating back to 1100BC when the Phoenicians planted vines, the Romans who established the first quality controls insisted that wines from this area be marked with AAAA but it wasn’t until 1264AD that the Arabs named this area “Sherish” that the word sherry was formed. In the 17th century investors from Holland, Scotland and England boosted production, hence the export and import of the product, assisted by ships built in the port that travelled to other Mediterranean areas and the UK.
We were told that this Bodega was started in 1838, assisted by wind and moisture in the area which created a perfect growing conditions for the Palamino, Moscatel and Pedro Ximinez grapes used in the wines. The proximity to the river ensures the perfect humidity to create a “flora” or natural yeast to ferment to wine further, Sherry is a fortified aged wine, aged using a Solera system. We learned about the old American oak barrels that are anything up to 60 years old and the solera system of mixing ensures a consistent level of quality and taste.
The Guiterrez family took over the Bodega at the beginning of the 20th Century so descendents of Jose Dosal Guiterrez, their great grandfather, still work in the business.
The solera system works by removing a quantity of wine for bottling from the bottom barrels, that quantity is replaced from barrels in the middle row, and the middle barrels are topped up by wines in the barrels on the top row. The top rows are the only ones filled up with new wine, so blending downwards can always produce a consistent product regardless of the uality of the latest years’ crop. However, the barrels are only ever emptied by a third, maximum, so some of the wine in the barrel could be up to 180 years old!!
In 1969 the family bought the Palace of the Count of Cumbrehermosa Cargedor de Indias and extended into the building and cellars, expanding the storage and bottling capacity and also creating a bar and restaurant that promotes and uses its wines within its recipes.
The lunch that followed was accompanied by 6 glasses of sherry, ranging from very dry to dry, sweeter then very sweet. Each course was to be eaten with a specific sherry. An interesting and tasty afternoon out!
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