Summary D5 Fortified Wines

A snapshot of the summary - D5 Fortified Wines

• 1 SHERRY

• 1.1 History

• When was the first Spanish wine-related regulatory council formed, why and what is the name

  • In 1933
  • the Consejo Regulador 
  • to protect the quality of the original Spanish sherry: other countries begun to produce poor-quality 'sherries'
• When was sherry booming

  In the 1970's, with a peak in 1979: 1.5 million hl
• What was the reason of the decrease in sherry sales (starting in the 1980s0?

  Younger generations sought out different styles of wines
• What was the consequence of the decrease in demand for sherry starting in the 1980s?

  A surplus of sherry, largely formed of cheap and low quality wines.
• What do you know about Ruiz Mateos S.A

  • a business also known as Rumasa
    
  • started as almacenista 
  • started shipping his own wine in 1950
  • supplied big brands like Harveys of Bristol > Bristol Cream
  • > considerably wealth
  • > begun to build his imperium
  • sherry - banks - hotels
  • 1970s dominated the sherry business
  • consolidation of production facilities
  • > drove down prices
  • > negative influence on sherry industry in following decades
  • 1983: government nationalised Rumaso, claiming unpaid taxes
  • > Rumasa's Bodega's closed > unemployment and social unrest
  • Lots of other bodegas closed or merged because could not survive in this period with surpluses of mainly bad quality sherries 

• 1.2.1 Location and Climate

• Where is the Sherry area located

  • in Andalusia in southern Spain
    
  • low lattitude (36gr)
  • low altitude (0-90 m above sea level)
  • with the Atlantic Ocean at its south
• What is the climate in the Sherry area

  • Hot Mediterranean 
  • with hot, dry summers and mild, relatively rainy winters
  • high number of cloud-free days
  • > high sunlight hours during growing season
  • > helping giving fully ripe grapes
  • but: grapes can get sunburn
• What influences the climate in the Sherry area

  The Atlantic Ocean bringing two winds:
  

  • the Poniente
  • cool damp wind bringing a cooling, humid influence in the summer
  • the Levante
  • hot, drying wind from north Africa making the climate more arid 
• What could be a negative influence of the hot wind Levante for sherry production

  • the wind makes the climate more arid
    
  • grapes transpire more quickly > concentrating sugars
  • too much sugar makes it difficult the wine to ferment to dryness
  • which is particularly difficult for the development of flor
• Where must the grapes for DO Jerez-Xeres-Sherry or DO Manzanilla-Sanlúcar de Barrameda be grown

  • A delimited area of around 7.000 ha around the city of Jerez de la Frontera
    
  • = Zona de Producción = Marco de Jerez
  • Exception: Pedro Ximénez can come from Montilla Morilles