What I Didn't Know About Sherry (Part 1)

I still remember the first time I drank sherry. I thought it was absolutely disgusting. I had no idea what it was, how it was made, and I mainly associated it with old aunts. Little did I know.

As I learned more about this southern Spanish wine, I became more interested in it. At WSET3, I was even impressed and wrote an article about the production process. When I started teaching myself, I thought: I have to get this right. Sherry often only gets one chance.

If you're a regular at Le Club des Vins, you know I'm currently working on my WSET Diploma. Unit 1 – Alcoholic Beverages Worldwide – is assessed through a case study. We were given the topic a month in advance: " The Rise and Fall and Rise of Sherry ." In this article, I'll share my research leading up to the exam.

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What do you mean, rise – fall – rise?

It covers the past thirty years. What happened? At the beginning of that period, in the 1980s, sherry was immensely popular. Here in the Netherlands, but also in England, it was sold by the bottle. The biggest buyer was indeed the slightly older woman with a great preference for sweetened sherries, such as Medium, Cream, and Pale Cream. The heyday has been over since the mid-1980s. After that, we saw a decline, with the sharpest drop between 2007 and 2011. One of the causes was the declining interest in sweet wines. The general trend of recent years toward healthier living likely also contributed to this.

This assumption is confirmed by the stable domestic market. In Spain, dry sherry is the most popular drink. Another point that can be made here is that the Spanish know sherry as vino de Jerez , or Wine from Jerez , while in export markets, people sometimes have no idea of ​​what it's made from or how it's made. In other words: does the average consumer even know sherry is a wine? Do they know how it's made and that there are different styles and quality levels? Most people see sherry as a nightcap. Moreover, most bottles are sold in supermarkets and are kept as inexpensive as possible. In short, we could speak of an image problem. An image problem reminiscent of Beaujolais. After all, Beaujolais also produces beautiful wines that few people know about or will try, because everyone is preoccupied with those worthless "nouveaus."

Yet there is hope. Although opinions are divided, I believe a new wave of growth is underway. In turbulent times like these, it helps to think positively. Recent years have seen positive developments in bodegas, vineyards, and sherry marketing. Legislation is still lagging behind in some areas, but the Consejo—the committee responsible for sherry—is on top of things.

Update 2021: Biggest change to sherry law in 50 years .

The developments in the bodegas

Did you know that there different types of bodegas Are they? Until recently, I wasn't. I assumed a bodega was involved in the production process from grape to bottle. Nothing could be further from the truth. Each bodega has its own tasks: grape growing, aging, and sales. Only a few manage everything themselves.

A shipping bodega is the only bodega authorized to sell sherry. The bodega's location must be within the "sherry triangle," and the sherry sold must meet the requirements of the Jerez-Xerez-Sherry DO. Well-known shipping bodegas include Gonzalez Byass, Lustau, and Valdespino.

A almacenista bodega is a type of distributor and, like the shipping bodega, must be located within the triangle. This bodega purchases base wines or produces them themselves and then ages them in the solera. When the sherry is ripe enough, it is sold to the shipping bodega, which then adds it to its own solera system. Although the almacenista is an important link in the production chain, they are rarely mentioned on the bottle. Lustau Bodegas was one of the first to put almacenistas in the spotlight by putting the almacenista's name on the bottle.

In 1996, the rules for becoming a shipping bodega changed. Previously, it was mandatory to have a stock of 12,500 hectoliters. That's a huge amount. They realized this themselves, so the limit was reduced 25 times to 500 hectoliters. This change allowed small almancenistas to sell sherry under their own name. Bodega El Maestro Sierra was one of the first.

Finally, there are the Production bodegas are the only bodegas permitted to be located outside the Triangle. These are the vineyard owners, the winegrowers. About 30% of shipping bodegas own their own vineyards; the majority of their grapes are purchased. Production bodegas are also allowed to market their own wine, but not under the DO Jerez-Xerez-Sherry, as their bodega is not located within the Triangle. Understand?

Rumasa, a bizarre story

A lot has happened in the sherry industry as a whole. Rumasa undoubtedly played a leading role. This bodega provided Dark times in Andalusia . Rumasa stands for Ruiz Mateos SA and refers to its founder. Ruiz Mateos founded the company in 1961 and a few years later signed a monumental contract with Harveys of Bristol. This contract stipulated that Rumasa would be its sole supplier for the next 99 years. How so? At that time, sweet sherry was at its peak, and the Bristol Cream variety was particularly popular. Harveys of Bristol had contracts with 13 bodegas at the time.

To fulfill the promise, Ruiz Mateos started buying wines from other bodegas and later even bought entire bodegas, including William & Hubert and Montecristo. The more I read, the more I thought: how is this possible? Ruiz Mateos had the right connections. Brace yourself. With the money from the Harveyes deal, Ruiz Mateos bought a bank. With that bank, he could then lend to himself, so he could buy more bodegas. Haha. According to the article by sherry blogger Ruben He once bought three banks in one day. Oh yeah, his family is also related to the director of the Spanish Institute of Credit, Ke-ching.

At one point, Rumasa consisted of 800 companies and dominated the sherry market. This is where the industrial mindset of consistency emerged. Fast, efficient, and cheap production. The downfall of sherry. And fortunately, the downfall of Rumasa as well – the bubble burst. It turned out that Mateos had enormous debts and that the accounting was completely inaccurate (admittedly, that's also difficult with 800 companies). For the full story, I recommend Googling 'Rumasa', because the story doesn't end there. The man was arrested, started a political party, restarted "Nueva Rumasa," and even briefly headed the Consejo Regulador (the sherry committee). It's a truly bizarre soap opera, but it's over. Although the industry is still recovering today.

In the next article I'll tell you more about the developments outside the bodega. You can find them here .

Sources

• Sherry notes – Types of sherry bodegas
• Decanter – Sherry country's quiet revolution
• Sherry Notes – Rumasa: dark years of sherry

Read more?

We often write about this topic. Le Club des Vins is a big sherry fan and we even have a whole page of sherry dedicated.