Tuesday, March 13, 2007

Bodegas

Sanlúcar is, as mentioned below, famous for its bodegas. They produce what we call sherry, which is a catch-all term we've inherited from Jerez. What the Sanluqueños call dry sherry is manzanilla, which is produced only in Sanlúcar, and distinguishes it from the very similar fino, produced all over Andalucía. Sanlúcar produces manzanilla because of its unique microclimate, which encourages the growth of a unique type of fungus which helps with the fermentation. But even in Sanlúcar alone, the choice of winery is large.




We took a tour of the Barbadillo bodega, which was large and cheery and ever-so-slightly worried about global warming. Drink now (especially Solear-brand manzanilla) while stocks last. Solear manzanilla was named (branded?) in 1934 by Manuel Machado, the unpleasant marginally-fascist brother of the much nicer Antonio Machado.

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