Sherry Flashcards
(39 cards)
Three towns at center of Sherry production?
Jerez de la Frontera
El Puerto de Santa Maria
Sanlucar de Barameda
DO regulations require Sherry to be matured in and shipped from one of these three municipalities.
Name of river in northwest of Sherry region?
Guadalquivir
What town marks the southeastern border of Sherry production?
Chiclana de la Frontera
Two DO zones of Sherry production?
Jerez-Xeres-Sherry
Manzanilla-Sanlucar de Barrameda
From what direction does the Levant wind blow and what are its effects?
The hot, dry levant wind blows from the east and cooks the grapes on the vine during ripening.
What is the poniente wind?
The humid, Atlantic poniente wind blowing from the west, alternates with the levant promoting the growth of flor, a film-forming yeast necessary in the maturation of Sherry.
What are the 3 main soil types of Sherry?
Albariza, barros, arenas
What is albariza and where is it predominantly found?
Albariza is a chalky, porous, limestone rich soil of brilliant white color. It is moisture retentive albariza retains water from winter rains, and friable soil structure allows roots to penetrate deeply in search for water trapped beneath its baked impenetrable surface during the arid growing season.
Where are the albariza soils of Sherry concentrated?
Albariza soils are concentrated on the gentle slopes of Jerez Superior, a subregion between Sanlucar de Barrameda and the Guadalete River which flows into the Bay of Cadiz.
What percentage of grapevines are located in Jerez Superior?
80%
What are the famous pagos (vineyards) of Jerez de la Frontera?
Macharnudo, Anina, Carrascal
What is the largest Pago in Jerez de la Frontera?
Marcharnudo at over 2000 HA
What kind of soil is Barros?
Barros soils have a higher proportion of clay and are prominent in low lying valleys.
What kind of soils are arenas soils?
Sandy soils found in coastal areas?
What are the grapes authorized for Sherry production?
Palomino (Listan), Pedro Ximenez (PX), Moscatel (Muscat)
What is the soleo process and what grapes are predominantly used for this?
The soleo process is when grape bunches are dried in the sun for a period of one to three weeks on esparto grass mats prior to pressing. Mostly for PX and Moscatel grapes.
Palomino may be sunned but rarely for longer than 24 hours.
What is traditional vine training method for Sherry?
Vara y Pulgar, in which growers prune alternate spurs each year; one year’s vara (stick) will be pruned back after harvest to become the following years Pulgar (thumb).
What are the max yields for Sherry?
80 hl/ha Jerez Superior
100 hl/ha everywhere else
What are the official levels of Sherry in the press house?
Max 72.5 L from 100 KG grapes
The Mosta de Yema (must) is divided into 3 stages of quality. What are these?
Primera Yema- Free run juice; 60-70% of Mosta de Yema
Segunda Yema- Press Wine
Mosta Prensa- Poorer quality; sent for distillation
Traditionally, what did Sherry producers do to the must prior to fermentation?
Adhered yeso (plaster) to the grapes prior to pressing (which added clarification combining with cream of tartar, producing tartaric. Then fermentation would commence in new American Butts of 600 L, imparting tannins and leech oak flavor into the wine.
How is Sherry fermented today?
In stainless steel, temperature controlled tanks 50,000 L capacity.
How is Sherry fermented and how long does it take?
Sherry fermentation is divided into two stages: the tumultuous ferm, a hot and vigorous initial lasting up to a week; and the Lenta, or slow ferm in which high temps subside and any remaining sugar in wine is converted to alcohol over a period of weeks.
What is the base wine level of Sherry after fermentation?
11-12.5%
