Wines the Andalusians love

It has as much to do with agriculture as it has to do with culture. It involves people, both vine growers and wine makers. It's all tied together. Spain, and Andalusia in particular, is a hotbed of both agriculture and culture. When the two come together, an abundance of unique senses of well-being obviously arise.

Enologist from Jerez (Image of Regulation Council of Sherry Wines)

Grapes are the third biggest crop in Spain after cereals and olives. Spain is the number one ranked country in the world in terms of area covered by vineyards (superficie de viñedo), but as the climate is dry, it is only third wine producer (productor vitícola) behind France and Italy, according to the data released by the International Organisation of Vine and Wine (see the references). One third of Spanish wine is exported. Although most of wine made in Spain is red, more than 60% of its vineyards are white. This is because Spain also produces a lot of brandy and sherry. The main red grape varieties in Spain are Tempranillo, Bobal, Garnacha (Grenache) and Monastrell, the white grape ones being Airén, Macabeo, Palomino and Pedro Ximenez. There's one more curious fact that you merely may possibly not be aware of, although not relevant to the issue at hand: Spain is one of the top five importers of Scotch whiskey in the world.

Harvest of Palomino grapes at Barbadillo's vineyard (Image from news site Globedia)

In Andalusia, the focus is on high quality production - more than 70% of the vineyards are located within the boundaries of one of the following six Denominations of Origin and run under that designation: Condado de Huelva, Jerez-Xérès-Sherry (also produced in one municipality of Seville), Málaga, Manzanilla de Sanlúcar, Montilla-Moriles, and Sierras de Málaga.

Jerez-Xérès-Sherry D.O. label

There are also 16 wines with geographic designation (Vinos de la Tierra label) in Andalusia with a level of quality certification which lies somewhere between that of common table wines and Denomination of Origin status. They are of medium quality and good value for money.

Geographic designation label for the wines from Cádiz

The sherries from Jerez are startlingly delightful, the dry as well as the sweet, raisiny versions. This explains that if you asked the Andalusians to name the wines they love most, it would go something like this: “If you are thinking of red wines, I would suggest Rioja and Riberia del Duero. In terms of white wines, I would stick to those from Jerez.” One of their top reds would probably be Rioja, the other may vary from person to person. But see, still all from Spain!

A glass of dry sherry (Image from a blog)

People outside of Spain, by and large, do not drink sherry, and tend to regard it as a dessert wine. In Andalusia, sherries are appreciated dry, so, you should try to taste some of the dry ones. Manzanillas and Finos, the lighter, dry sherries make exquisite aperitifs, perfect for sipping a little at a time and enjoying with green olives.

Fresh olives

Have a small glass (copita) of cold Solear Manzanilla (Bodegas Barbadillo, D.O. Jerez-Xéres-Sherry), for example.

NV Barbadillo Jerez-Xérès-Sherry Manzanilla Solear

For more, go to the guide of the best wines from Spain by José Peñin.

However, I have one more point to make. The Andalusians do not have blinders on, being open to all there is to taste in the world-wide wine market. They also treasure the sensations brought about by foreign beverages. A wine, for instance, a friend of mine loves, is Tokaji Oremus from Hungary.

2000 Oremus Tokaji Szamorodni Édes Sweet