Jerez

Yesterday was a long - but awesome - day. We took a trip to Jerez, the holy grail of Sherry wine production.

Up at 6:00a (me: wait, what?), we got dressed and headed for a nearby plaza we knew had a taxi stand. We're standing there at 7:30 waiting for a taxi to pass by. Um, yeah, it's 7:30am...there are no taxis, ya sillies. Fortunately the train station was only about a 20 minute walk, so we fired up our hush puppies and took a stroll.  

I've said it before, I love the train system in Europe. It's just so...easy. We hopped our train at 8:12 and got comfortable for the 2-hour ride to Jerez. Still early, we had the sunrise on one side of the car, and the moon set on the other. Camera is aimed at the moon, the sunrise is the reflection in the window.

We arrived in Jerez and were met by our guide, Juan Antonio. He took us on a 90 minute walk through the old city center. It's just soooo beautiful. Because Jerez is so close to the Mediterranean (and Africa), the Muslim influence is unmistakable.

winery entrance

a bit closer

the old city walls

I guess they're kind of hard to see, but behind columns, inside Gothic arches, and atop bell towers are the remnants of Arabic arches, minarets, and Moorish mosaics.

This beautiful square with San Miguel Chapel, lovely street lights, orange trees, cobblestones, and

folks taking a tour in a carriage. 

incredible architecture

Gothic, baroque

Roman

A little bit of everything

This is supposed to be Hercules. He's on the facade of the town hall. He looks a bit embarrassed, but he's got some really nice legs.

Pretty city street

The end of our walk landed us at a tabanco (sherry bar) where we shared a Pedro Ximenez with Juan. Funny - it was the very same sherry bar we visited on our last trip to Jerez, six years ago! After our drink we had lunch at the very posh La Carbona where a wonderfully rich tasting menu awaited us. The most interesting course (and frankly something I wouldn't mind eating for the rest of my natural life) was the dessert. A cheese ice cream with strawberry coulis and a honeycomb sugar wafer.

I know you're thinking, CHEESE ICE CREAM, ARE YOU CRAZY????

Hear me out. Imagine that you're eating a super rich vanilla ice cream and your partner plops next to you with a bag of Ruffles Cheddar/Sour Cream potato chips. He finishes the bag and sets it down within easy reach. With a single finger swipe across the bottom of your ice cream bowl, you then place that same finger in the inside corner of the chip bag - down where all that salty orange cheesy-flavored goodness hides. Your finger is now laden with cheese crusted vanilla ice cream and all the glory that that implies. Lick it. I'll bet you a million dollars, you'd take a second swipe in the bowl and a dip into the bag. Holy mother of all that is bad for you, that's good. Joe says, "Well said!" Oh, and the bright strawberry coulis and sugar of the honey wafer made it even better.  Moving on.

This is Manuel Maria Gonzalez Angel. He founded Gonzalez-Byass, the largest Sherry wine producer in the world and owner of Tio Pepe, it's most popular brand. It was Manuel's uncle Jose who gave him money to open his sherry bodega...Pepe is a nickname for Jose, ergo, Tio Pepe.

And, so, to the Sherry. Sherry is a fortified wine made largely from the Palomino grape - a very dry white grape. Oddly, it's not necessarily the grape that makes the sherry, it's the American Oak barrels and the aging process that produces the wine. 

There are several varieties: a light dry wine called Fino; a sharp, almost acidic wine called Amontillado (not sure why Fortunato was so keen on this wine); a softer caramel-y wine called Olorosa; a lovely not-so-boozy, toffee-flavored cream wine; and a rich, raisin-y, sticky, booze-laden deliciousness called Pedro Ximenez. We visited Bodegas Tradicion for a tasting.

We had a great day. After the last sherry, we were invited to enjoy the owner's art collection - a vast private collection that includes Picasso, Valezquez, El Greco, and many others. So wonderful while drinking that marvelous wine.

We caught the last train back to Cordoba and got home about 9:30p and crashed. Today we're on the craft beer hunt. Cheers!