Some places are just ‘drink towns’; synonymous with – even dominated by – the process of creating bottles known the world over. Bordeaux, Cognac and Porto are great examples; destinations on the bucket-list of anyone with an interest in what they drink. And if you have a shortlist of ‘potential drinks visits’, Sanlúcar de Barrameda should firmly be on it too.
If your reaction to this news is ‘eh?’, ‘why?’ or ‘where’s that?’ this is understandable. Because Sanlúcar is home to a drink style – Sherry – that has spent most of the last 30 years trying and failing to ‘do a gin’ and move from 1970s non-chic to 21st century icon.
Plus, it’s the home for a very specific style of Sherry: manzanilla, making it a niche within a niche. It doesn’t even give its name to the category – that honour goes to Jerez, 25km to the east. Unlike Port, Cognac and Bordeaux, there’s no ‘Sanlúcar’ section on a wine list.
So why visit?
Firstly, because this is where the whole pale dry style of Sherry originated; secondly because it’s a small town and the Sherry bodegas’ influence runs unmissably right through the heart of it; and thirdly because the combination of local food and local drink is the simplest and most joyfully harmonious you will find anywhere in the entire wine world. Fact.
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If you’re surprised by the news that Sanlúcar (not Jerez) is the birthplace of pale dry Sherry styles, you need look no further than its coastal location for an explanation. Exposed to the Atlantic and more or less non-stop breezes, it’s cooler and more humid than inland Jerez.
Consequently, a few hundred years ago when barrels of white wine developed an accidental frothy layer of yeast, the conditions in Sanlúcar’s warehouses meant that it stayed there.
This ‘flor’ might have been unintentional, but the locals realised that it kept the wines super fresh, preventing them from oxidising, and also added interesting extra flavours.
Thus it was here, on the banks of the Guadalquivir river, that the pale dry style was born; manzanilla has to have been aged in barrel warehouses in Sanlúcar.
As for ‘niched’ – it dominates the domestic scene. Spain is Sherry’s biggest market, and roughly half of all those sales are manzanilla, according to the DO for Sherry.
Visit the town itself and you can see why. The drink is everywhere. Producers’ names jump out at you from billboards and signs, and restaurants are awash with the stuff. Bottles of manzanilla sit in ice-buckets at lunchtime, glasses drip tears of condensation in the Andalusian heat.
On restaurant wine lists, it’s no longer a small part of a hidden ‘fortified’ section, but a proud category in its own right. Manzanillas often outnumber reds and whites.
Walk through the old town – the Barrio Alto up near the medieval castle – and you’re bound to pass within a few metres of hidden barrels of manzanilla, stacked behind the high white walls.
Suddenly, manzanilla doesn’t feel like a niche within a niche; it feels like the only drink in town. And if you try it with the food you’ll see why.
Sanlúcar – at the confluence of the Guadalquivir river and the Atlantic – has some of the best (if not the best) seafood in the world; something which saw the town awarded Gastronomic Capital of Spain in 2022. The langostinos, in particular, are justifiably renowned.
The dishes in the bars and restaurants change daily depending on what the boats have brought in, and are, for the most part, simply prepared – a lot of deep-frying and not a lot of sauce. Chilled manzanilla – tangy, savoury, whistle-clean – is the perfect partner.
Its faint spritz of sea-salt echoes the platos, the surroundings and even the town’s maritime heritage. Was ever a drink so perfectly in tune with its surroundings?
Credit: Chris Losh
Sanlúcar de Barrameda is a small town with a population of around 68,000 people but…
Source : https://www.decanter.com.master.public.keystone-prod-eks-euw1.futureplc.engineering/wine/sanlucar-de-barrameda-a-wine-lovers-guide-534575/
