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SECTION VII
SHERRY
This is the name for a wide range of wines which come
from the Jerez (pronounced Hereth) district in Southern
Andalusia, Spain, of which the port of shipment is Cadiz.
Sherry has been known in this country from the time of
Sir Francis Drake and Hawkins, who first brought the
local wine to England and called it Sack. This was later
altered to Sherris-Sack, due probably to the mispronuncia
tion of Jerez. This too was later amended to Sherris Wine
and eventually Sherry. Sack is the drink written about by
William Shakespeare, this no doubt added to its
popularity.
The reason why the district around Jerez is chosen to
produce these wines is because the soil in that part is
considered to be more suitable than any other in Spain or
the rest of the world. This soil is called locally Albariza,
(very chalky, which produces the best wines), Barros, (a
clayey soil, producing larger quantities of good wines), and
the Arenas(which gives larger quantities of average quahty
wines).
Only one other area than the Jerez area has Albariza
soil and that is at Montilla, near Cordoba in Central Spain,
which gives a Montilla wine.
All the grapes grown here are white. The Palomino
and the Albillo produce the better types of Fino wines
while the Mantip de Pilar and the Mantuo Castellano
produce the average types. For the sweet wines the famous
Pedro Ximenez grape is used, named after the man who
introduced it to the country and sometimes called PX.
The wine after it has undergone its first and second
fermentation, is classified into either Fino's or Oloroso's,
the Fino's being light and the Oloroso's being heavier.
Brandy is added to the wine when it is classified, according
to its classification depends the amount of brandy it will
receive ; the Oloroso'.s receiving more than the Fino's.
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