Sherry Week: Celebrating Sherry Wines (and 3,000 Years of History)

As every year, at Viconvino we’re celebrating International Sherry Week, the worldwide festival of Sherry wines, which this year runs from 2 to 8 November. How are we celebrating? With 10% off Sherry wines until 10 November, and with the perfect excuse to talk about some truly unique wines.

Some wines you like, and some wines move you. If you’ve ever been to Jerez, Sanlúcar or El Puerto, or anywhere in Andalusia, you’ve surely tasted them. And, above all, felt them: an ice-cold manzanilla by the Guadalquivir, a fino with shrimp fritters, an oloroso at the end of a long lunch…

Why are they so special?

More than 3,000 years of history, white albariza soil and the Atlantic breeze. Plus two cellar secrets: the flor, which protects finos and manzanillas, and the solera system, where young and old wines are raised together for years.

Sherry at the table: what to eat with each style

Few wines are as food-friendly as Sherry. Here’s our cheat sheet:

• Fino: dry, fresh and pungent. The king of endless aperitifs: good jamón, mojama (cured tuna) with almonds, olives, fried fish, anchovies…
• Manzanilla: dry and saline. Sea urchins, cured fish, oysters, sashimi, prawns…
• Amontillado, Palo Cortado and Oloroso: dry, complex, elegant and deep. Mushrooms, artichokes, stews and roasts, cheese… A tip? Try amontillado with ginger ale (or with tonic: the amontillado tonic). You’ll be surprised!
• Cream: the bridge between dry and sweet. Foie gras, blue cheese, apple pie.
• Moscatel: sweet, floral and aromatic. Fruit desserts, cheesecake, turrón…
• Pedro Ximénez: the king of desserts. Dark chocolate, or vanilla ice cream with a splash of PX on top.

Wines that are history, literature and film

Few wines have left such a mark on culture:

• Shakespeare gave Falstaff, in Henry IV, the most famous praise of sherris-sack: if he had a thousand sons, the first thing he would teach them would be to drink it.
• Lord Byron travelled through Cádiz and Jerez in 1809, and Sherry appears in the verses of his Don Juan.
• In Mary Poppins, Mr Banks comes home from the bank singing about the things he likes to have ready: “my slippers, my sherry and my pipe”.
• In Downton Abbey, a glass of sherry before dinner is a Crawley family ritual.
• And James Bond, in Diamonds Are Forever, leaves everyone speechless when he names the year of the solera of the sherry he’s served: 1851.

Come and celebrate with us

Until 10 November, all our Sherry wines are 10% off in the shop at Carrer de la Diputació 163 (Eixample, Barcelona). Drop by and we’ll help you choose for the moment: a fino for the aperitif, an amontillado for dinner or a PX for dessert.

Can’t make it? Message us on WhatsApp or through our contact form and we’ll send it to you, also with 10% off.

Happy Sherry Week!