Manzanilla-Sanlúcar de Barrameda and Vinagre de Jerez. Saldaña is referring to some large-scale changes to the sherry category that were announced in September 2021 and mooted to come into effect in November last year.
Nine months later and said changes are still sitting on the fence – not for long though. Saldaña is confident that, come summer 2022, a lot of the regulations put forward by the Consejo Regulador will come into play. Some will offer opportunities for smaller growers; others will provide consumers and trade with greater transparency and a new language to use when talking about sherry; and many will be a welcome return to past practices.
It’s been a culmination of extensive, sometimes conflicting and years- in-the-making discussions among producers across the sherry-making region, he explains. “These changes are the initiative of the producers themselves – a long and broad consensus which has been achieved after years of negotiations. At the end of the day the changes are a mix of historical aspirations on one side, but also technical updating. Everyone is very positive here.”
And with the category also going through a change in identity among drinkers outside of Spain, it feels like the famous fortified wine is on the cusp of an exciting new era. So, what changes can we expect to see from the category in the coming months – and how will they shape sherry in the years to come?
GEAR SHIFT
One of the most exciting changes is the return to forgotten grape varieties. Where previously sherry was made mostly from Palomino, Moscatel and Pedro Ximinez, now the likes of Mantúo Castellano, Vejeriego and Cañocazo are staged to make a comeback under the DO. Perhaps less exciting is the more stringent regulation of the selling of sherry directly from tabancos (sherry bars) and despachos (bodegas) without any labels or technical information (although it is arguably a sensible move).
When it comes to location, the famous Sherry Triangle is also up for a change in practice. Traditionally, while base wines were allowed to be made across the Jerez production area, the maturation of these wines was only allowed in the three towns of Jerez de la Frontera, Sanlúcar de Barrameda and El Puerto de Santa Maria. Come summer and maturation of sherry will be permitted across the entire Jerez production zone.
And then there is the question of categorisation. There may be a 10-year transition period but where some aged wines from Sanlúcar (best known for manzanilla production) could be labelled as finos, the new regulations mean that finos can now only be produced in Jerez and El Puerto – and all aged wines from Sanlúcar are to be called manzanilla.
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Yet there is a more major category change that Saldaña is keen to comment on – that some wines won’t have to be fortified to be called fino or manzanilla. For a category that is synonymous with fortification, it is a huge step, but one that has been brought about by climate change.
“One of the changes is that you’re not obliged to add alcohol if your wine already has the minimum alcoholic content which is required, 15%. Traditionally we fortify a wine that is naturally 12% or 13% but there are a number of producers who are obtaining wines which are at 15% but were being forced to fortify. This is a major change that needs to be approved at European level – it probably won’t be until the end of this year.”
TIDAL CHANGE
It’s true that the changes are being met positively by producers. Gonzalez Byass, which alongside its own Superior and VORS ranges is the owner of one of sherry’s biggest brands, Tío Pepe, sees the step change as a chance to modernise the category. “It shows the regulatory board is trying to modernise the region and allowing more producers means there are more people to spread the word about sherry,” says brand manager Helen Yates. “The fact that more grape varieties will be allowed is great in the long term, as this opens up more opportunities when it comes to new products.”
She’s quick to point out though that it is going to take – even more – time for us to see any of the varietal changes actually impacting the liquid offering coming out of Spain. “Producers will need time to plant new grape varieties. It will take quite some years before we see wines with these grape varieties as they have to be recovered, replanted, then they have to grow, and then wines have to be produced.”
Interestingly, brands are already innovating in some of the areas that are due to come into effect. One of the oldest brands in sherry, La Gitana – a manzanilla produced by the Hildago family – is about to release a manzanilla that hasn’t been fortified, La Gitana Unfortified 2017, the first time that has ever happened in the sherry region.
“In order to reach at least 15% alcohol, we had to use an ancient technique called ‘asoleo’,” explains eighth-generation family member and co-owner Fermin Hildago. “It means that once we cut the bunches, we have to leave them on the soil for a couple of days and turn them around twice a day in order to raise them slightly. By doing that, we reduce the amount of water in the grape juice and the sugar content increases.”
Saldaña thinks the changes will be more impactful on the overall accessibility of sherry outside of Spain when it comes to education, language and terms, and a more overarching focus and ease of category understanding. “I don’t think there will be major changes in terms of liquid but what we will have is more information to be given to consumers on labels and more options in terms of the diversity of sherry. We will see producers referring more to the vineyards, to the varieties.”
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OLD MEETS NEW
As well as the regulation changes happening in sherry, the category is enjoying a new lease of life among younger drinkers in export markets – particularly the UK. “Lockdown saw a huge growth for sherry after a few years of steady decline, with people choosing sherry as their drink of choice at home,” says Yates. “Anecdotally we think that, as lockdowns continued here in the UK, more consumers were trying new styles of drinks and created cocktails at home. Sherry cocktails are becoming more and more popular and so this perhaps was a gateway to the sherry sector for many new to sherry and possibly younger consumers with sherry like Tío Pepe, as this fits in with the trend for dry-style drinks such as Negronis and vermouths.”
She hopes that this, bolstered by the inevitable effects of the new regulations, will create a welcome noise around the category.
Hildago agrees that sherry’s future will be determined by the capturing of new consumers as well as an adoption by the on-trade of sherry cocktails that come in at a lower abv than some of their spirits category counterparts: “One of the most important things for the sherry industry is to be appealing to younger consumers. We need a generational change and we believe that in the past two years this change has sped up significantly.”
He also notes that the sale of oxidised sherries – such as amontillado – are beginning to see more interest in the likes of California, while a greater job around education of sherry as not just a sweet wine is something that needs to happen more in order to make the category more appealing to people as a drink to have alongside food.
Through the Consejo Regulador, Saldaña and his team have also been working on a campaign to try to keep all these new consumers engaged with sherry. They have also been working on approaching sherry as a category more aligned with how they approach wine, establishing it as a drink to be enjoyed with food as consumers do in Spain – something that will be made more seamless when more emphasis is given to varieties, vineyards and regions. “This will open doors.”
