Issue one. May to October two thousand and eleven
Dani García
La Boquería market
Lepanto Brandy
Pepe Reina
In the vanguard of Andalusian cooking
Matching with cheese
Analysis of the wine market in China The holy grail of export markets
Tribute to Gaspar Rey
Liverpool’s goalkeeper reveals his foodie passions
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D.O.Ca.Rioja
D.O.Somontano
D.O.Cava
V.T.Castilla
V.T.Cรกdiz
D.O. Jerez
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EDITORIAL
WELCOME If our great-great-grandfather Manuel Mª González Ángel, were to see this magazine a smile would surely play across his lips. Its name, “Vida Vid Vino”(“Life Vines Wines”) is a tribute we wanted to make to the founder of González Byass, who stated in 1836 that: “I can find no lovelier business than wine and I wish to devote myself to it entirely”. Vida Vid Vino could not have had any other name – because wine is all about sensations and emotions, nature and the earth, happiness and fun. These words express the metaphor associated with wine, which begins life begins on the vine, involves us with the land and the weather, and prompts attention to detail and a passion for things well done. Our determination to become a wine family is reflected in the fact that we have bodegas in some of the most emblematic areas of Spain, which means we can enjoy wines with unique, original personalities. Vida Vid Vino hopes to be a companion on your travels around the fascinating world of wine and gastronomy. Through the magazine we will visit unique enclaves and the best restaurants, we will discover what fires the soul of a selection of personalities, review what has been going on in our world, take a close look at our economy...As you can see, we have great ambitions for the content, which we hope will satisfy your curiosity and awaken your interest. I would like to invite you to peruse the pages of Vida Vid Vino and encourage you to take part by sending in suggestions. All letters and e-mails will be welcome and will help us establish important links with our readers. What we are hoping is that you will find this magazine to be an open forum where we all feel we have a voice. After all, what would happen to our world without you? Lastly, I would suggest you read this magazine with a glass of wine in your hand.
Chairman, Mauricio González Gordon
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NEWS
From The Wine Industry
MAURICIO GONZÁLEZ-GORDON wins ANDALUSIA OUTSTANDING BUSINESS AWARD Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award, 2010 Madrid.- Andalusía has carried off the prize in one of the categories of the 2010 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Awards, specifically the Outstanding Business prize, which was awarded to Mauricio González-Gordon, chairman of Andalusian family owned company González Byass. Mauricio González-Gordon López de Carrizosa is Chairman of the González Byass Group, a family company founded in 1835 and devoted to producing wines, sherry, brandy and liqueurs. Throughout its 135 year history González Byass has kept its roots in Jerez and currently boasts brands such as Tío Pepe, Soberano, Lepanto, Viñas del Vero and Beronia. With over 1,800 hectares of vineyards the company has also invested in producing quality wines in Spain’s main wine-growing regions, including Bodegas Beronia, in La Rioja; Vilarnau, in Penedès; Viñas del Vero, in Somontano; Finca Constancia, in Toledo and Finca Moncloa, in Cádiz. González Byass has a presence in over 100 countries around the world, has its own distribution system in Spain, the UK and Mexico and has recently opened offices in Shanghai and New York.
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News
González Byass, ‘Wine maker of the year ’ Title confIrms González Byass as best wine maker in the world González Byass has won the highest accolade in the International Wine & Spirit Competition.“Winemaker of the year” makes the company the best wine producer in the world. The prize awarded to González Byass at the International Wine and Spirit Awards means that the company is now the best wine producer in the world.The “Winemaker of the Year” Award rewards the entire family of González Byass wineries and makes this family owned company Spain’s leading international quality wine producer. Mauricio González-Gordon, chairman of González Byass, collected the prize, considered worldwide to be the ultimate accolade, one that winemakers in countries including Italy, France, Argentina and South Africa aspired to win. The chairman of González Byass declared that the prize is a great honour for the company and for Spain’s wine making industry and highlighted the importance of the wines of Rioja, Jerez, Cava, Somontano, Castilla la Mancha and Cádiz having been recognised in the international arena. González Byass also won the title of “Spanish Wine Producer”, in addition to the company’s Apóstoles Palo Cortado winning the Sherry category. The 41st IWSC awards ceremony took place in London’s historic Guildhall, with more than 10,000 wines from some 50 countries around the world having been entered. The wines were judged by a tasting panel of 300 wine professionals and were also subjected to a series of chemical analyses.
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NEWS
WWF rolls out organic wine and certified quality cork project
Global consumption of wine remains stable
hardwoods, vanilla and nuts in perfect harmony
but invests less in promotion and distilling
France unseats Italy as world’s biggest producer
Jerez.- González Byass reaffirms commitment to sherry by launching Leonor Palo Cortado. This type of wine is midway between an amontillado and an oloroso. The name refers to the chalk mark the winemaker draws on the butt to indicate how the wine is developing – in this instance by oxidative ageing. With its very limited production Leonor is a gem of a wine.
Madrid.- Environmental organisation WWF España has been rolling out a pilot project since 2010 titled “Organic Wine and Quality Certified Cork: A toast to the land”,designed to promote sound management of vineyards and cork oak forests with a view to obtaining a unique product with a point of difference: an organic wine with a Forestry Stewardship Council certified cork. “This is the best way to ensure that forestry operations comply with social and environmental criteria,” according to Europa Press.
Paris.- Sales of wine across the world increased in 2010 whilst consumption remained stable following two consecutive years of decline, according to the International Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV). Trade in wine was 6.7% up on the previous year to 92 million hectolitres, thanks particularly to European exports, a new trend that has been observed over the last 15 years according to the OIV.
With this in mind, the environment organisation says, the project aims to combine corporate responsibility with respect for the environment whilst ensuring that the operations involved – currently four, in Lanzarote, Castilla La Mancha, Valencia and Cazalla de Sierra in the province of Seville – remain economically, environmentally and socially viable. On the same subject, it has disclosed that an organic grower from a farm in Bollulos Par del Condado, in Huelva, has now joined the project.
France unseated Italy as the world’s biggest producer with almost 45 million hectolitres whilst in Spain production slipped slightly to just under 34 million hectolitres, ahead of the USA’s 19.6 million hectolitres and the 16.2 million produced by Argentina (whose output had been 12.1 million in 2009). In Chile production fell from 10 million litres in 2009 to 8.8 million last year.
‘Leonor ’,a very exclusive Palo Cortado is born
Leonor is a classic Palo Cortado with a quintessentially Jerez character and completes the range of this type of wine, which offer different nuances of style and are unique products of unquestionable quality. Alfonso is a thoroughbred oloroso of great complexity and rich aromas. Viña AB is a light, amber coloured and very refined amontillado. Christina is the perfect complement, a blended wine with a subtle touch of Pedro Jiménez that adds a very pleasant hint of syrupiness that is quite unique. Néctar is aged, elegant sweetness with hints of honey, dates and figs that meld with the burnished, roasted notes of oak, tinting the wine a dark ebony colour. 8
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Last year 236,300,000 hectolitres of wine were consumed, a similar amount as in 2009.
Nombre de sección NEWS
Bar Pepito captivates Londoners London.- González Byass’ Sherry Bar has been named one of the best new ventures in the UK capital. According to restaurant critic Nicholas Lander, Bar Pepito, a joint venture between Richard Bigg, a true lover of Andalusian culture, and González Byass, is one of the three best establishments opened in London in recent months. Bar Pepito is a pleasant surprise. The outside, with butts of Tio Pepe and red sunshades contrasting with a dark brick facade, entices people in to its small space. On venturing inside – a scant 40 square metres – people are utterly immersed in and transported to a very Spanish bar redolent of the aromas of cecina (cured beef) and fine cured ham, of wood and of flavoursome olorosos, where the atmosphere is happy and relaxed. Upon the butts, which serve as tables, stand the “Flights”, devices that hold three tasting glasses filled with different types of fino from each of which hangs a little tasting note. The British still enjoy this kind of pale wine, as well as many others. Located near King’s Cross station in an area that is currently very trendy, Bar Pepito has captivated the hearts of Londoners. If is full when you arrive just cross the courtyard and go to Camino, a much larger place belonging to the same owner that plays Latin music, serves Spanish food geared to British taste and where there always seems to be a party going on.
You recycle, Vilarnau reprocesses Sant Sadurní d’Anoia.- With its “You recycle, Vilarnau reprocesses” catchphrase the Sant Sadurní d’Anoia winery is running a campaign to raise awareness of the importance of using and re-using the cork from bottles of wine. The Vilarnau winery’s winemaker, Damiá Deas (seen in the photograph holding the microphone during the project launch) set up the initiative, whereby consumers buying a bottle of one of Vilarnau’s range of cavas receive a special container for collecting corks in to recycle. When they return ten corks, of any brand, they receive an exclusive gift in recycled cork from Vilarnau (a photo frame, key ring or bookmark). Also present at the launch event, along with the cava maker and Eva Plazas, enologist and technical expert at Vilarnau, and there to support Vilarnau’s initiative were Lluís Medir, president of Retecork (European Network of Cork Producing Territories) and Manel Pretel, president of ICSuro (Institut Català del Suro). text: Antonio Frutos.
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SPIRITS
The London nº1 sponsors IVth oyster opening competition at Salón Gourmets The London Nº1 sponsored the IVth Oyster Openers Competition the was held during the XXVth Salón Internacional Club de Gourmets. Some of Spain’s best oyster openers competed to win a prize of 1500 euros and represent the country at the World Oyster Opening Chanpionship that takes place in the Irish city of Galway.
The London Nº1 is a unique English gin with a very distinct, sophisticated and elegant personality and is produced in London in small batches. An exclusive, refined blend of 12 botanicals lends it a very special complexity and the result is a clean, clear gin of a beautiful turquoise blue colour and a mild, spiced flavour. A sum of many parts that create pure harmony.
The jury, comprised of restaurant professionals and food journalists assessed various aspects of the contestants’ skill/ dexterity, including the technique used to open the oysters, speed, cleanliness and presentation.
The refreshing balsamic and juniper notes of London Nº 1 make it the ideal gin to drink on its own, as the main ingredient of a number of different cocktails and, most especially, for a gin and tonic. text: Alicia Tacheles.
The oysters and The London Nº1 are, without a doubt, an unusual and delicious combination. The notes of juniper in the gin are the perfect counterpoint to the intense sea flavour of this bivalve and are also perfect for a Dry Martini or a gin & tonic. The British brand of premium gin also featured in the Bokado part of the Taller de los Sentidos (Workshop for the Senses) over the four days of the show.
text: Alicia Tacheles.
facebook: The London Nº1 twitter: @ginebralondon1 www.thelondon1.com
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SPIRITS
Matching brandy and cheese – would you dare? A tutored tasting of Lepanto brandy and cheese prompts unexpected pairings. The Lepanto brandy bosses have come up with a party to taste cheeses from different parts of the world. An inspired, fun idea with surprising culinary results. Having proved it can be paired, a red-hot trend has been created. Lepanto brandy, the only Sherry distillate, can be matched with a huge panoply of products. It is true that its mature features, liveliness in the mouth and its strength lend it the qualities that are required for drinking at the end of a meal, but it is even more of a winner and its features are further enhanced when taken with something to accompany it. In this particular matching, cheese stood as the perfect partner. A growing number of top restaurants are offering a cheeseboard before dessert, which is beginning to be accompanied by a glass of brandy because of this curious symbiosis that is so lauded by critics and the public.
Sánchez, who runs cheese shop La Boulette, and González Byass’ master distiller Luis Miguel Trillo. Pressed paste cheeses such as Mahón from Menorca and Farmhouse Gouda are others that provide a different style of match for Lepanto.
Gooey cheeses with creamy textures and a fatty feel that take on the density of the alcohol in the mouth; long matured cheeses with well developed bouquets and lactic acid goat’s cheeses whose features spread across the palate as the brandy washes over it all offer the appropriate properties for “this original partnership”. This is the view of cheese expert Guillermina
Sánchez and Trillo’s conclusions, which are backed by a select group of wine experts, were drawn just on the basis of a few basic features and specific cheeses but the true range of pairings is very broad and dictated by each person’s own palate.
In this instance, according to the experts, “the brandy enhances the piquancy of the cheese, bringing out and boosting its flavour” with a long-lasting aftertaste where, as several wine experts have identified, “the cheese brings out the vanilla in the brandy.” Lastly, the experts all agree that blue cheeses such as Stilton (English) and Cabrales (Spanish) are ideal and make excellent, possibly slightly daring partners.
Matching at five restaurants in Madrid Five of the capital’s top restaurants have seized upon the idea and are offering a glass of Lepanto brandy with their cheeseboard. One such is the Bristol Bar, which is noted particularly for its prodigious selection of English cheeses with Stilton, Cheddar and Somerset Brie as the main event. The Va de Baco wine bar offers a similar board in a more informal setting, with unpasteurised milk cheeses such as French Camembert and Spanish Manchego being the main feature along with cow’s milk cheeses such as Fourme d’Ambert, a blue that softens the flavour of the brandy. The biggest selections, to follow an exceptional meal, are to be found at El Antiguo Covnento, Espacio 33 and Santceloni. La Hostería at the Boadilla convent offers almost 25 different cheeses, nearly all of which are Spanish, at Torre Espacio the well thought out selection includes, notably, Spanish cheeses Flor de Guarapo and Sierra de Grazalema, and Dos Estrellas on the Castellana boasts 30 different cheeses including a fair few that are suitable to have with brandy. At all of these temples to fine dining the cheeseboard or trolley comes with a glass of Lepanto. Having aged for more than 12 years, it can give a brand new dimension to matching with cheese. Just an idea from the experts we spoke to: start with a lactic acid cheese and finish with a Stilton between sips of Lepanto.
text: Javier Estrada.
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FAMILY OFsección WINE Nombre de
Manuel María González Ángel, Founder of the González Byass winery:
“I can find no lovelie r business than wine and I wish to devote myself to it entirely” The history of the González Byass winery begins in the mind of a young man born in Sanlúcar de Barrameda in 1812 who went to work in a sales office in the city of Cádiz at the age of 18, where he dealt with England selling tulle and fans until his entrepreneurial spirit made him realise that there might be an interesting future in exporting sherry to the United Kingdom.
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FAMILY OF WINE
In 1835, at the age of 23, he began to export wine with Gutiérrez Agüera, a wine producer in Sanlúcar de Barrameda. He realised straight away that he needed to create an international sales department and called upon his childhood friend, Juan Bautista Dubosc, who was of French extraction. He created the first company with him and Agüer, although Agüera withdrew after five years. Manuel María González Ángel, the founder, was not only a good negotiator and strategist but was also a lover of the wines from Jerez. In a letter he wrote at the time to a friend in New York he remarks “I can find no lovelier business than wine and I wish to devote myself to it entirely.” With this idea in his head he would soon become the foremost exporter in Jerez (1854) and not long after, from 1856 to 1865, accounted for two percent of all Spanish wine exports. Manuel María González Ángel, founder of the González Byass winery
text: Javier Estrada. photos: courtesy of the González Byass archives.
At the age of 26 the founder married Victorina de Soto Lavaggi of Cádiz, the descendent of an aristocratic family from the town of Briviesca in Burgos, with whom he had nine children.
In 1855, Byass joined the company as a partner and it changed its name to González, Dubosc and Company. New wineries were opened such as La Constancia, Los Apóstoles, La Cuadrada and Los Gigantes in 1859. Business was sailing along full steam ahead, the product coming out of the winery was getting better all the time and was very well received by its many consumers all around the world. The business was growing and with it the number of workers it employed. It introduced some social improvements that were very much ahead of the times such as pensions for those retiring and widowed, jobs for the wives of workers who died and a company doctor a century before it became compulsory by law. González Ángel wrote: “improving conditions for the working class has been my ultimate dream.” In 1861, Dubosc passed away and Byass was left the only partner, creating González Byass for the first time, although the name would change for good a few years later. In 1862 queen Isabel II visited the company. The founder seized the opportunity to ask the Queen of Spain to intercede to get drinking water piped in to Jerez forthwith.
The first sale of Tío Pepe in England took place in August 1844. That same year Rober Blake Byass, who was then the best salesman Manuel María González had in the Anglosaxon country wrote him a letter telling him that “when Mr Dubosc arrives in the city we will see what we can do with this very very Pale wine that you so enthusiastically recommend.”
It was during 1865 that Manuel María looked into a fabulous project, to build his residence inside the winery, The finished plans for a palace with windows and adornments in the gothic mudéjar style are still extant but he never managed to build it. It could be that he sensed the crisis that was looming and that was to continue until 1869, marking the end of a protracted period of growth and expansion.
The winery was growing, swallowing up the streets of the city of Jerez along the way, creating dozens of jobs and driving such important projects as the arrival of the railway and electric lighting, The wines were even being sold in Russia. In 1851 González & Dubosc were granted the title of Official supplier to the Royal Household and nominated Byass as their exclusive agent.
Manuel María González Ángel was awarded numerous Distinctions including the Gran Cruz de Isabel la Católica and being nominated as an Adoptive Son of Jerez. Sanlúcar de Barrameda granted him the title of Favourite Son and in Jerez a street and a monument were dedicated to his memory. The founder of González Byass passed away in Jerez de la Frontera in 1887. vvv
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FAMILY OF WINE
Begoña García González – Gordon checking her bibliography in the archives of the González Byass winery in Jerez de la Frontera.
Begoña García González - Gordon “I want to write about my grandfather, he was a man with an enormous joie de vivre”
Begoña García González - Gordon is a member of the great González Byass family: the great great grand-daughter of the founder and grand-daughter of Manuel María González Ángel’s second son’s fifth son. She is part of the fifth generation of the family and for over ten years now she has, with their support and in particular that of her uncle Mauricio González - Gordon Díez, been the family’s publisher, scribe and researcher, seeking out stories big and small, retrieving them in many cases from oblivion and, in other instances, compiling and putting the winery’s and the family’s memories in order before publishing them in glorious commemorative editions that mark the exciting story of a great life.
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”175 years looking to the future. As a family.” Written by Begoña García González – Gordon and published by the Manuel María González Ángel Foundation.
”Exploring González Byass, remembering its founder Manuel Mª González Ángel”. Written by Begoña García González – Gordon and published by the Manuel María González Ángel Foundation.
“Next I wrote “EL Altillo”, a book about my family. I seem to have taken to the subject,” Begoña explains with a laugh, “it is about my aunts, my mother’s cousins, who lived on a farm the founder bought as a country home and retreat on the outskirts of the city of Jerez. It is the story of seven sisters, only one of whom ever married and who lived all their lives on that farm. The last surviving one still lives there. She is 96 years old and it was she who told me this story. ”Begoña says that as she has looked though the many documents that reveal the family’s history she has never found anything secret or strange. “175 years looking to the future. As a family” is her latest book, published to commemorate the winery’s 175th anniversary. “It was designed to be used as a gift for customers, journalists and family. What I have written about is the 175 years of history divided into chapters covering 25 years at a time.”Explains Begoña García González Gordon, who lives in the city of Jerez de la Frontera with her family and works side by side with the people who look after the González Byass historical archives. “I am enormously fortunate in that for my research work I can count on the work and assistance of Don Manuel Pérez and Jesús Anguita, from the archives,” Begoña continues. “it is true that having written the previous book “Exploring González Byass, remembering its founder”, about the winery during its founder’s lifetime, working on this latest book has been easier because I had already finished the winery’s first hundred years.”
The writer and publisher produce her first book in 2000. It was titled “A life in Doñana” and was also linked to the family history. “My grandfather Manolo bought part of the Coto de Doñana and today it belongs to my uncle Mauricio and my uncle Jaime,” states Begoña García.“Antonio Chico was working there, an exceptional man who was an excellent communicator and used to tell wonderful stories and every time we went home from our stays at el Coto we used to say that someone had to write a book about this person’s life. Then uncle Mauricio encouraged me and, with his daughter Bibina, who paints, I wrote the book and she illustrated it with beautiful watercolour paintings.” The book tells the story of Antonio Chico, head ranger at el Coto, who lived in Doñana all his life and only left to go an fight in the Spanish Civil War.
“I have always told everything. There are no great Secrets. It is certainly true that the most controversial Figure was my great grandfather, the Marqués de Torresoto. He was a highly energetic person who had a huge joie de vivre. When I read that he was courting his girlfriend by climbing up onto the roof and the neighbours fired on him with a shotgun, I realised there were stories to create another book with that will probably soon see the light of day. I want to write about my great grandfather when I have pulled together all the documents my grandfather left”, the author tells me, revealing what she is current busy with. “The only challenge I had writing the 175th anniversary book,” says Begoña García González-Gordon in concluding, “and simply because the family is so large was to make sure everyone was included.”Begoña García González-Gordon. text and photo: Javier Estrada.
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Nombre TIO PEPE de 75th sección ANNIVERSARY
TÍO PEPE ICON IS 75 YEARS OLD “So you see how simply a wine from Je rez can be embellished”
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Tio Pepe neon sign in the Puerta del Sol, Madrid.
The Tío Pepe icon is 75 years old and its birth and story are full of fascinating anecdotes. In 1934 González Byass hired the services of advertising agent Luis Pérez Solero as head of publicity. One of the FIrst things the new head of promotion did was to dress the Tío Pepe bottle with an Andalusian hat, short jacket and Spanish guitar. He also dressed the Solera 1847 bottle as a flamenco dancer including mantilla, comb and fan and completed his idiosyncratic fashion show with the Soberano and Gaditano bottles.
TIO PEPE 75th ANNIVERSARY
The Tío pepe icon appeared in public for the first time on 18th March 1936 in the bullring in Valencia, when the Fallas festivities were in full swing and novice Ventura Núñez, Venturita, became a fully-fledged bullfighter under his tutor, master bullfighter Domingo Ortega.
“You will see how simply they brought me to life in Jerez. Firstly they bottled the Andalusian sun, then gave me a jacket, a guitar and a hat and thus Tío Pepe was born, full of charisma and wit. So you see how simply a wine from Jerez can be embellished.”
The young bullfighter made the emotional and now historic gesture of dedicating his kill to the city of Jerez whilst looking at the huge bottle of Tío Pepe stood above the terraces of the bullring. Dozens of parachutes were dropped that day too, each bearing little wooden Tío Pepe bottles. Overall a marvel of imagination and modernity for the times.
finished, the sign will be put back for ever and will continue to be one of the Madrid landscape’s most representative postcard images.
Luis Pérez Solero, who as well as being a leading publicist could also draw and play the piano, wrote a piece dedicated to the Tío Pepe icon he had invented that was published in the Diario Ayer newspaper in 1941 and went as follows:
The application for the Puerta del Sol illuminated advertisement project was lodged with Madrid City Council on 25th November 1935. The license cost 800 pesetas and at first the advertisement carried the slogan “González Byass. Vinos – Jerez – Coñac”, with a huge tasting glass resting on the horizontal bar of the G in González. A few years later, in 1947, the ad was repaired and its design altered, adding the Tío Pepe icon to make it look just as it does today.
The historic Tío Pepe advertisement that now sits a top one of the buildings in Madrid’s Puerta del Sol won a reprieve a year ago. The illuminated sign is now a part of the city’s cultural heritage and is one of the few that will be allowed to remain in the city centre after the new bylaw governing outdoor advertising, which bans this kind of illuminated sign in the historic city centre, comes into force.
Tío Pepe was Spain’s first Registered Trademark and quickly gained recognition in all markets. The winery’s archives tell how the first shipment of Tío Pepe was made to England in 1844, in butts. José María Ángel y Vargas was tío (uncle) Pepe, the man who helped and advised his nephew Manuel María González Ángel, the winery’s owner and founder, when he started out in the wine business.
The Tío Pepe board, which weighed 70 tonnes, was placed on the roof of the building that used to house the Hotel Paris in 1935. On April 19th last it was taken down temporarily to allow the refurbishment work to take place that would reinstate an hotel in the building. After the work, which is estimated to take less than six months, is
Even though the wine to be exported tended in those days to be sweet olorosos (‘olorosos abocados’) the company began to buy in fino wine from other makers, small shipments consisting of just a few butts, selected personally by Tío Pepe himself. On 13th March 1849 the solera and three criaderas for the Tío Pepe fino were created. The first
bottled Tío Pepe recorded was a shipment to Lord Brownlow Cecil, Governor of Gibraltar, at Christmas 1855.The Tío Pepe icon has been around the globe, is one of the most readily recognised brands in the world and has been a source of inspiration for many artists.
text: Alicia Tacheles.
Image showing the first time the icon appeared in the bullring in Valencia, in March 1936.
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PROFILES
Lovers
of fino and its culture Genaro has spent more than 40 years as a venenciador for TĂo Pepe all over the world
Genaro on the left, pours out the fino with his venencia andshares some thoughts with his son Alejandro whilst giving Tio Pepe fino to taste in the GonzĂĄlez Byass, winery in Jerez. 20
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PROFILES
“I am the second generation that has worked with this family,” declares Genaro Benítez, González Byass’ venenciador, keenly and with an air of satisfaction. Shortly to retire after more than forty years in the job that he has a high regard for and for which he has been around the world a few times dressed in his short jacket, with a butt of Tío Pepe and a venencia in his hand. Today he is proud to introduce his son Alejandro, 28 years old and the third generation taking over as ‘venenciador’, with all his father’s art and passion. Genaro was born in Jerez de la Frontera in 1955. As a child he went to Santa Luisa school, where the children of González Byass workers went to lessons and gained an education. At the age of fourteen, he was to become one of the finest venenciadors ever started work in the winery of his dreams as an office boy: “I always talk about it as my family because we really feel we are a part of González Byass. My father and my uncle both worked here.” After four years getting to know the different rooms, jobs and departments, he turned 18 and decided to work in the winery, where he soon came across the venencia. “I started pouring with the venencia for the directors bosses when they met in their offices, then I went out with the bodega managers to buy wine and to load the butts on board ship on their way to the overseas markets. In both instances I had to extract samples so that the winemaker could determine if the quality was up to standard,” enthuses Genaro as if delivering a well-rehearsed script. “Pepe Ortega, the best of all time, was my teacher and my second father,” continues this energetic Jerezano. “He was the pioneer and the one who made people understand the importance of our work.” The venencia The work tool is called a venencia (it used to be made from a whale’s hair but today is
made from synthetic materials that replicate its flexibility) and the name is derived from it being the tool that was used when deals were being struck between winemakers to extract samples to taste from the butts of Sherry that might be purchased. Venenciar, in other words to dispense fino Sherry from a venencia is a talent and an inspiration. The shape of the venencia is specially designed so that it can enter the butt swiftly, break the veil of flor and extract clean fino, which is then poured vertically from a height so that it oxygenates and is delivered into the glass with its aroma at its sharpest. This in turn helps the wine expert with his assessment. The different styles of the art of the venencia. Genaro and Alejandro use a particular procedure called el latigazo, as the master, Pepe Ortega called it. “It is a more aggressive way of using the venencia that means the wine has been shaken more by the time it reaches the glass. It is more risky way of pouring and there is no room for error, no safety net. People are amazed by our technique,” explains the venenciador. The five continents Genaro Benítez has been around the world several Times: “The figure of the venenciador is key to how we support exports of fino all over the world. It is easier to educate people about fino by usinga venenciador than through a slogan on television because we are creating an attraction that draws people. We offer them a glass of fino straight away as a
form of personal service and people always take it.” His first outing abroad as a venenciador was to Milan in 1973 and he has not stopped since. He has been to a multitude of countries and met numerous personalities. Of all his experiences two of his most enduring memories are how interested the Japanese were in his work and the afternoon he performed for the King of Spain and all the Spanish ministers and politicians at the Royal Palace in Madrid during the celebrations to mark Spain’s entry into the European Union. Alejandro, the third generation Genaro’s son is 28 and has just returned from seven months as a venenciador in the Spanish pavilion at the Shanghai Expo. He tells the story of how he learned the technique in under a month by practising with water for almost 18 hours a day. Today he tells us that “I have seen how much they like sherry in China and I am sure that it can work anywhere in the world.” “I don’t like Tio Pepe, I love it” chuckles Genaro, who claims he always has three bottles in the door of his fridge at home at the same time. He admits he misses the competitions for venenciadors that used to take place during the Grape Harvest Festival.He seizes upon the last minutes of the interview to remark that the figure of the venenciador is very sought after these days but that the quality requirement is not so high: “Like with football and bullfighting, there are lots of them but just a few good ones,” Genaro concludes.
The Greek venenciador The venencia is a utensil that already existed in 490 BC. The book titled “A history of Wine” by Mr. H. Warner Allen includes an illustration of a Greek urn that shows a wine maker with a funnel in one hand and a venencia in the other. The same as is used today in Jerez. In ancient Greece it was used to extract wine from amphorae with tall, narrow necks. text and photo: Javier Estrada.
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VIIIth
DAYS OF WINE AND TRUFFLES Carlo Cracco’s cooking shines at Blecua
The Italian chef was the great star of the latest Days of Wine and Truffes organised by Viñas de Vero. Cracco demonstrated just why he is considered to be one of the top FIve chefs in the world for the way he prepares truffes, with a salt crust, with lentils, in balls with caviar, in Focaccine...the repertoire of dishes Carlo Cracco created for the audience over these few days was as exquisite as it was tempting.
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Journalists from all corners of Spain along with friends and others involved with the wineries who travelled from various parts of Europe did justice to both the Milan based chef’s virtuosity and the truffles from Graus, which grow near the farms where the Viñas del Vero vines are grown. The Days of Wine and truffles experience goes on for barely twenty four hours. These are however twenty four hours of sensory intensity and complexity that are truly extraordinary. On the first night those attending are introduced to the landscape, the atmosphere and the wine of Somontano. To this end the organisers arrange a dinner in one of the wineries in the group, a repast centred on the traditional food of the area and its magnificent and many varied wines.
Tasting This year featured a tasting of a number of different cheeses and cured meat products along with delicious and rarely seen borrajas (borage), lamb chiretas (a form of haggis typical of Aragón) and cod cooked in the local fashion. The culinary experience though is just an excuse to sample the different wines that are produced in the area. After the puddings a very enjoyable time was spent around the table tasting various Gonzaléz Byass distillates. The following morning if the weather is fine as was this time, the truffle hunting experience becomes absolutely delicious. After breakfast at the hotel the guests leave Barbastro by coach and are driven down highway 123 to the Secastilla valley, to a spot between the Barasona dams and Elgrado (slightly closer to the latter). The gorges the N-123 road passes through take the traveller to a magical world where man has no place and the full force and the marvels of nature can be appreciated. The Secastilla valley, the road’s final destination, lies at about eight hundred metres above sea level. The soil there is very stony and conifers and holm oaks abound. It is amongst the roots of this latter tree that the black truffles grow. vvv
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Hunting for truffles At the appropriate time of year expert local hunters set off, using the sense of smell of specially trained dogs, to hunt and dig up the very special culinary black gold. The search for truffles is in fact one of the highlights of the event. Secastilla does however hold more gastronomic surprises. It has to be said that one was that vines were a traditional crop in Somontano way back in history but the practice had fallen into abeyance with the emergence of the wines from this D.O. onto first the domestic and then the international markets. Lastly, here, more than seven hundred metres up Vi単as del Vero has recovered very old garnacha vineyards and planted others with syrah and parraleta. These are the Valle de Secastilla pagos, where a special Mediterranean microclimate prevails. The relative altitude and the special orientation of the vineyards make this an area that receives many hours of sunlight, which helps the fruit to ripen. Also the land here is dry with quite stony, sandy loam soil. This is where the Secastilla and La miranda de Secastilla wines come from. The former is made from 100% garnacha grapes whilst the latter is a blend of the three varietals. As there is nothing better than to taste wine right by the vines the guests went off to do just that on one side of the valley. They took with them a minimum amount of equipment, just enough to be able to savour the wines and some longaniza sausages grilled over holm oak and vine shoots. The experience was enough to make them want to stay forever but the schedule was unforgiving, with Carlo Cracco waiting for them back at the Blecua winery with a gastronomic feast of which truffles were the undisputed star. Such genius cannot be made to wait, nor was there any desire to make him do so! Everyone thus piled onto the coach to return to Barbastro. 24
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“The hunt for truffles is one of the highlights of the day”
Arriving at Blecua Blecua is on the outskirts of the city.The Blecua plantations, better known locally as the ‘torre Blecua’ (Blecua tower), dates back to the XIth century when it was used as a retreat by the French Benedictinemonks from Santa Fe de Conques, Its fourteen hectares, which lie in the most Central part of Somomtano, include a beautiful house that Viñas del Vero has restored to create the winery where its most emblematic wine, Blecua, is made.
Following a brief tour of the bodega, the guests were awaited by the Italian chef on the second floor of the small but pretty building. There they were treated to a delicious appetizer based on truffles in a salt crust, dried flowers and pasta cooked al dente with Chios mastic – a strongly flavoured resin that is extracted from a shrub, whose many virtues include therapeutic and digestive properties. A delicate, delicious Gewürztraminer was served to drink.
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Much more than a genius with truffles Carlo Cracco is considered to be one of the world’s masters of preparing truffles. His culinary interests go much further though. He is an eclectic cook, a lover of gastronomy and a keen observer of everything in nature that involves aromas and flavours. Cracco was born in Vivenza in 1965 and embarked upon his professional career with Gualtiero Marchesi in Milan, at Italy’s first restaurant to gain three Michelin stars. Later, amongst many other experiences, he worked in the kitchens of Alain Ducasse and Lucas Carton, two great masters of French cuisine. Today he has his own, eponymous restaurant in Milan that he has run as sole owner since 2007 and has two stars in the Michelin guide.
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Nuvola di mascarpone al pistacchio di Bronte, datteri confit e tartufo nero. Mignardises (Mascarpone cloud with Bronte pistachios, candied dates and black truffle. Mignardises)
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The group then moved on to the winery’s dining room on the floor above, for the main part of the meal, a parade of dishes that included a Chestnut cream with lentils and maracuja, Fusilli with truffle and caviar ‘maeatballs’ and Truffles in Focaccia, all served with Clarión White and Blecua red wine. The mascarpone cloud with pistachio, dates and truffles was the most outstanding of the desserts, served with a Matusalem wine made from Pedro Ximénez grapes that was the perfect partner. Exhausted but delighted the guests then set off on their respective journeys home, carrying on their palates, in their minds and in their eyes dozens of sensations and emotions that will be hard for them to forget.
text: Pablo Varela. photos: monsCLUB.
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STAFF Nombre de sección
EDITORIAL TEAM:
CHAIRMAN:
Mauricio González-Gordon
VICE PRESIDENT:
Pedro Rebuelta González
CEO:
Jorge A. Grosse
EDITORIAL DIRECTOR:
Leticia Sánchez Lara
CO-DIRECTOR:
Javier Estrada Gutiérrez
ASSISTANT DIRECTOR:
Pablo Varela Ullastres
EDITORIAL CONSULTANTS:
Charlotte Hey Eugeni Brotons
EDITORIAL:
Marc Riba Antonio Frutos Alicia Tacheles
CONTRIBUTORS:
Antonio Flores Gaspar Rey Bartolomé Sánchez Andrés Proensa José Mª Rubio
DESIGN:
Cromátika Comunicación Visual hola@cromatika.es +34 91 365 57 63
PRINT:
Dédalo Offset
PUBLISHERS:
Ideas y Ventas s.l. on behalf of González Byass c/ Asura 41 a – bajo. 28043 Madrid 91 721 60 40 Vida, Vid, Vino is not responsible for the opinions of the contributors or advertisers in this edition, nor does it identify itself with them. ISBN: M-19314-2011 Distributed by González Byass. With thanks to the Gonzalez Byass Historical Archive.
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GONZÁLEZ BYASS:
C/ Manuel Maria Gonzalez, 12, Jerez de La Frontera, Cadiz 11403 T: 956 357 000 F: 956 321 291 www.gonzalezbyass.es
VILARNAU:
Ctra. D’ Espiell, km. 1.4 “Fican Can Petit” 08770 Sant Sadurni D’Anoia (BARCELONA) T: 93 891 23 61 www.vilarnau.es
BODEGAS BERONIA:
Ctra. Ollauri-Nájera, km. 1,8 26200 Ollauri (LA RIOJA) T: 941 338 000 www.beronia.es
VIÑAS DEL VERO:
Ctra. Barbastro-Naval, km. 3,7 22300 Barbastro (HUESCA) T: 974 30 22 16 www.vinasdelvero.es
FINCA CONSTANCIA:
Camino del Bravo, s/n 45543 Otero (TOLEDO) T: 925 86 15 35 www.gonzalezbyass.es
FINCA MONCLOA:
C/ Manuel Maria Gonzalez, 12, Jerez de La Frontera, Cadiz 11403 T: 956 357 000 F: 956 321 291 www.gonzalezbyass.es
GONZÁLEZ BYASS: Madrid
C/ Alcalá, 21, Madrid 28014 T: 91 490 37 00 www.gonzalezbyass.es
www.gonzalezbyass.es elrincondegb@gonzalezbyass.es
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