Jerez sits in the far south of Andalusia, in a triangle between Jerez de la Frontera, Sanlúcar de Barrameda and El Puerto de Santa María. Albariza, a chalk white soil that cracks in summer and holds winter rain underneath like a sponge, is what makes viticulture possible in a place this hot. Palomino covers almost all of it, a grape that would make dull table wine anywhere else and is perfectly suited to what happens next.
Everything here is decided after fermentation. Wines destined to stay pale are fortified lightly and left under flor, a living film of yeast that seals the surface, eats the glycerine and gives fino and manzanilla their dry, bread and almond character. Wines fortified higher lose the flor and oxidise slowly into amontillado and oloroso. The solera system blends across years as the wine moves through tiers of barrels, which is why almost no bottle carries a vintage. Pedro Ximénez, dried in the sun, supplies the sweetness.
