Diatomists - spreading the word of the Sherry Revolution

The UK has an interesting relationship with sherry. Everyone’s nan used to enjoy a tot of Harvey’s Bristol Cream on Christmas Day. It’s used pretty liberally in trifles. There is usually a token offering of something in most tapas restaurants. Sherry and tonic has even reached almost popular status at times as a low alcohol aperitif option. But not many people would say that they actively buy it or seek it out as a standalone drink and would probably be actively put off by a big brand, entry level Fino, it’s savoury, yeasty, acetaldehyde, dry-as-a-bone qualities bearing no resemblance to anything else they may have come across in the wine aisle.?

Journalists from time to time have tried to hail sherry as the next big thing, saying it is one of the best value wines on the market and perennially underpriced. It never materialises, though the public’s love of the ungodly amount of sugar in PX has helped to drive sales in this particular subcategory. It’s an easy option to pair with pudding - nothing can possibly overpower its sticky sweetness.?

But why is it always such ‘good value’ yet nobody wants to buy it? The two points are undeniably linked. Base wine from high yielding clones of palomino made in huge volumes in ‘dead’ soils is boring, flabby, without any redeeming features. It’s cheap to produce, sure. Add some sherry magic - fortification, soleras, flor, oxidation… it becomes something complex, and still quite cheap to produce. But what does it actually taste of? Sherry. That’s it. The base wine brings nothing to the party so all that can be smelled, tasted and felt is the sherry making process. Which is fine if you love sherry, but it’s certainly not going to convert anyone who doesn’t.?

Enter Jose Manuel Bustillo Barroso, or ‘El Busti’ as his friends call him. Arguably one of the ones who first made sherry’s problem what it was to begin with, having been a vineyard manager for one of the big sherry firms and working with the research and training institute in Andalucia for most of his life, he now devotes his life to the ‘sherry revolution’ - trying to change things for the better, bringing top quality fruit to the bodegas, focussing on organic production, lower yields, and using cover crops in the vineyards to keep the Albariza soils alive.?

And let’s talk about those Albariza soils… blindingly white and with a startlingly high content of calcium carbonate, they are poor and porous, meaning those vines have to dig deep for nutrients (essential for fine, complex wines), but they will always be able to find water in this region with a tendency towards draughts and with long extremely hot dry summers. Marking them out from the chalk soils in say, champagne, are the diatoms - prehistoric single cell organisms surrounded by glass cases, a product of the land being under the sea millions of years ago - which go as deep as 400 metres in places.?

The special qualities of the diatoms have not escaped Antonio and Tommy, founders of artisan sherry brand ‘Diatomists’. The ‘sherry revolution’ to them is not only a catch phrase, it has become their life’s work. Seeing what is possible under the influence of ‘El Busti’ has inspired them to create a whole new identity of the wines of the region of Jerez. These are wines with character, with fruit, with minerality, with structure, and yes, with some biological/oxidative qualities too. They are at home at the dining table with a wide range of cuisines, not just in a tapas bar.?

There is Garcia Jarana Bodega, where the Amontillado and Oloroso are aged (the first having allowed a layer of flor to form before the oxidation process begins, and the second going straight to oxidation). It is a very traditional bodega with 140 year old soleras and wine coming from Balbaina terroir. Tasting through each barrel is essential as the character of each changes dramatically the further you go into the winery. Totally fascinating and it becomes clear why Diatomists have opted to bottle the wines as single barrels. Aromas in the sherries ranged from more rancio (walnut, mahogany), fruit (citrus, red berries, orange peel, coconut), spirit/sweet notes (armagnac, macerated raisins, caramel, butter popcorn)... such layers and contrasts simply would not be possible with mass produced grapes.?

There is the Bodega in Sanlucar de Barrameda, Bodegas del Rio, where the delicately floral and salty Manzanillas are made. The moist, warm salty air certainly felt different than the drier areas further inland and this was a winery to get wine geeks really excited with its mouldy stacks of barrels, reminiscent of being down in a very old and well stocked cellar. Though these wines are delicate and full of finesse, the intensity of the fruit compared to other examples of Manzanilla was remarkable.?

Finally there is the winery Dominio de Las Animas in Balbaina… we were totally blown away by what is happening here with owner/winemaker Tommy and superstar oenologist Raul Moreno Yague. Diatomist’s own Fino is certainly an exciting addition (and inspired a merry rendition of ‘I Need a Fino’ to the tune of ‘Holding Out for a Hero’ by Bonnie Tyler within our group), but the still wines being produced under the ‘Sotovelo’ label beggered belief. How could wines of such finesse and minerality be produced in a place as hot as this, and with a reputation largely for the aforementioned mass produced sherry???

Early picking (as early as 1 July for the soon to be produced sparkling wine), ultra high chalk content in the soils (twice as much as champagne), judicious use of flor and oak, and according to Raul, the use of a basket press for a totally clear juice with a bit of oxygen introduced at the time of pressing.?

The Palomino under flor is remarkable, the Chardonnay and Syrah total dupes of Burgundy/northern Rhone (HOW??), and the Tintilla is a crowd pleasing delight.?

If this is sherry, sign me up. It’s time to recruit the city of Bristol to the sherry army, one venue at a time. VIVA LA REVOLUCION!!?

-Madeline Andrews, Founder/Director of Spiegel & Peach, Bristol

Diatomists