/TO Aug., 1909.] SJierry : Its Making and Rearing. 521 



Other Types of Sherry. 



So far only natural wines have been dealt with ; that is. wines either 

 altogether unfortified or only very slightly so, the characteristic flavours of 

 which are due to natural evolutions under careful cellar management, ac- 

 cording to the solera svstem, peculiar to the district. Other tvpes exist, 

 however, mostly fortified wines, which are occasionally used for blending 

 purposes. Chief amongst these are \ino de Color, Pedro Ximenes, and 

 Paxareie, which are the only ones used in the blending of sherry. Excel- 

 lent Muscats are also made in the district, chiefly in the neighbourhood of 

 Chippiona and Chiclana. The Tintilla of Rota, better known to us 

 as Rota Tent, and at one time largely shipped to England, as communion 

 wine, is consimied as such, and does not enter into the composition of the 

 sherry of commerce. 



Vino de Color. — This is quite different to any wine we know in Aus- 

 tralia, but a description of the types of sherry would be incomplete with- 

 out it. It is, in fact, a relic of the past, being identical with the wine 

 shipped to England in Shakespeare's time under the name of .sherris sack. 

 Such a wine is closely akin to that which is made at the present day at 

 Malaga, and largely shipped to France, under the name of Malaga de 

 Color, or Brown Malaga. Such a wine is made by mixing with one 

 portion of the wine, either during or before its fermentation, a certain 

 quantit\ of arrope, a thick treaclv svrup, obtained by boiling down another 

 porti>in of the must to the required degree of concentration (about one- 

 third to one-fifth of its original bulk). After a long, slow fermentation, 

 during which almost the whole of the sugar is converted into alcohol, one 

 obtains a wine of about the same colour as porter or stout, only slightly 

 sweet, distinctly bitter, and mainly characterised by its curious cooked, 

 almost burnt, fla\our. Such a \vine is certainly an acquired taste, but it 

 has its fanciers, e\en at the present day. It is said to be a great pick- 

 me-up — Falstaff certainly had a very high opinion of it. When well 

 made and very old it develops a curious indescribable flavour and bouquet, 

 which renders it very valuable for blending, and enables it to command a 

 high price. Very old " Color " is a valuable wine, which is to be found 

 in every bodega. It enters into the composition of nearly all brown 

 sherries, giving them their colour. Although, with age. the heaviest sherries 

 become (lark in colour, it is only in exceptional cases that the change is 

 due to natural causes ; in all but exceedingly high-priced wines. Vino de 

 Color is the colouring agent used. Of recent years large quantities of 

 brown sherry are forwarded annually to Scotland to be blended in with 

 whiskies; the.se often owe their colour to this particular type of wine. 



Pedro Ximenes is the exceedingly sweet wine made from the grape of 

 the same name,* partially dried on esparto mats in the sun before being 

 crushed. The very high gravity must, thus obtained, ferments slowly, and 

 produces a wine which is almost a syrup, and very fragrant.. It is the 

 wine chiefly used for gi\ing dry sherries the slight amount of fruitiness 

 required by the trade, and is a wine which, owing to the small yield per 

 acre, is costlv to produce. An <ild Pedro Ximenes commands a 

 high price. Tliough too sweet for the majority of consumers Us a wine, 

 it finds a few fanciers, and there is a limited .sale for it in bottle in Jerez, 

 where it is sometimes served in small glasses as a liqueur. Pedro Ximenes 

 is essentially a blending wine. 



The true Pedro Ximenes of Southern Spain is ;t totally distinct variety from the variety we know 

 as Peilio in the Rutheri;U'n and other districts of \irtoriff.. 



