Journal of Agriculture. [lo Aug., 1909^ 



Pax arete is another form of sweet wine made from the Pedro Ximenes- 

 grape, and called after a small town near Arcos. Since the destruction 

 of the vineyards of Paxarete by the phvlloxera, the old type of this wine 

 is almost a thing of the past. It differed a good deal from the Pedro 

 Ximenes, chiefly in the way it was made, portion of the must being con- 

 centrated by artificial heat. 



Though Paxarete is still obtainable in the bodegas of Jerez, it is at the 

 present day chiefly a made-up wine, or blend of Pedro Ximenes, and some- 

 times even "Dolce Apagado, " with a certain quantitv of Vino de Color. 

 Modern Paxarete is not to be compared with the wine that made its place of 

 production famous in olden days. Paxarete was largely used in the pro- 

 duction of brown sherries. Its place in such blends is now largely taken 

 by the sweet wines and " Color " by which its imitation is made up. 



Dolce Apagado and Mistela are sweet whites of ordinary type, made- 

 by stopping fermentation with spirit in the usual way. 



****** 



Such are the main types of wine one meets with in Jerez. The great 

 majority of them are very different from what one is accustomed to get as 

 sherry, outside of Spain. It is by blending wines of the fino, amontillado, 

 and oloroso types, especiallv the first-named, with a little Pedro Ximenes,. 

 or other sweet wine, that the high class .sherries of commerce are turned 

 out. These are all high class wines, matured on the solera system, which, 

 as we shall see later, considerably increases the cost of production. Such 

 wines can only be sold at a profit at a fairly high price, probably not less 

 than ^50 per butt. Many cheaper sherries are to l^e found on the market. 

 These are blends of varying proportions, according to price, of the above 

 wines and of wines from the neighbouring provinces of Huelva, Sevilla, and' 

 even La Mancha ; but the highest priced sherries are exclusively grown, 

 matured, and handled near Jerez. They are almost invariably blended 

 and slightly sweetened before shipment, and usually fortified also. The 

 increase in alcoholic strength suits the English palate, and insures the 

 wine keeping its condition. 



The Factors of Sherry. 



The Soils and Climate of Jerez have already been dealt with (see 

 Journal). To briefly recapitulate, the geological formation is of ter- 

 tiary age and the soil chiefly remarkable for its high lime contents. The 

 white marls of the Afuera or Albariza type, containing in some cases as 

 much as 80 per cent, of carbonate of lime, are the most characteristic- 

 ones and tho.se which produce the most valuable wines. 



Nie?a- the town of Jerez one also meets with " Barros " or clay soils and 

 " Arenas " or sands, whilst at San Lucar de Earrameda, the home of 

 Manzanilla, at the mouth of the Guadalquivir, the vines are grown on 

 sandy soil. Xearlv all these soils are rich in lime, the abundance of 

 which element is one of the striking features of the sherry .soils. 



The climate of Jerez is one of the warmest in Spain. As far as 

 temperature and rainfall are concerned, it reminds one a good deal of 

 northern •Victoria, with the difference that, being only .some 20 miles from 

 the se:i, the air is not so dry. 



Varieties Cultivated. 



Sherrv differs from Port in l>eing [iractically a "one variety" wine, nine- 

 tenths of the best vineyards being plant'Ml with one \ariety of grape, viz., 

 the Palomino or Listaii. for it Is known l'\ hcith names. This vine reminds 



