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EVEN THOUGH THERE’S NO FINAL WORD WHEN IT COMES TO PAIRINGS, THE MATCHING BETWEEN BRANDY DE JEREZ AND HABANOS ARE NO DOUBT A PASSIONATE ADVENTURE FOR ENTHUSIASTS AND CONNOISSEURS

Considered by many less complex than Cognac and Armagnac, Brandy de Jerez belongs to the family of distilled wines with geographical delimitation.
It’s exclusively manufactured in the region of Jerez, Spain (municipalities of Jerez de la Frontera, El Puerto de Sta. Maria and Sanlucar de Barrameda), known as Marco de Jerez.
Since the 16th century, people from the region of Jerez used to drink eau-de-vies made of aged wines, yet their sale as brandies in significant volumes only started in the mid-19th century.
Brandy de Jerez boasts peculiar features in terms of making and aging that give it one-and-only characteristics and tell it apart from other brandies.
A healthy grape that produces clean and fruity white wines which are ideal for distilling.
A thorough distilling process that produces holandas (eau-de-vie of low alcoholic content) of distinctive peculiarities.
Aging in casks of American white oak of less than 1,000 lt., generally between 500 and 600, that had previously contained Jerez wine.
An aging process that sticks to the traditional “base and old sherry” mixed system.
Exclusive aging process under the terms of the municipalities of Jerez de la Frontera, El Puerto de Sta. María and Sanlúcar de Barrameda.
Grapes used in the making of Brandy de Jerez is basically the AIREN and PALOMINO types (used for the manufacture of Jerez wine), always in small quantities.
The production of AIREN grape is limited. It produces clean and fruity wines of high aromatic profile which are perfect for distilling. Wines must be right for consumption.
Distilling is a process that takes techniques and good expertise in an effort to make the selected raw materials evaporate and rub out those that might compromise both the scent and the taste of it.
In addition to ethanol (alcohol) that provides body and strength to eau-de-vies, interest in focused on volatile substances (esters, aldehydes, acids) which are responsible for the aroma and the bouquet of both wines and eau-de-vies. In the course of the distilling, the lightest elements (heads) and the heaviest ones (tails) are siphoned off, using only the distilled central part, which is known as “heart”.
The human factor plays a major role in a bid to make the distilling come through. The “nose”, control over the distilling pace and experience combine to form a genuine art.
Wine-sprinkled casks provide a special character that’s clearly visible in its organoleptic features. When Brandy de Jerez is aged in these casks, the product starts getting its character, taste, aroma, body, color shades. In a word, it gets its personality.
The characteristics of each and every Brandy de Jerez varies depending on the kind of Jerez wine the container had carried before. It might have contained Finos or Manzanillas (paled color and absolutely dry), Amontillados (darker and drier), Olorosos Secos or Dulces (darker in color) o sherry wines like Pedro Ximenez (very dark and sweet). Thus, the resulting brandy would acquire characteristics in terms of color, aroma and taste like those of the wines the casks contained before.
The aging process is a complex system called “Criaderas y Solera” (Bases and Old Sherry). This centuries-old traditional system basically consists of a number of brandy casks or barrels organized in terms of the age of the brandy they contain. The ones holding the oldest brandy are called solera, because it lies on the floor, followed by the criaderas in age order -first, second and third up from the bottom to the top). The solera provides only a small portion of the brandy that will be bottled.
This operation is called Saca. The same amount of “extracted” wine from the solera is replaced with wine from the First Criadera, then from the Second Criadera and so on.
The benefits derived from this “solera and criaderas” system in the magic of Brandy de Jerez are a perfect homogenization of brandies during the making process and the end outcome. What’s more, the nonstop up-and-down movement among the tiers allows for better airing and oxidation of the eau-de-vies and brandies, thus resulting in better aging as well.
It’s important to highlight that this is a nonstop timeframe process in which brandies of different ages are mixed with the small portion removed from the Solera, which are then bottled. This guarantees a blend of very old brandies of up to 60 years of age. As a matter of fact, there are many soleras that date as far back as the mid-19th century.
This system’s organoleptic evolution is remarkably complex and interesting. The only problem in it is its complexity and high costs.

Brandy de Jerez categories

The Denomination Regulations establish three types or categories of Brandy de Jerez. Each category is defined by age and the content of volatile substances:
Brandy de Jerez Solera: Over 6 months old (an average 1-year aging process in cellars).
Brandy de Jerez Solera Reserva: Over 1 year old (an average 2-year aging process in cellars).
Brandy de Jerez Solera Gran Reserva: Over 3 years old (an average 8-year aging process in cellars).
During a long aging process, like in the case of Solera Gran Reserva, alcoholic content somewhat goes down due mostly to evaporation, a process that intensifies in the making of Jerez around 7 percent annually as a result of the local climate. Evaporation in the realm of distilled wines aged in casks is known as “la cuota de los ángeles” (the angels’ quota).

19TH HABANO FESTIVAL HABANOS – BRANDY DE JEREZ ALLIANCE

Fundador Exclusivo (Bodegas Fundador)
This is an olden brandy aged for years in Jerez-sprinkled oak casks. Featuring an intense amber hue with golden glittering, its round and mighty scent oozes out notes of Jerez wine-smeared wood, resulting from its long aging process. It tastes balanced and full-bodied, as well as slightly dry with a long-lasting nice aftertaste.

Carlos I Imperial (Bodegas Osborne)
This is an exquisite blend of brandies, some of them with a 20-plus-year aging process, the result of over 230 years of traditions and knowledge. Its exclusive aging system of Criaderas and Solera, based on a handcrafted method that combines art and experience, guarantees a brandy of extraordinary quality and aromatic complexity.

Lepanto Solera Gran Reserva (González Byass)
This is one-and-only brandy of tremendous reputation. It’s pure Jerez essence as it’s the only Brandy de Jerez Gran Reserva manufactured from grapes grown in Jerez through a double-distilling process and aged by means of the traditional Criaderas and Solera system, in American white oak casks for 12 years: 9 years in casks that previously contained Tio Pepe, and the 3 remaining years in barrels that contained 30-plus-year-old sweet scented Matusalem.

Cardenal Mendoza Carta Real (Bodega Sánchez Romate Hnos.)
This is viewed as a unique brandy of seducing looks that resemble old mahogany, with an average aging process of 25 years in casks that contained old Oloroso. Its fancy scent of old wood with notes of prunes and plums, a perfectly round, smooth and long-lasting smell, guarantees exceptional values that time has managed to ease and elevate in the same breath.