NV Bodega Barrero Sanchez Ayala Gabriela Manzanilla (375ml)

WINEMAKER: Jose Luis Barrera
REGION: Sanlúcar de Barrameda, SP
VARIETY: Palomino
VITICULTURE: Sustainable

Sanchez Ayala’s trademark wine Gabriela Manzanilla was named after a world-famous singer and dancer of the late 18th century, Gabriela Ortega Feira. It harks back to a time when the culture and wines of Jerez and Sanlucar de Barrameda were the height of European fashion.

They’ve fallen from grace somewhat since, but the core identity of Gabriela Manzanilla remains much the same.

The wine has always been produced from the bodegas’ own parcel in the Balbaina vineyard: pure Albariza chalk but close enough to the coast to be heavily influenced by the Poniente winds off the Atlantic. The result is characteristic chalkiness but with a light, delicate palate.

The grapes are fermented with indigenous yeasts before being transferred to soleras for ageing. Sanchez Ayala’s bodega is less than 400 meters from the ocean and the floor of the ageing halls sits more than a meter below sea level; the soleras develop especially thick, rich flors.

This allows for ageing exclusively in 880 litre botas and over long periods: Gabriela, the youngest wine, is released with a minimum of five years under flor.