The Bodegas, or Storehouses, in which these wines are stored, are entirely above ground, have very thick walls and double doors, the roof is covered with tiles, and the floor may consist only of a mixture of sand and loam, which, when moistened, is not muddy, and when dry, is not very dusty. They are kept well ventilated, even at the expense of a good deal of loss by evaporation, and are comparatively cool, the rays of the sun being excluded by shutters. As only old or seasoned casks are used for shipment, the new ones are used for fermenting the must, and so they are seasoned.
Changes in the Wine.—The young wine in the bodega now, during the first two years, undergoes extraordinary changes. That made from the same vineyard and of the same varieties of grapes, crushed at the same time, placed in casks side by side, receiving apparently identical treatment, develops totally different characters in different butts, and is classed according to these several characters, as Fino, Oloroso, and Basto.
The best is fino, of a delicate, soft, mellow flavor, and pale in color, and only from ten to twenty per cent. take this form. The fino, at times, develops into a still finer quality, producing what is known as amontillado, the most valued of all.
Oloroso is a nutty flavored development rather deeper in color, and of a stouter character; when old, it is of great body, and perfectly dry.
The coarse, inferior kind is called basto.
There are still other casks which by bad behavior, poor fermentation, or weakness, are only fit for the still.
Flowers.—Sherry produces the phenomenon known as flowers of wine (micoderma vini), of which a writer under the assumed name of Pedro Verdad, whom I have frequent occasion to quote, says: “At every period, about the flowering of the vine, and at about vintage time, the wine begins to ‘breed;’ that is, throw up a flor (flower), which remains for some time on the surface, and then falls in sediment to the bottom, when the wine once more becomes bright. This phenomenon is looked for with great anxiety in the bodegas, for if it does not occur, the wine may be assuming some other and less valued character. Strange as it may appear,” he says, “I have seen the actual flor rise in a bottle in England, just as in the butt in Spain.”
Vino Dulce, or Sweet Wine, is made from the sweeter kinds of grapes, especially the Pedro Jimenes. The grapes are exposed to the sun, sometimes for a fortnight, and till they almost become raisins, and they then go through the ordinary modes of crushing and fermentation. To each butt of this wine about six or seven gallons of spirit are added, while the must of other grapes have as much as twenty gallons mixed with each cask of must to check the fermentation, and keep the wine sweet. One-third of the spirit is poured in as soon as a small portion of the must has been put into the cask, a third when the cask is half full, and a third when nearly three-quarters full. The reason is obvious, as the spirit is lighter than the must, and would otherwise remain on the top. Soleras of vino dulce are of a sweet, luscious flavor, and of an oily and slightly glutinous consistency. The finer kinds resemble a liqueur, and are of great value.
Vizitelli says that sweet wine is used to give softness and roundness to old and pungent wines, as well as to the cruder, youthful growths, and it is remarkable how very small a quantity suffices perceptibly to modify these opposite characteristics. As little as one per cent. of dulce will impart a softness to the drier wines, which otherwise they only acquire after being several years in bottle.
Color Wine (Vino de Color) is composed of a mixture of white wine and arrope. The latter is a must of white grapes boiled down over a slow fire till it is reduced to one-fifth or one-sixth of its original quantity, great care being taken to skim it while boiling. This is a dark-colored, almost black fluid, of a bitterish taste. It is mixed with from three to five times its volume of white wine, and the “color” is formed.[11] It is chiefly used for giving color to young and undeveloped wines. With great age, the solera of this wine is very valuable, being of a deep brown color, and a perfect essence.