Manuel Aragon Tio Alejandro Oloroso Chiclana de la Frontera Sherry
PRODUCER NOTES:
TASTING: COLOR - “Amber to mahogany, darker the longer it is aged”; NOSE - “Warm and round, complex and powerful aromas. Pronounced aromas of nuts such as walnuts; toasted vegetal and balsamic notes that recall noble wood, blonde tobacco and dried leaves. You can appreciate spicy notes and hints of truffle and leather”; PALATE - “Tasty and very structured, powerful, round and full-bodied. Its glycerin content makes it soft on the palate, long in the mouth and complex retronasal aromas. They highlight notes of noble wood that provide a very elegant drying finish.”; PAIRING - “Ideal to accompany red meats and game, meat stews or stews, especially with gelatinous meats such as oxtail or cheek; mushrooms and highly cured cheeses.”
IMPORTER NOTES:
OVERVIEW: “Oloroso Tio Alejandro is produced from estate-grown, organic palomino grapes grown in Pago Marquesado in chalky albariza barajuela soils. It is an exceptionally complex and powerful Oloroso with a long finish. ‘Tio Alejandro’ was not part of the Aragón family, but he was an important, long-time friend, customer, and neighbor of the winery, and this Oloroso was dedicated to him, as it was his favorite wine.”
VINIFICATION – “During harvest, grapes are hand-picked in small baskets, directly pressed, and then fermented spontaneously with native yeasts in stainless steel at low temperature. After fortification to 17% ABV with neutral grape spirits, Oloroso Tio Alejandro spends 17 to 20 years aging oxidatively in barrels that are not topped up. The slow loss of water through the walls of the wooden casks facilitates the continuous process of concentration, which makes the wine gain in structure, smoothness, and complexity while bringing the final wine to 18% ABV. Manuel Aragón runs the scales in the traditional way, moving the wine through the solera manually, without mechanical pumps, utilizing gravity and the traditional tools of the canoa, jarra, sifón, and rocíador. It is cold stabilized and very lightly fined with bentonite before bottling.”
ABOUT THE PRODUCER: “Bodega Manuel Aragón is a historic bodega and family winery founded in 1795, firmly rooted in the traditional, working-class Sherry culture of Chiclana de la Frontera. Chiclana is an ancient, whitewashed village located in the Bay of Cádiz, 12 miles southeast of the city of Cádiz. Chiclana’s vineyards are the southernmost in the Marco de Jerez. Chano Aragón, the current winery head and oenologist is a direct descendant of its founder, Pedro Aragón Morales. The story of Manuel Aragón is that of a fierce defender of the historical culture of the region and its quality, handcrafted wines. The bodega lies just 800m from the ocean, separated only by pine trees. It also benefits from the Levante wind, a warm current that flows west through the Strait of Gibraltar. Palomino vineyards are planted in chalky albariza barajuela soils in the same direction as the Levante wind.”