Bodega Manuel Aragon ‘Tio Alejandro’ Oloroso Sherry, Andalucia, Spain

Bodega Manuel Aragn is a historic bodega and family winery founded in 1795, firmly rooted in the traditional, working-class Sherry culture of Chiclana de la Frontera.

Oloroso Tio Alejandro is produced from estate-grown, organic palomino grapes grown in Pago Marquesado in chalkyalbariza barajuelasoils. It is an exceptionally complex and powerful Oloroso with a long finish. Tio Alejandro was not part of the Aragn 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 Aragn runs the scales in the traditional way, moving the wine through the solera manually, without mechanical pumps, utilizing gravity and the traditional tools of thecanoa,jarra,sifn, androcador. It is cold stabilized and very lightly fined with bentonite before bottling.