Spanish Journey Part Two
13. Sanlucar de Barrameda

Narrator
Sanlúcar de Barrameda is said to be the happiest town in all of Spain, because it enjoys the best wine - manzanilla - and the best shellfish, which Robert is busy sampling in Casa Bigote. One of the most important wineries in Sanlucar is Bodegas Barbadillo. Ignacio Tomé has been working here for many years and is a very respected venenciador [wine pourer].

Inka Martí
What exactly is venenciar [wine pouring]?

Ignacio Tomé
Wine pouring is something done by us in this area… When you raise your hadn like this and pour, the manzanilla wine is oxygenated. It is something that almost everybody likes. It is like bullfighting or any other art, you have to do it calmly, slowly, and with ease so that everyone present can treat it with some importance and go home with a special memory.

Robert Elms
What's happening here? Is that garlic?

Cook
Garlic, bay leaves, and I've already thrown in some flour, I'll just add a little more...

Robert Elms
Flour, and oil?

Cook
Olive oil.

Robert Elms
This is all produced locally, isn't it?

Cook
All of it, from around here, this area. The clams…

Robert Elms
Are the clams local?

Cook
From here, local.

Robert Elms
And are they today's?

Cook
Yes, yes.

Robert Elms
Lots…lots of garlic!

Cook
Every cook has his own ways. Now the wine.

Robert Elms
Wine.

Cook
White wine, it's manzanilla.

Robert Elms
White wine, manzanilla, that's right.

Inka Martí
Why is Sanlucar so special? How do you get such special wine, the manzanillas?

Ignacio Tomé
It is grown here in Sanlucar because we're in front of the Doñana Reserve. We are at the very entrance to the Guadalquivir river. The Atlantic Ocean, the westerly winds, the iodine from the sea all contribute to Sanlucar having a higher degree of humidity than all of the rest of the Jerez area. And that humidity makes it possible for the manzanilla bloom... It is like the top of the milk... It's a micro-organism that is constantly growing...

Inka Martí
And it has a woman’s name.

Ignacio Tomé
I think it must be the only wine in the world that has a female name. Manzanilla. There is amontillado, oloroso, cava, brandy [all masculine]. But we’re special for that too in Sanlucar. We have named it after you women.

Robert Elms
And that is…?

Cook
This is either water or shellfish stock. It's shellfish 'fumet', seafood ‘fumet’.

Robert Elms
Yes, it is stock in English. 

Cook
Now we cover it for a while so that it absorbs...

Robert Elms
How long for?

Cook
As soon as the clams open, that's it. As you can see, the clams are so fresh that they open very quickly.

Ignacio Tomé
It is a very delicate wine, the ageing, the production... The glasses held to avoid putting our fingers here and warming the wine... you take it to your nose, you sip a little, and you discover all the nuances that you would expect from manzanilla. It is a special wine. That doesn't mean it's the best wine, but it is for me. I've said it now!

Cook
Careful, you'll burn yourself.

Robert Elms
Oh, it's wonderful.

[music]

Narrator
Inka and Robert finally meet after their travels through Spain. Now they can exchange notes on their adventures. We hope you have enjoyed the trip as much as they have.

Inka Martí and Robert Elms
Your health! Cheers!