Sanlucar de Barrameda
Sanlucar de Barrameda - Overview:
Situated at the northern tip of the sherry triangle, 8km from Chipiona, the delightful small town of Sanlucar de Barrameda is flanked by the Guadalquivir estuary. The speciality tipple here is the distinctive manzanilla wine, which aquires its dry, slightly salty tang from the seaside environment and moist poniente wind. The town is equally famed for its excellent seafood, for which manzanilla is the ideal accompaniment. The town dates back to Roman times but much later the Moors built a defensive fort here which evolved into a major port under the Catholics. Colombus set sail from Sanlucar in 1498 and a few decades later, the Portuguese, Ferdinand Magallan set off to circumnavigate the globe from here.
Sanlucar de Barrameda - Geography:
Sanlucar de Barrameda stands at the mouth of the Guadalquivir River, an important river which leads to Seville. Across the river stretches the great expanse of the Donana National Park, Spains largest wildlife reserve and a world class wetland area for migrating birds. Jeep tours are available and there is a boat cruise aboard the Real Fernando which enables visitors to enjoy a number of different natural parkland environments.
Sanlucar de Barrameda - Gastronomy:
The Bajo de Guia is the old fishing district upstream from the main promenaded sea front. Here numerous bars and restaurants line the waterfront and have terraces with views of the Donana Park. It is the perfect location to watch a sunset over the river and Donana Park, whilst enjoying some of Andalucias best seafood accompanied by a glass of locally produced Manzanilla wine.
Within the centre of Sanlucar is Plaza del Cabildo, a delightful, palm-fringed pedestrianised square with several excellent tapas bars and ice cream parlours. Directly north of the square, Plaza San Roque adjoins the bustling morning market where locally caught fish and seafood, along with fruit and vegetables, are sold.
Sanlucar de Barrameda - Beaches & Activities:
To the south of Plaza del Cabildo, the Calzada is a tree lined wide boulevard which leads to the river and beach front.
Sanlucar is noted for its August horse racing calendar. These exciting events take place along an 1800m stretch of beach, at the mouth of the Rio Guadalquivir during the month of August. Races are run daily from 600pm on the 2nd and 4th weekends of the month (Thursday to Sunday). The competition is serious with the total prize money at over 2.5 million euros!
This is a thrilling spectacle where mighty racehorses thunder across the sand watched by a large noisy crowd. You can expect to see spectator stands, bookmakers, paddocks and, of course, the winners' enclosure. Now an international event, with horses from all over Europe taking part, don't be surprised if you see many famous faces among the spectators.
Sanlucar de Barrameda - Fiestas & Festivals:
An important festival for the town is the Feria de la Manzanilla, which leads up to the Noches de Bajo de Guia flamenco season; with a wide choice of classical music, jazz festivals and quality pop/rock concerts being held around the area.
Sanlucar de Barrameda - History & Heritage:
The town of Sanlucar has a rich historical heritage, evident in the many sites of antiquity that can be visited. First among these is the Palacio de Orleans - Borbon which served as the summer residence for the Dukes of Montpensieur in the 19th century.
Sanlucar de Barrameda - Wine:
Sanlucar has a rich wine making heritage and numerous bodegas, among which is the Bodega Hidalgo-La Gitana. Founded in 1792 by Jose Pantaleon Hidalgo, Vinicola Hidalgo is owned by the sixth successive generation of the family. Hidalgo is a modern rarity, being the last remaining family business (and almacenista, for those familiar with this term) to produce and export its own unblended, single-solera sherries.
Just as rare is Vinicola Hidalgo's total reliance on its own vineyards, 500 acres of Palomino Fino located in the great chalk pagos (crus) of Balbaina - the closest Jerez vineyard to the sea - and Miraflores, the great Sanlucar vineyard renowned for the pedigree of its wines. Just as significant is the privileged location of the family's Bodega San Luis - at beach-level in Sanlucar de Barrameda, where the Guadalquivir River meets the ocean.
Here, the miracle of manzanilla is made possible by constant exposure to Atlantic breezes, laden with moisture and an ambient yeast/algae culture called flor. This surface-growing culture thrives year-round along Sanlucar's southwest-facing beach-front, protecting the resting wines from exposure to the air. At the same time, flor imparts the bracing, briny smell of sea spray which is manzanilla's hallmark, reflecting its years-long ageing process within earshot of the crashing waves.
La Gitana Manzanilla (the gypsy) is Hidalgo's flagship wine and is the product of a family solera established in the early-19th century, around the same time Manzanilla as a wine type came into existence. La Gitana is universally regarded as the authoritative manzanilla in Spain and abroad.
The Hidalgo estate also produces other single-solera sherries including Napoleon Amontillado, Fino Superior 'El Cuadrado', Manzanilla Pasada and Jerez Cortado Hidalgo established in 1792.
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