...something interesting !
About Henry
When I'm not at my desk writing, I like to explore.
I would like to share a little of my travels with you.
As Cooper, that's a barrel maker.
You can understand that I like to find usual thing about Wine
and the history in my location, which at the present is in Europe
.....another sherry ?
Andalusia, situated in Spain's southwest corner, is a cultural hub centred around the cities of Sevilla, Cordoba, Granada and Ronda. Their citizens celebrate flamenco dancing to the sounds of guitars, salt-cured ham, and hundreds of years of history, all lubricated by the wonderful sherry produced there.
And that sherry-producing region is located just 50 kilometres south of Sevilla, adjacent to the Gulf of Cadiz. It's enclosed by three ancient cities with romantic names; Jerez de la Frontera at the northeast corner, Sanlúcar de Barrameda at the western apex, and El Puerto de Santa Maria to the southeast. There, the vineyards, heated by long sunny days and nourished in the white albariza chalk soils, produce several varieties of crisp white grapes. But it is in the barrels, termed pipes, in which the unique flor yeast grows, transforming these grapes from wine to sherry. This mass of fungus, enhanced by the maritime climate, sits atop the wine in the headspace left in the barrel. Besides protecting the wine from oxidizing, through its biochemical reactions, it creates sherry's enchanting flavours and aromas.
Port Wine
The Douro River, famed for its port wines, originates in Spain before wending its way west through Portugal. It empties into the Atlantic Ocean at the adjacent cities of Porto, and Vila Nova de Gaia, just to south across the river. On much of the Douro's banks, narrow terraces, hand-built of the local flat-faced shist stone, step up the steep hillsides. There the grapes to make both port and still wines are grown. A visit to the region this past winter was extremely enlightening; learning about how the ports are made and the important role that the wooden barrels play.
For the past several thousand years, the vintners in Portugal's upper Douro region have been shipping pipes, large, heavy barrels of wine down that river. By the 17th century, those shipments included the young port, a wine fortified with brandy. The pipes were transported in barcos rabelos, shallow-draft oar-and-sail-powered boats. Although port takes its name from the city of Porto, the actual end of the barcos' Douro River journey was to deliver the barrels to the warehouses in Vila Nova de Gaia. There, stored within cellars, or port lodges cooled by the maritime climate, the wines and ports were aged before shipping to clients around the world. The return trip carried new barrels, made in the lodges, upriver to the quintas.
For the boatmen on the barcos rabelos, the transit down the river had its exciting moments; negotiating several sets of treacherous rapids. They were able to do so manoeuvred only by oars and a huge stern sweep requiring four men to direct it.
In the Cellar
What’s in a name?
This is a The Algarve, Portugal’s southern coastal region, is dotted with many inviting beaches. Flat, with broad sands fronting calm seas, they are perfect for the many northern European tourists who visit. One of these spots is Praia do Barril. It’s located in the eastern Algarve between Tavira and Olhão. As the Portuguese word for barrel is barril, I wondered what this beach might have had to do with wooden barrels.paragraph about your business. Let your visitors know who you are, what you do and what your website is all about. Double click on the text box to edit the text and add all the information you want to share.
