Tio Pepe releases 2016 en rama Sherry

Tio Pepe has released its latest en rama expression, with a mild season and “spring-like winter” allowing the flor to flourish, producing a “healthy and balanced” vintage.

First released in 2009, the 2016 limited edition fino Sherry, like previous En Rama releases, is bottled without normal wine clarification and stabilisation processes such as fining or filtration. Instead, En Rama Sherries are taken ‘raw’, straight from the barrel.

Antonio Flores, master blender at González Byass, described the 2016 En Rama release as “sublime; pungent, fresh and very much in the style of traditional Tio Pepe”.

“The mild climate over the past vintage, with an average amount of rainfall and a mild summer has given us a healthy and balanced vintage”, said Flores. “A hot July followed by a cool August, thanks to the constant poniente winds, and an almost spring-like winter created great conditions for the flor to flourish. Additionally, the conditions in the González Byass cellars, ideal average temperatures and the absence of warm Levante winds during maturation were key in allowing the flor to maintain its magic cloak over the surface of the wine; strong and solid throughout the year.”

González Byass launched the En Rama category seven years ago, under its Tio Pepe brand, with many other producers releasing their own En Rama expressions since. Developed by Flores and made in strictly limited quantities, Tio Pepe En Rama is unfiltered, unclarified Tio Pepe taken from the middle of the cask during spring when the ‘flor’ yeast is at its thickest.

“The combined effect of harvesting the grapes from our single estate vineyards Marcharnudo and Carrascal with their pure albariza soils, plus maturation in our century-old cellars and long hours of consideration that were taken to select the final 60 casks fill me with pride, emotion and some satisfaction at the quality of this year’s Tio Pepe En Rama”, added Flores.

Every year a hand-drawn label is selected for the En Rama release based on original art work housed in Tio Pepe’s historical archives. This year’s label features medals from Alfonso XII and the Royal Seal from 1875.

This year’s En Rama release will be shipped to 19 markets, starting with Spain and the UK in mid April.