SCOTCH & SHERRY
Made to order
Since legislation changed in Spain in the 1980s to determine that all sherry had to be bottled there before it was exported, there’s now no such thing as a sherry ‘transport’ cask. That has led to a whole industry dedicated to building and seasoning casks with sherry, specifically for the whisky industry, as Richard Goslan reports
PHOTOS: PETER SANDGROUND
The process of seasoning, or conditioning, a newly constructed cask is essential so that the vessel can impart precisely the right flavour and character that the Society is looking for when it comes to maturing our own whisky.
To understand that process, we travelled to one of the warehouses of Bodegas Barón, a traditional family-owned winery that dates back almost 400 years to its foundation in 1631. The company’s headquarters is in Sanlúcar de Barrameda. The coastal town near Jerez is the only place that the variety of sherry known as manzanilla can be produced – it’s protected under Spain’s ‘denominación de origen protegida’ or DOP regulations, and prized for the maritime character it gains from the town’s microclimate at the mouth of the Guadalquivar river.
Bodegas Barón is one of many locations across the ‘sherry triangle’ that now offer an alternative business, seasoning casks with sherry specifically for use in the spirits industry in general, and the whisky industry in particular. The demand came from a change in legislation in the early 1980s, when the transportation of sherry in casks that could be bottled elsewhere was forbidden, meaning that all sherry had to be bottled in Spain prior to export. Before that, it was common for sherry to be shipped in cask for bottling in the market where it was going to be consumed.
Many a sherry butt would have sailed into the Port of Leith and likely would have spent time in the Society’s very own Vaults building. Once the sherry was bottled, the casks could then be used by the whisky industry, to add complex layers to maturing spirit.
The sherry historian, Manuel Gonzalez Gordon in his book Sherry: The Noble Wine notes that:
“Historically, the Scots are lovers of sherry. To re-use casks rather than return them to Spain would have appealed to a nation with a reputation for financial astuteness – and what better than to employ them to store the national product.”
ABOVE: By law, sherry can no longer be shipped in cask for bottling in the market where it is going to be consumed
PICTURED: The change in legislation forbidding the shipping of sherry in casks has led to the rise in the production of new casks which are seasoned specifically for the whisky industry
That process of re-using shipping casks is no longer possible, hence the rise in the production of the new cask which is seasoned specifically for the whisky industry. Unlike bodega casks, which are exclusively made from American oak, these new casks are also being constructed from Spanish and European oak. That’s because it is prized for its unique flavour contribution, the high tannin levels contributing deep spicy notes and dried fruits.
The sherry industry’s governing body, the Consejo Regulador, introduced a new certification process in 2015 for seasoned casks, guaranteeing that they have held genuine sherry wine for a minimum of one year in a registered bodega within the industry’s defined production zone. Casks must be filled to at least two thirds of their capacity during the entire period, and the certification should include information on the type of sherry used to season the cask.
From the cooperage, the casks arrive in bodegas such as Bodegas Barón to be filled with sherry wine. The variety is really up to whoever is buying the cask, but in the whisky world, the deeper, richer varieties of dry oloroso and sweet Pedro Ximénez sherries are the most common. The casks are filled and then stored for anything between one and three years, during which time tannins are extracted from the fresh wood and the interaction between wood and wine elevates these casks to something highly desirable for whisky maturation.
After being seasoned for the required length of time, the casks are shipped with between 5-10 litres of sherry in them, to make sure they don’t dry out. Once they arrive in Scotland, they are emptied and checked for quality – the SMWS Whisky Team inspect and nose every sherry cask that arrives at our warehouse. Only when they are satisfied with what they see, and what they smell, does any whisky go in.
The sherry that was used for seasoning the casks can go one of several routes once the cask is ready to be shipped. It can be sold in bulk and used for blending at the more affordable end of the sherry market. Another use is to distil it for alternative uses, such as liqueurs. Or it could be used to produce sherry vinegar.
Here at Bodegas Barón, SMWS head of whisky creation Euan Campbell and I walk between rows of sherry hogsheads, each one stencilled with SMWS lettering and indicating what kind of sherry is working its magic inside the wood.
“Right here we have 204 Scotch Malt Whisky Society casks made of American oak and 204 made of Spanish oak,” explains Nerea Román Gil. “Half of the American oak casks are filled with oloroso sherry, and the other half are filled with Pedro Ximénez – and it’s the same with the Spanish oak casks.”
From Euan’s perspective, that gives variety in terms of the kinds of casks he and the Society’s Whisky Team end up being able to work with when it comes to maturing our stocks of SMWS whisky.
“The main variables we can play with are oak species, wine type and length of seasoning,” he says. “We tend to commission an equal mix of American and European or Spanish oak, seasoned equally with oloroso & PX wines, with a handful of other wines on occasion. We then draw down from these casks at different times, at between 12 and 24 months of seasoning with sherry.
“All this ensures that we are delivering a variety of flavours and styles, and that’s before we even consider the endless spirit types that we fill into the casks in Scotland and how long those are matured for.”
ABOVE: Antonio Carrasco Gómez from Bodegas Barón draws a sample of oloroso from one of the Society’s seasoning casks
Antonio Carrasco Gómez from Bodegas Barón offers to draw us a sample of oloroso from one of the Society’s casks, demonstrating his skill as a ‘venenciador’ with the traditional venencia tool. It’s used throughout the industry to extract the sherry and pour it from a considerable height into a narrow sherry copita glass – all without spilling a drop.
At Bodegas Barón the oloroso is regularly refreshed in these seasoning casks, meaning it never gets too overwhelmed by the new wood and will go on to have a life of its own as a sherry. Here in the bodega, you can immediately see why it’s a favoured wine for casks that are going to go on to be used for whisky maturation.
“It’s dry, nutty, fruity – all the characteristics we’re looking for,” says Euan. “Coupled with the toasted American oak, that’s a great combination that works well with pretty much any type of whisky.”
The world of sherry casks has changed, there’s no question. But with the ability to have them created to our specific requirements and seasoned exactly how we want them, the level of consistent quality is a world away from those transport casks that ended up being given a new lease of life in Scotland. The proof, as always, is in the glass.