Eduardo Ojeda, Winemaker & Production Manager

Focus is decidedly aimed at the soil, the origin of the wines which gives them their caracter and identity. The firm owns 800 hectares of vineyard making it the largest grower of grapes in the Sherry región - and indeed in Andalucía - accounting for 12% of the total in the DO Jerez-Xérès-Sherry.

Rainfall in the Sherry region is high in comparative terms with an average of around 600 litres a year which is higher than the average for other important wine regions. This rainfall is typically concentrated between the end of the harvest and and the start of grape formation on the vines and is stored in the depths of the albariza soils allowing a regulated water supply via the roots to the plants themselves. Added to that the mild climate, in which the high summer temperaturas are alleviated by dewfall from Atlantic mists, favours both a balanced ripening of the fruit and the formation and maintenance of the amazing flor yeast which covers the surface of Fino and Manzanilla making these wines unique.

The firm is the proprietor of the bodegas Valdespino, Marqués del Real Tesoro and La Guita, all established well over a century ago. Thanks to this firm focus on the soils of the Jerez región, José Estévez is the only bodega in the región which uses raw materials which come 100% from the Denominación de Origen Sherry and Manzanilla de Sanlúcar, that is to say grapes and alcohol for the fortification of the Sherries.