4 Solera Area 1
Biological Ageing
AUDIO GUIDE
The must undergoes a natural fermentation process in stainless steel vats, obtaining a wine of around 12% alcohol content at a controlled temperature, where the sugars are transformed into ethyl alcohol by the action of natural yeasts, giving rise to the base wine. One of the characteristics of Chiclana wine is that it is a fortified wine or, in winemaking terminology, ''topped off''. The base wine is transferred to American oak casks where a certain amount of wine alcohol is added in order to slightly increase its final alcohol content to about 15%. This practice has its origins in the need, centuries ago, to stabilise wines that were destined for consumption in very distant markets, and which therefore had to be "protected" in order to be able to make long voyages. Today, the practice is maintained for oenological reasons.
In our bodega we use the criaderas and soleras system. The butts are stacked at different levels. The lowest level is called the solera because it is at ground level and contains the oldest wines. The next row is the first criadera and the wine from its butts is used to replace the wine extracted from the solera for bottling. In turn, the wine from the first criadera is replaced with even younger wine from the butts of the second criadera above it. As a result, we produce exceptional wines that maintain the highest quality year after year.
The Fino wine of the Bodega de Manuel Aragón (Fino Granero) is raised up to 15º in order to favour the development of the velo de flor (veil of flor), a whitish layer of natural yeasts that develops on the surface of the wine, isolating it from the air in the rest of the barrel. In this process of biological ageing, the natural protection of the yeasts prevents oxidation of the wine and bestows it with very special organoleptic characteristics.
The biological ageing under the veil of flor lasts for a minimum period of four years and is completed in oak casks.
