La Guita
Manzanilla
Sanlúcar de Barrameda
La Guita is the manzanilla from Sanlucar and the most popular wine in the region. Aged under highly active flor for four and a half years, La Guita develops intense complexity while retaining beautiful freshness. They bottle six times a year, as opposed to once or twice as many other houses, to capture as much freshness as possible.
La Guita is made in two bodegas, and the smaller of the two, Bodega Misericordia, dates to 1526. Located in the heart of Sanlúcar, it was once the Hospital de San Juan de Dios. The larger bodega, Pago Sancular Viejo, is located on the road to Jerez and accounts for about 80% of La Guita’s production. While legally allowed to source grapes from anywhere in Jerez, they focus exclusively on grapes from Sanlúcar – specifically from the Miraflores vineyard.
Vineyard
The Palomino grapes used in La Guita are exclusively grown in Sancular, with the vast majority of them coming from the historic pago of Miraflores, which appears in vineyard classifications as far back as 1868, and more recently in 1951 when Manuel Barbadillo ranked the top sites in the region. Mirafores is notable for the purity of its chalk dominated albarazia soil and its proximity to the sea. Legally, manzanilla can be made from grapes anywhere in Jerez, as long as they are aged in Sancular, but La Guita believes it’s native terroir is an important aspect of their quality.
Additionally, and even more rare, La Guita also fortifies their manzanilla with distillate from the same local palomino grapes. Nearly every other bodega in the region fortifies with cheaper Airén distillate from La Mancha.
Sancular de Barrameda is the northwest tip of the “Sherry Triangle” and is tucked along the Atlantic coast. Historically, it has been a center of innovation in sherry production, and it’s thought that the concepts of the solera system and flor aging were both developed there. Manzanilla must be aged in the bodegas of Sancular.
Winemaking
Like it’s more famous cousin fino, manzanilla is simply a palomino based sherry aged under flor. However, due to its proximity to the ocean, temperatures in Sancular remain more stable than in the rest of the region. This allows for more vigorous yeast activity, which imparts more flavor, and also allows the capataz to perform more sacas. The saca is the process in which sherry is extracted from the barrel, and the more frequently this is done, the fresher the final product. While a typical bodega in Jerez might bottle once or twice a year, La Guita often bottles six or seven times annually.
The minimum aging requirement for manzanilla is two years, but La Guita far exceeds that and won’t release anything younger than four or five years of age.
Tasting Note
Bright yellow colour with greenish hues. Sea salt, very mineral, extremely delicate with zesty citric hints on the palate and a saline aftertaste.
Food Pairing
If it swims, you should eat it with La Guita, preferably raw. Oysters, shrimp, oysters, clams, oysters, smoked salmon, oysters, sushi, oysters or oysters make an amazing pairing.
Color
White
Grape Varieties
Palomino
Appellation
Sanlúcar de Barrameda
Alcohol
15%
Suggested Retail Price
$14.99
Reviews
"Always a winner here"
James Suckling - April 9, 2021
"Unique aromas of dried apples, lemon blossom, almonds and cream. Hints of seaweed. Full-bodied, yet focused and tight with lively acidity and a beautifully composed finish of fruit and flavor. Always a winner here."
"Always a winner here"
James Suckling - April 9, 2021
"The NV La Guita Manzanilla has always had a very strong and marked character of brine, green olives and mustard seeds, with an overall sweet sensation. The medium-bodied palate is precise, very dry and intense, with some brine and rancio flavors and great length. The quality of this wine has increased notably in the last few years, and represents very good value and is a great introduction to Manzanilla. As an advantage, the back label shows the month and date of the bottling, and should be drunk within a year or two.
Although the official name of this winery created in 1852 in Sanlucar de Barrameda is Hijos de Rainera Perez Marin, it’s better known by the name of the only wine they make, Manzanilla La Guita. Moreover, the company has changed hands a number of times and since 2007 belongs to Grupo Estevez who also own Valdespino and Marques del Real Tesoro, but the names remain. La Guita, and its characteristic bottle with a piece of string attached (guita has two different meanings, it’s slang for cash, but it also means string, which in fact is the root for the word guitar) is a very strong brand locally and it’s been in existence since 1908. La Guita is a truly wine from Sanlucar: not only is the wine aged for an average of four years under flor in an impressive 15,000-barrel solera spread over two different cellars in Sanlucar, but the grapes are also from Sanlucar, mainly from the Miraflores vineyard."
"Distinctive"
Wine Spectator - April 9, 2021
"Distinctive, with verbena and tarragon notes leading the way, followed by lemon pith and jicama flavors. Flashes of gooseberry and talc run through the finish."
Trade Materials
La Guita Manzanilla 750ml Bottle Shot
Added May 18, 2021 -
La Guita Manzanilla NV Bottle Shot
Added April 9, 2021 -
La Guita Manzanilla NV Label
Added April 9, 2021 -
La Guita Manzanilla Tech Sheet
Added April 9, 2021 -
La Guita Manzanilla Shelf Talker
Added April 9, 2021 -
Other Wines by this Producer
Manzanilla
Sanlúcar de Barrameda
La Guita is the manzanilla from Sanlucar and the most popular wine in the region. Aged under highly active flor for four and a half years, La Guita develops intense complexity while retaining beautiful freshness. They bottle six times a year, as opposed to once or twice as many other houses, to capture as much freshness as possible.
La Guita is made in two bodegas, and the smaller of the two, Bodega Misericordia, dates to 1526. Located in the heart of Sanlúcar, it was once the Hospital de San Juan de Dios. The larger bodega, Pago Sancular Viejo, is located on the road to Jerez and accounts for about 80% of La Guita’s production. While legally allowed to source grapes from anywhere in Jerez, they focus exclusively on grapes from Sanlúcar – specifically from the Milaflores vineyard.
