Sherry Vinegar Is Spain’s Choice For Tapas

Anyone who gets married in Spain will almost certainly receive at least one copy of the cookbook 1080 Recetas de Cocina as a wedding gift. It’s basically the Spanish version of the Joy of Cooking. Written by Simone Ortega in 1972 (and thankfully translated to English and published by Phaidon a few years back), the book was intended to teach newlyweds how to make the traditional tapas.

Around the same time the book was published, Despaña, a chorizo factory in Queens, was making superlative smoked paprika studded pork sausages. Marcos Intriago, who was originally from Asturias, Spain, ran a nearby tapas restaurant, and bought a lot of their product, before buying the factory in 1992. Forty years ago, a lot of Spanish products were rarely exported, and when they were, they weren’t packaged for retail, coming into the States in unlabeled bulk boxes and bottles. Intriago was intent on bringing them into the US, especially sherry vinegar, and that’s why in 2000, he hired Angelica (Piznon) Intriago, who first expanded their importing company, jump starting many Spanish producers to start selling to new consumers: home cooks, before marrying Maroc, and become a Spanish home cook herself. When they opened their SoHo shop in 2006, it was with full intent on bringing Spanish cuisine, and dozens of bottles of sherry vinegar to New York City, and the world.

middle, Angelica Intraigo

Sherry vinegar is a nutty, mellow, and somewhat sweet (for a vinegar) liquid, that is made from sherry wine. Made from an array of wine grapes in the very hot region of Jerez in southern Spain, it’s characteristics not only comes from it’s terrior, but also, it’s totally unique technique. The solera system sees stacks of casked wine, the same type and age in rows, where the oldest wines are located at the bottom (the solera), with younger barrels above — this is also called fractional blending. Since 1935, this process has been under careful watch by the Consejo Regulador, a governing body that is involved in the production of sherry, and monitors and controls the Denominación de Origen; it’s protected by Spanish and EU law and is similar to Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale in that manner. (Rule of thumb: any Vinagre de Jerez has a minimum of 6 months of aging, Reserva has a minimum of 2 years, and Gran Reserva has at least 10.)

Undeniably Spain’s sacred acidifier, sherry vinegar is important to many Spanish dishes, especially in tapas bar favorites, including boquerones (marinated fresh anchovies) — “their shelf life is not very high when you mix vinegar with fish, so it needs to be refrigerated,’ Angelica Intriago instructs. Gildas, a Basque snack stacked on a toothpick (an anchovy, a green manzanilla olive, green pickled guindilla pepper; Despaña carries the Himafesa brand, which uses white vinegar). And gazpacho, a chilled tomato-cucumber soup from Andalucia.

“There might even be a piece of a 100-year-old barrel that’s been aged in that bottle,” says Intriago, who speaks of the century-old bodegas (warehouses) which lend a level of complexity to sherry vinegars that’s unachievable in other places. “Sherry vinegar is often a lot better the longer it's kept in a bottle,” says Angelica Intriago. “It’s the opposite of olive oil—which you should use within the first 6 months. [Sherry vinegar] It’s an investment.” — in price and patience.

HERE ARE THREE SHERRY PRODUCERS WORTH LOOKING INTO:

PÁEZ MORILLA

“This is a hundred year–old sherry house we just started working with in the past decade,” Intriago says. Its Gran Gusto bottling, aka, “the yellow bottle” is made from the Palomino Fino grape which is known to make  a robust, amber-colored vinegar. The Gran Gusto is aged for 2-5 years inAmerican oak, which gives it some caramelly notes. “This is the one for your gazpacho,” Intriago advises.

MONTEGRATO

One of the first brands that Despaña brought in nearly 20 years ago, Montegrato is a brand that was created for the American market. “You won’t see it in Spain,” says Intriago. Of note is its Pedro Ximénez Sweet Balsamic Vinegar 16 years, “Chefs us a lot of this,” says Angelica Intriago of the thick, syrupy vinegar. Montegrato’s fino vinegar is also popular. “It’s light-hued and fruity, with the characteristics of a top quality rice wine vinegar,” she says. The Amontillado bottling, darker than the fino, but lighter in flavor than an oloroso,  At 58 years old, its “mahogany tones, and just the right amount of richness,” says Angelica Intriago.

TORO ALBALÁ

To finish off a meal, a finishing drizzle on cheese, Intriago reaches for this producer’s Vinagre Balsamic AL PX "Chef" Gran Reserva. “A raisiny reduction that’s still soft and sweet,” she says. The hundred-year-old Montilla-Moriles region wine producer uses ancient Castillian oak barrels to carefully age this velvety vinegar. Angelica Intriago pairs it with “foie, mature blue cheeses, meats, salads and sauces. It's also wonderful with dishes like tataki, tuna tartar and salmon”.