Alfonso I Solera
The Crown Jewel
Definition: Brandy prepared with medium and high-strength wine spirits, 77% and 94% Alc./Vol. aged in oak casks.
Alcohol content: 36% Alc./vol.
Type of Product: Brandy de Jerez Solera.
Sugar content: 13 g./l.
The quality of the Alfonso range of brandies is the result of its raw material, spirits produced from the distillation of good, balanced wines, and its aging process, the same as that used for Sherry. A complex “dynamic” system, designated “criaderas” and “soleras”, which is exclusive to the area.
It is essentially a storage system of casks divided into tiers, each of which is formed by an approximately equal number of casks (known as “botas” in Jerez). The first of these tiers, situated at the bottom, is the solera, which contains the most mature Alfonso brandy, followed in order of age by the first criadera and then the second criadera, etc. The brandy for bottling is extracted from the solera – the same quantity from each cask and no more than a third of the total contents. This extraction operation is called the “saca”. The brandy taken from the solera is replaced by the same quantity from the first criadera and this from the second criadera, and so on. This is known as “rocío”. Thanks to this system the consumer always enjoys a brandy with the same flavour, aroma and colour, and of identical quality. The result is the homogenisation that is achieved with this system as opposed to the “static” system of vintages with which wines of the same variety vary in quality according to the harvest.
