25th anniversary Tokyo tasting | The Jancis Robinson Story | 🎁 20% off gift memberships

The wine that's not for drinking

Wednesday 18 November 2020 • 4 min read
Casks maturing in a sherry bodega

Richard revives his Spittoon column with the curious story of the Jerezanos' other business.

Which traditional white wine is aged in 100% new oak for two years, only to be turned into vinegar?

Millions of litres of it are maturing in brand-new barrels right now, soaking up all that expensive flavour, before fulfilling their unlikely destiny. In fact, their fate is determined from the moment the grapes are picked, because this wine is a mere waste product from a far more profitable industry.

That industry is whisky, and the wine is sherry – at least, in theory.

montage of sherry cask whisky labels

Why whisky loves

...
Become a member or log in to continue reading
JancisRobinson.com 25th anniversaty logo

This Mother’s Day, give the gift of great wine.

Mothering Sunday is 15 March – and a JancisRobinson.com gift membership is one of the most thoughtful presents you can give a wine lover.

For a limited time, get 20% off all annual gift memberships by entering promo code FORMUM26 at checkout. Offer ends 17 March.

Member
$135
/year
Save over 15% annually
Ideal for wine enthusiasts
  • Access 290,534 wine reviews & 15,947 articles
  • Access The Oxford Companion to Wine & The World Atlas of Wine
Inner Circle
$249
/year
 
Ideal for collectors
  • Access 290,534 wine reviews & 15,947 articles
  • Access The Oxford Companion to Wine & The World Atlas of Wine
  • Early access to the latest wine reviews & articles, 48 hours in advance
Professional
$299
/year
For individual wine professionals
  • Access 290,534 wine reviews & 15,947 articles
  • Access The Oxford Companion to Wine & The World Atlas of Wine
  • Early access to the latest wine reviews & articles, 48 hours in advance
  • Commercial use of up to 25 wine reviews & scores for marketing
Business
$399
/year
For companies in the wine trade
  • Access 290,534 wine reviews & 15,947 articles
  • Access The Oxford Companion to Wine & The World Atlas of Wine
  • Early access to the latest wine reviews & articles, 48 hours in advance
  • Commercial use of up to 250 wine reviews & scores for marketing
Pay with
Visa logo Mastercard logo American Express logo Logo for more payment options
Join our newsletter

Get the latest from Jancis and her team of leading wine experts.

By subscribing you agree with our Privacy Policy and provide consent to receive updates from our company.

More Hemming's spittoon

Rollercoaster
Hemming's spittoon Wine doesn't always have to be great, argues Richard. Most wines I taste are of average quality. Mediocre. 15.5 out...
Image
Hemming's spittoon Is finding the right food and wine match ever possible? Probably ... When you consider the virtually infinite number of...
Image
Hemming's spittoon How technology is being used to share every detail of how a wine is produced – for free. If you...
Image
Hemming's spittoon If wine will be the death of you ... would you still drink it? As if we didn’t already have...

More from JancisRobinson.com

Richard Hemming surrounded by wine bottles ready for tasting
Tasting articles 124 wines reviewed, revealing assorted treasures buried in the far south-western corner of Australia. See also Visiting Great Southern. The...
MBT conclusions cover image
Mission Blind Tasting Time to put all the details together and take a stab at determining what’s in your glass. Now that you’ve...
El Pacto vineyard
Tasting articles Proof that Rioja remains a terrific source of mature wines at excellent prices. Above, one of the vineyards of El...
Vineyard landscape at West Cape Howe in the Great Southern region
Travel tips Discovering Western Australia’s wine wilderness. Come back tomorrow for reviews of wines from Great Southern. Wherever you stand in the...
Juan Valdelana
Tasting articles Plus a selection of top-quality wines made at sufficient scale that they can be found the world over. Above, Juan...
 Juan Carlos Sancha in the Cerro la Isa vineyard with mule
Tasting articles A focus on single-village, single-vineyard and single-variety Rioja. Above, Juan Carlos Sancha and his mule working the Cerro la Isa...
Doppo wine list
Nick on restaurants A gem for wine lovers in London’s Soho. Just part of its giant wine list (temporarily stolen) is shown above...
Freixenet winery in Spain
Wine news in 5 Also news on Germany’s Henkell group buying out legendary Cava company Freixenet (pictured above) and lawsuits on France’s copper fungicide...
Wine inspiration delivered directly to your inbox, weekly
Our weekly newsletter is free for all
By subscribing you're confirming that you agree with our Terms and Conditions.