Tag Archives: copa jerez

copa jerez 2017 | forum & finals

13 Tuesday Jun 2017

Posted by in andalucia, food & drink, gastronomy, sherry, spain, wine

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Day two of the Copa Jerez started with an early tasting of sherries with jamón Ibérico, regional cheeses and tuna dishes. Not a bad “second breakfast”!

This was followed by a Tempura vs Fritura competition, which was quite fun (and tasty) with chefs from Tokyo and El Puerto de Santa María battling it out on stage.

copa jerez forum (2)Tempura vs Fritura

After that it was off to the showroom where there were over 200 brands on offer. Of course for Tomoko and me this was really more a chance to say hi to our bodega friends and otherwise socialize. Then it time to catch our late afternoon train and meet up with Peter in El Puerto de Santa María.

Tomoko & Silvia (González Byass)

Rocío & Mario (Bodegas Urium)

[photo by the Sherry Council]

I’ll be writing about the Copa Jerez in more detail over on Azahar Spain, but no doubt you’ll be wondering who won the competition… and it was Team Holland!

Podium onder de Dom
Chef: Leon Mazairac
Somm: Goos van den Berg

  • “Zeeland” oyster with green olive gelée and cream of sardine, dressed with chilli oil and Iberian ham sauce. Paired with Manzanilla Pasada La Goya / Bodegas Delgado Zuleta
  • Dutch rabbit crépinette seasoned with masala spices and carrot and orange cream. Paired with Oloroso El Cerro / Bodegas Callejuela
  • Caramel flower and porcini with a Sherry Vinegar and Jerez Brandy reduction on aged Oudwijker cheese from the region of Utrecht. Paired with Medium Mons Urium / Bodegas Urium

Congratulations!

copa jerez 2017 | concierto & cata

12 Monday Jun 2017

Posted by in andalucia, flamenco, music, sherry, spain

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I was a bit “last minute” getting things organized to attend this year’s Copa Jerez. Actually, what happened was that both my friend Tomoko @fu_yan and I had made the same mistake while registering online, so it turned out that we weren’t registered at all! Thankfully the good people at the Consejo Regulador said we could get passes for the second day of the two-day event (the first day was fully booked), and would be able to attend the forums and showroom. I got to Jerez on the first day (to save having to take a 7am train on Tuesday) and I’m so glad I did.

What happened was this! Another Jerez friend Pilar @enosherry was working as a guide/translator with the Copa Jerez international competitors and was told she’d be leaving them at the Claustros de Santo Domingo for a sold-out concert & cata, and then would pick them up afterwards to take them to the dinner venue at the end of the first day’s activities. We arranged to meet up at La Moderna across from the Claustros while the concert was on, and Tomoko and I decided to go a bit earlier to have a snack. Then while we were waiting for Pilar she sent us a message saying that there were a few empty seats at the concert and we should come over.

The “concert & cata” format has been kicking around the sherry triangle for awhile, with different sherries paired with different flamenco styles, but this night it was extra special. Josep Roca was our host along with Diego del Morao on guitar. But not just any guitar – this one was the last guitar Paco de Lucía had commissioned, but sadly never got to play as he tragically died before it was completed. I have to say it was a very moving and beautiful (and delicious!) experience. Also perfectly coordinated with a small army of waiters bringing the next sherry to us just as the next musical piece began. Well done, Consejo!

fabiola

09 Friday Jun 2017

Posted by in food & drink, friends, gastronomy, sevilla, sherry, tapas, tapas bars, tapas tours

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I first met fellow sherry educator (and professional venenciadora) Fabiola Bonke @spanjetotaal a couple of years ago at a casual sherry tasting held at Bodegas Faustino Gonzalez @cruzviejajerez in Jerez, which had been organized by my friend Tomoko @tomokotours. Fabiola is Dutch, but her parents are both Spanish, and she has become the most important sherry expert in Holland. Awhile back she got in touch saying she was going to be in Jerez for the Copa Jerez finals and would be staying overnight in Sevilla on the way.

So I recommended a couple of nice reasonably priced hotels and she chose one that is literally a stone’s throw from my house. And so just after she arrived and got settled in I picked Fabiola up for a sherry-based Tapeo Extremo. Our first stop was Las Teresas, my favourite place for both ambiance and jamón Ibérico de Bellota. They also have some excellent sherries.

After that we carried on to two more bars – Bodeguita Romero and La Cata Ciega, sampling amazing sherries and tasting delicious tapas. And all the while talking talking talking… what a lovely evening. And the good news is that we will be meeting up again in Jerez because I am also going to be at Copa Jerez. Yay!

copa jerez prize!

24 Thursday Oct 2013

Posted by in food & drink, internet, twitter, wine

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copa jerez prize
So remember when I went to the Copa Jerez (Sherry Cup) last week? Well, there was also a Twitter competition that day, with the Sherry Academy saying that whoever tweeted the most using the “official hashtags” could win a prize. Well, you know me. I tweet the shit outta everything when I’m at an event. And so I won this! I hardly know where to begin. Though I think I might actually host a sherry-pairing dinner party…

más jerez

16 Wednesday Oct 2013

Posted by in food & drink, friends, spain, tapas, trips, twitter, wine, work

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copa jerez
So there I was enjoying my morning coffee in bed with the cats (though actually at work, checking emails and social media stuff on the iPad) and I remembered that it was the Copa Jerez (Sherry Cup), where chefs chosen from seven different countries would meet in Jerez and create special dishes to pair with a particular sherries. And I thought… well, why not? Well, other than I didn’t have an invitation and my friend Annie thought it was too late for her to get one for me. Details, details. I decided to hop on the next train and gatecrash the event. Which turned out to be no problem at all, and anyhow, had I planned to go earlier I would have got an invite. But I digress.

Annie drove in from Vejer and picked me up at the train station. From there we went off to the event, watched a bit of the judging, but for the most part partook of the sherry on offer from 15 bodegas, along with some wonderful jamón and cheese. The competition and various interviews were over by 2 o’clock and I was invited to join a lunch party at a lovely spot called Ajo Negro. Then caught the 6 o’clock train home, arriving just in time to get to pick up my tapas tour clients at our meeting point. Phew!

It was great to see old friends again and catch up, and I also made some good contacts for future sherry education. So it was a good thing I didn’t just stay in bed with my coffee!