travelswithalice

August 09, 2019

Jerez de la Frontera

The lush tropical garden in the central courtyard of Madrid‘s Atocha train station gives it a cool and relaxed feel not usually associated with train stations. We’re catching the 1:30 to Jerez de la Frontera in Andalusia.

It’s 3.5 hours to Jerez through vast stretches of the famed olive groves of Andalusia. More than half of all olive oil in the world comes from Spain and a third of that is produced here.

At least 85 percent of the land area of Andalusia is planted with olive trees. I quickly tire of looking at this remarkably unchanging landscape and while away the time doing online crossword puzzles and watching Michael Gambon in Maigret.

*****

In Jerez, Casa Palacio de Maria Luisa seamlessly marries the scale and proportions of a grand aristocratic house with the lightness and playfulness of contemporary interior design.

There’s a lovely garden in back of the hotel where spread out on the lawn are bullfight-themed sculptures by local artist BALCRIS.

Because we want dinner way before the Andalusian dinner time of 10 o’clock but don’t want tapas, Ismael at the front desk helpfully informs us that we can eat at the Terraza where they serve tapas that are not really tapas.

I see what he means.

We start with a cold garlic soup with grapes and baby sardines. Little lilac cilantro blossoms float on top.

Next is asparagus tempura with majao, a traditional gypsy tomato and pepper sauce. Then follows a parade of dishes arriving in quick succession. There’s lightly deep fried lemon sole and pickled aubergines, fried marinated spinach on toast, cod croquettes in alí-oli, and boneless pork rib with garlic potato purée.

And to finish, a kind of french toast with honey and ice cream, a traditional Easter treat, I’m told.

This exceptionally delicious dinner is served on the terrace in the shade of a giant jacaranda tree. Doves fly overhead, their wings painted orange and gold by the setting sun.

There’s no one else around but Stuart and me with Ivan and Javier hovering by the bar. Soon a waxing crescent moon starts to set behind the trees too.

It’s a magical evening in this wondrous place.

*****

Jerez is the cradle of flamenco and there’s no better place to experience it than at a local bar. We’re at El Pasaje. There’s just enough room for 6 very small tables and a tiny stage of not more than 8 feet across.

There’s nothing small about the flamenco here though. It’s wonderfully loud, passionate, energetic, and everything we want it to be. The food and the wine are good too for the minimum charge of 40€ which we’re not able to use up even after having our fill of wine and tapas and buying drinks for the performers. The 40€ is for a reserved table. Buy a drink at the bar and you get to watch the show for free. The place is packed; you couldn’t squeeze another person in the bar.

*****

Jerez is also the birthplace of sherry; it’s where the fortified wine gets its name. The wine tour at Gonzalez Byass gives us an idea how it’s made and how it tastes in its various incarnations.

I like Jerez. It’s a quiet, refined town with nice buildings and good food and wine. It’s known for sherry, horses, and more recently, motorcycle racing.