Quiet, genteel Jerez is quite a contrast to nearby Cádiz. Actually larger than its provincial capital, and Andalucía’s fifth largest city, it rarely feels like it. The city is famous for its sherry, the wine that takes its name from the place and known in Falstaff’s day as sack. Over the centuries the British, the largest overseas consumers of the stuff, have had a strong connection with the city and its wine industry, and some of their customs have rubbed off on the locals: tweed, spaniels, and corduroy elbow patches aren’t common sights elsewhere in the country. Most of sherry’s big names have their bodegas here: Domecq, González Byass, Sandeman, Garvey and many more. Most of the bodegas can be visited, although many require a phone call the day before. This is worth the effort (everyone in the Jerez wine trade seems to speak good English) and rarely a problem; if you’re lucky you’ll get a very personal tour. The two most-visited bodegas, Domecq and González Byass, don’t require a booking and are handily near the cathedral.
Jerez is also known as an important centre of flamenco and of horsemanship: the dancing white Carthusian mounts have a training base here. Jerez is also home to a faster steed; it’s the venue for the Spanish motorcycling Grand Prix, which currently is scheduled for early May and coincides with the town’s lively May feria.
Jerez is teased by other cities in Andalucía as being pijo (posh), but there’s a gentle politeness to its inhabitants that makes it, as a place to visit, notably helpful and hospitable.
The centre of Jerez is the elegant Plaza del Arenal, whose southern end is full of tables of poor-quality tourist restaurants. Many of the city’s principal sights and several of its best tapas bars are within a short distance of here.
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