History in Seville

Our main purpose driving to southern Spain was for Jerez and Jabugo.  Sherry, tocino del cielo, and jamón.  In order to have these two day trips, we researched a city within driving distance.  Jerez does have a selection of hotels, but I'm always on the lookout for newer and clean hotels.  So that lead us to have a three day hub in the capital of Andalusia.

Seville, or Sevilla to the locals, is the region's biggest city.  In the heart of it, you can walk through centuries of medieval architecture.  Seville is an old city, though, which smells of its many horse drawn carriages trotting around the plazas and streets.  In its successful marketing, the city has drawn numerous tourists to take in this southern culture.

One of the highlights of Seville is its cathedral.  The Catedral de Santa Maria de la Sede.  It is the largest Gothic cathedral and the third largest church in the world.  Also, the cathedral houses the burial site of Christopher Columbus.

Because of Seville's history of cultures and religions, a segment of the cathedral is attached to an ancient mosque.  The bell tower, La Giralda, is famously a minaret from the former mosque.

Seville is a city full of history.  You can feel a bit of a grit and age in the city, as well as the chaos from hoards of tourists.  With that said, if you visit Seville be very careful of your belongings.  We experienced a man scouting our table and then acting drunk in an attempt to get to our bags.

Seville Cathedral's enormity 

Tio Pepe Sherry Tasting in Jerez

Aside from the amazing tocino del cielo, Jerez is also known for its sherry production.  Sherry is fortified wine from white grapes grown in this Andalucian province.  Naturally, Jerez is home to over 20 sherry bodegaas.

The most famous bodega is Bodegas González Byass, also known as Bodegas Tio Pepe.  It is one of the biggest sherry houses, just next to the Alcázar and Cathedral.  Their sherry production opened in 1835 by Manuel María González Angel, who partnered with Robert Blake Byass.  The infamous sherry, Tio Pepe, was named after his favorite uncle and advisor, Tio Pepe.  The bodega opened in 1963 and has expanded over the years.  Today the company is run by 4th and 5th generation González family members.

The best way to learn about this bodega and the process of sherry production is by taking their tour.  There are several tours throughout the day in English, Spanish, German, and French.  Reservations can be made online and you pay when you get there.  The tours include 2 to 4 tastes of sherry and an option for tapas with your tasting.  It's only 18.50 Euro for 4 tastings and tapas.  It's worth it, and the sherry buzz you get afterwards is fun.

Tio Pepe Statue

Outside Bodegas Tio Pepe/Bodegas Gonzalez Byass

Taking in Andalucian culture in Jerez. And falling in love with their tocino del cielo.

Jerez de la Frontera is arguably one of the destinations to discover the heart of Andalucia.  It has the horse culture and the flair for flamenco.  The larger cities like Seville and Granada get more of the attention with their numerous buildings and monuments.  But, Jerez is a wonderful place to explore and to taste some of Spain's most known specialties: sherry and tocino del cielo - our two reasons to drive to Jerez for the day.

We arrived into Jerez from Seville an hour before our tour time at Tio Pepe/Gonzalez Byass Bodega (the infamous sherry producers.  More on our Tio Pepe tour in my next post).  To kill time we explored the surrounding area which holds a couple of Jerez's most known structures.  The Alcázar is a former Moorish fortress which now houses a beautiful park.  The first of the fortresses dates back to the 11th century.  Nearby is the Catedral de San Salvador.  It was built in the 17th century and became a cathedral in 1980 by Pope John Paul II.

Apart from the sherry, we were in Jerez's for one of their
most famous creations: tocino del cielo.  It translates to bacon from heaven.  It's an iconic Spanish dessert named because of its caramelized appearance, heavenly texture, and religious origin.  Tocino del cielo was created in the Convent of the Holy Spirit of Jerez de la Frontera by nuns who were given egg yolks from their neighboring sherry producers (because sherry is clarified with egg whites).

After some internet research and advice from some locals, we knew there was only one place to try it, La Rosa de Oro - neighborhood pastelería with Spanish cakes, pastries, ice creams, and sweet drinks.  It's a place for locals to savor an afternoon snack and for kids to get a treat after school.

Hands down, their tocino del cielo was the best dessert I had on the entire trip.  I'm willing to drive back to Jerez for more of this.  I can still taste the caramelized sweet silky texture.  Seriously from heaven.

Near the pastelería was a local grocery.  It was so fun to see all the local goods found only in Spain.  You can host your own tapas party at home and not have to cook a thing!

An entrance to Alcázar

The courtyard