La Kika Manzanilla Pasada en Rama

Yuste

Sanlúcar native Francisco (Paco) Yuste has been a true lover of Manzanilla his entire life.

In 1991, after a long and successful career building a successful beverage distributorship in the provinces of Cádiz and Córdoba, he purchased the historic Bodega Santa Ana in Sanlúcar’s Barrio Bajo. The purchase included a centenarian “solera” and Paco began operation as an “almacenista” –  a specialty broker who buys young wines from farmers, ages them in soleras on his own premises and in turn sells mature selections to large producers. The purchase of Bodega Santa Ana began Paco’s journey as a preserver of classic old Sherry bodegas, some containing rare soleras started over a century ago.

In 2001 he added Bodega Los Ángeles in the Barrio Alto, restoring it to Manzanilla production and using it to refresh his “criaderas” at Santa Ana. Bodega Miraflores, founded in 1956, was acquired in 2010 to serve as a production base and included a historic 46-hectare Pago (vineyard) called Viña La Alamedilla.

The acquisition of the classic Aurora brand in 2015 was followed in 2016 by the purchase of Herederos de Argüeso with its famous Manzanilla, San León. Aurora’s historic image from the 1900’s captures an essential truth about great sherry – old is beautiful!

Paco’s ongoing efforts to rescue some of Sanlúcar’s oldest bodegas from complete dilapidation have gained him an almost spiritual status to the locals as a preserver of a key part of their indigenous culture. Without Paco’s willingness to step in, it’s likely that a classic piece of Sanlúcar  history would disappear forever.