XC Palo Cortado "back and forth"

González Byass will celebrate the 500^th anniversary of the First World Tour carried out by the Magallanes-Elcano expedition, by embarking two barrels of its exceptional Palo Cortado –especially selected in the cellars– on the Spanish Navy’s training ship Juan Sebastián Elcano. The casks will sail on a round trip for the 90^th instructional cruise of the Elcano, which will leave the port of Cádiz on February 11. This is the way chosen by González Byass to commemorate the first time a ship –commanded by Magallanes and Elcano– circumnavigated the world: a ship that kept several casks of sherry on board, as recorded in the book of provisions preserved in the Spanish Archivo de Indias. This Palo Cortado will travel the seas aboard the Juan Sebastián Elcano and thus recover the ancient tradition of shipping barrels to navigate the world so as to obtain unique, higher-quality sherries. These "back and forth” wines were very popular in overseas trade and often reached a fivefold increase upon their return to Cádiz. The remarkable improvement in their uniqueness and organoleptic qualities was caused by factors such as temperature, pressure and, above all, the constant swaying of the waves of the oceans. XC Palo Cortado is a fine and smart wine, of an amber colour, slightly orange with copper shades. The nose is intense, complex, with iodised and saline notes and nuances of acetals and fine woodwork. In the mouth it creates a genuine gush of power, breadth and persistence; it is dry and perfectly balanced between acidity and bitterness on the tongue, and straightforward and smooth to sip. In the words of Antonio Flores, top winemaker of González Byass, it is a wine "that has reached its fullness and is only one step away from glory". After this commemorative voyage, which will end back in Cádiz in August, the sherry will have reached its peak. This wine gem will then be bottled by González Byass, who recovers the historical tradition of shipping wines on long journeys and pays homage to the sailors who sailed around the globe for the first time in the sixteenth century. The voyage of these barrels, along the ports of call scheduled for the Juan Sebastián Elcano, can be followed on www.tiopepe.es.