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The Independent
6 days ago
- The Independent
My Sherry'amour – Why it's not just a drink for your nan at Christmas
I imagine there might be a few sleepy souls in the town of Jerez de la Frontera, southern Spain today. This past week was the Feria del Caballo, an annual horse fair that takes place in this Andalucian outpost. But what have horses got to do with wine? Well, Jerez is also at the heart of Spain's sherry production in the region of Jerez-Xérès-Sherry DO – an area that includes Jerez de la Frontera, El Puerto de Santa María, and Sanlúcar de Barrameda. So while the town goes horse crazy, it is also, from what I can determine, a great excuse to meet with friends, eat good food, dance, and of course… drink a lot of sherry. I first visited this vibrant town several years ago when I'd just started studying and working in wine. My knowledge of sherry at that point didn't really extend beyond seeing bottles of Harvey's Bristol Cream on my nan's dresser in her kitchen. But a bargain Ryanair flight and a cheap hotel room changed everything. We wine people have a tendency to wang out about sherry quite a bit, and how it deserves to be more popular. In fact, I wonder if the first documented evidence of sherry being made 'cool again' was Falstaff 's speech in Shakespeare's Henry IV, Part 2. Depending on when exactly we agree it was written, that's about 420 years ago. Yes, there was a spike in sales in the UK during the 1960s and 70s, but unfortunately, sherry's been in steady decline since 1979. And it really doesn't deserve to be the case. It is one of the most versatile, food-friendly, and joyous wines available, and is very 'cost of living pricing' friendly in these tight times! Sherry's a fortified wine made predominantly out of the white palomino grape, though pedro ximénez and moscatel are used in sweeter sherries. And this is a key point, not all sherries are sweet. But what makes sherry really special is its unique ageing process. Fresh and dry styles such as fino or manzanilla' are aged under flor, Spanish for flower. This protective layer of indigenous yeast forms on the surface of the wine and consumes all oxygen, imparting a glorious and distinct savoury, nutty character. It retains total freshness and pale colour and is lower in alcohol (normally around 15 per cent). And then there are those wines which have been fortified to a higher alcohol content such as oloroso, which are aged oxidatively, without flor. As a result of the wine's contact with oxygen, you'll find a wine with richer textures, and flavours of nuts and dried fruit. And finally, there are wines that don't slot neatly into categories like amontillado and palo cortado. Amontillados start their journey under flor, but it's intentionally killed to undergo some oxidative ageing. And then there's sherry's elusive family member, the enigma in the gang – palo cortado. A rare style of wine that starts life as a fino, but for unknown reasons, the flor fails, leading to oxidative ageing that combines the aromatic finesse of an amontillado with the body of an oloroso. I appreciate it can all seem a bit dizzying to know where to start. And honestly, I was so overwhelmed when I was visiting the bodegas of Jerez all those years ago. But there was one drink that flicked the switch: rebujito, or, at its most basic level, fino and Sprite or 7UP. This was served everywhere and at all times of the day. It's surely the only reason people can stay up dancing until the early hours of the morning: no one sees dawn by necking glasses of 17 per cent wine. So, if you've never tried sherry and don't want to go all in, I'm going to suggest you start exactly where I did, with this outstanding drink that is perfect for summer. And the best bits is there's an open bottle of fino in your fridge door, which you're destined to fall in love with. Rebujito One part fino sherry such as Tio Pepe Two parts 7UP or Sprite - I do really recommend the lemon/lime combo of these two drinks, though regular lemonade will work. Glass full of ice Slice of lemon Sprig of mint. This can be scaled up to make jug-fulls for a summer party. The method's simple: ice in the glass, pour over the fino and Sprite, add the mint, stir and serve – dancing until dawn is optional. And if you want to try some straight, here are some further recommendations to get you started: Tio Pepe Fino Sherry Available from Sainsbury's, £13.50, 15 per cent ABV This global bestselling fino from one of the most famous sherry houses in the world deserves to have a spot in your fridge door at all times. It's gloriously refreshing and bone dry, with aromas of tart cooking apples, salted almonds and waves of salty ocean freshness. Tio Pepe Fino En Rama Saca 2025 Available nationwide including The Oxford Wine Company, £18.90, 15 per cent ABV This is sherry for a purist, as en rama, translated as 'raw' is unfined, unfiltered and unapologetically delicious. The wine is bottled directly from the barrel, so none of the texture and character is lost. Expect aromas and flavours of bruised apples, freshly cut grass, toasted almonds, lemon-salted rims, and chamomile flowers. It's deeply expressive and so unique. Serve chilled with salted almonds and slices of manchego. Morrison's 'The Best' Palo Cortado Available from Morrison's, £7.25, 19 per cent ABV Sitting comfortably in its own hybrid world, it has a gorgeous rich molten caramel nose, a crunch of toffee apple and roasted hazelnuts with a candied orange peel and citrus zest freshness. Romate Don José A Selection of Oloroso Medium Dry Available from The Wine Society, £10.95, 17.5 per cent ABV If there's a better value wine available in the world, then send it to me, because this will be hard to beat. I'd serve this chilled, savouring the notes of roasted coffee, intense cocoa, roasted hazelnuts, cinnamon, nutmeg and raisins too. There's a supporting act of sweetness, but the main show is definitely dry.
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
How to watch the 2025 MotoGP Grand Prix of Spain online for free
All products featured here are independently selected by our editors and writers. If you buy something through links on our site, Mashable may earn an affiliate commission. TL;DR: Watch the 2025 MotoGP Grand Prix of Spain for free on ServusTV. Access this free streaming platform from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN. The 2025 MotoGP is already looking super competitive, with a number of riders battling for top spot in the standings. Marc Márquez, Álex Márquez, and Francesco Bagnaia have all looked impressive in the early rounds, with everyone in the running for a race win in Spain this weekend. If you're interested in watching the 2025 MotoGP Grand Prix of Spain for free from anywhere in the world, we've got all the information you need. The MotoGP Grand Prix of Spain takes place at the Circuito de Jerez. The 2025 MotoGP Grand Prix of Spain race starts at 8 a.m. ET on April 27. Every 2025 MotoGP race is available to live stream for free on ServusTV. ServusTV is geo-restricted to Austria, but anyone can access this free streaming platform with a VPN. These tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in Austria, meaning you can bypass geo-restrictions to access ServusTV from anywhere in the world. Unblock ServusTV by following this simple process: Sign up for a VPN (like ExpressVPN) Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more) Open up the app and connect to a server in Austria Connect to ServusTV Watch MotoGP for free from anywhere in the world Opens in a new window Credit: ExpressVPN ExpressVPN (2-Year Subscription + 4 Months Free) $139 at ExpressVPN (with money-back guarantee) Get Deal The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but they do tend to offer free-trial periods or money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can access MotoGP live streams without fully committing with your cash. This clearly isn't a long-term solution, but it does mean you can watch the 2025 MotoGP Grand Prix of Spain before recovering your investment. If you want to retain permanent access to free streaming sites from around the world, you'll need a subscription. Fortunately, the best VPN for live streaming is on sale for a limited time. ExpressVPN is the top choice for unblocking ServusTV, for a number of reasons: Servers in 105 countries including Austria Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more Strict no-logging policy so your data is protected Fast streaming speeds free from throttling Up to eight simultaneous connections 30-day money-back guarantee A two-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $139 and includes an extra four months for free — 49% off for a limited time. This plan also includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a 30-day money-back guarantee. Watch the 2025 MotoGP Grand Prix of Spain for free with ExpressVPN.
Local Italy
14-02-2025
- Business
- Local Italy
Where in Europe is Ryanair scrapping flights this year?
Clashing with governments over taxes and airport fees, budget airline Ryanair has started off the year with cutbacks on routes across Europe and threatened many more. Low-cost airline Ryanair has started off 2025 by announcing cutbacks on several of its routes across Europe. Whether it be scrapping popular flights entirely, closing aircraft bases at busy airport hubs, or even just scaling back the number of seats going to long-established destinations, from Denmark down to Spain the Irish airline is doing some restructuring of its European fleet this year. In many cases, the company is scrapping flights (or threatening to do so, at least) on the back of disputes with governments over increased taxes and airport fees. Austria In Austria, the airline has pivoted to prioritising airports with lower fees including Linz and Salzburg. Speaking at a press conference in Vienna, the CEO said the low-cost carrier's growth in Austria would be limited due to rising airport charges and the country's €12 air traffic tax, Kurier reported. Denmark Flights with Ryanair to and from Billund, Denmark's second-largest airport, are to end on March 31st, after the company confirmed it will no longer operate any services from Billund. That came after another announcement that Ryanair was to close its two-aircraft base at the Jutland airport. Passengers who have bought Ryanair tickets from Billund Airport for travel after March 31st can therefore expect to receive a cancellation email from the airline, if they have not already done so. That seems like a drastic measure on the surface, given that the cost of the tax would be passed on to passengers and it is limited to just 30 kroner per year for short haul flights in 2025, the first year of a five-year phasing in period. Germany It doesn't stop here. Ryanair has also announced plans to cut flights to six destinations from Berlin's Brandenburg airport this summer, again blaming high fees and taxes. The airline explained that particularly high access costs, 'which could not be reduced by the German government and airport management" were the reason for the reduction of its services from Berlin. The number of Ryanair aircraft stationed in Berlin would drop from nine to seven, and six destinations would no longer be served from the German capital, including: Brussels, Kaunas in Lithuania, Krakow, Luxembourg and Riga. Spain Heading to southern Europe, in Spain the company is going further by cancelling 13 routes at seven airports, equal to a reduction of 18 percent of the company's flights or 800,000 fewer seats overall. Ryanair flights to and from Spain slated for cancellation include: Vigo to Barcelona Vigo to London Stansted Santiago de Compostela to Milan Santiago de Compostela to Bologna Asturias to London Stansted Santander to Alicante Valladolid to Palma de Mallorca Valladolid and Barcelona Jerez to London Stansted Jerez to Palma de Mallorca Jerez to Barcelona Zaragoza to Bologna Zaragoza to Venice (Treviso) Italy In Italy, Ryanair has threatened to remove an aircraft from Rome Fiumicino and curb its planned expansion at Rome Ciampino in a dispute over, you guessed it, airport fees. The operator said that airport costs were set to increase by 15 percent in Fiumicino and 44 percent in Ciampino by 2028, while passenger taxes (or tasse d'imbarco) were set to rise from April 1st. It added that limitations on the number of flights imposed on Ciampino due to noise concerns (the cap is currently set at 65 flights a day) were also hurting its business. 'These restrictive policies are damaging connectivity, tourism and jobs in Italy, particularly in Rome, where enhanced air connectivity is needed to support inbound tourism during the Jubilee year,' the Irish company said. The 2025 Jubilee, a Holy Year for the Catholic Church, is expected to draw over 30 million tourists to the Italian capital in 2025. France That leads us to France, where Ryanair last year announced it would following a failure to find an agreement with the airport about fees. However, months after the decision, Ryanair confirmed it will maintain its flight schedule for spring and summer 2025 from another, smaller, airport in south-west France. The budget airline will now operate flights to seven destinations from Tarbes Lourdes Pyrénées airport – Dublin, London, Brussels Charleroi, Krakow, Milan Bergamo, Rome Ciampino and Malta. However the airline will not, after all, be offering flights to and from Paris next year, it has been reported. Ryanair had been awarded several slots to begin operating flights to and from Paris' Orly airport, but in December it was reported that O'Leary had vetoed the idea. Things could yet get more complicated for travellers coming and going from France. O'Leary also previously threatened to leave France altogether if the country goes through with a budget proposal to more than double the tax that is added onto the cost of every ticket for outgoing flights. Following news last week that the tax was passed, it remains to be seen what Ryanair will do next. What it does mean, however, is that flights leaving from France are set to get more expensive. With taxes and airport fees clearly an issue for the Irish low-cost airline in 2025, it remains to be seen what Ryanair (and O'Leary) will do in response or where else in Europe it may scale back flights.
