BUELAN:
(verb, old Spanish sp.) '“they fly” taken from a drawing, ‘el toro mariposa’ by Francisco de Goya.
Compañía de Sacas:
- a company of sacas, or bottlings, barrel-selections.
MISSION:
Buelan Compañía de Sacas is a bottling project of barrel selected sherries created by musician and founder of En Rama Sherry Co. Nick Africano. Buelan aims to bottle sherries that capture a depth of meaning and place, of metaphor and artistry, and, most importantly,
“they aim to capture the stories of the people who make the wines”
Each bottling expresses a particular theme, be that a song, an idea, or just a certain style of sherry Nick wants to highlight.
Every producer with whom we work has his or her own, estate vines. This ensures a consistent sense of place.
ABOUT:
Nick has the opportunity to work with the wines of Ramiro Ibañez of Cota 45 and Willy Perez of Bodegas Luis Perez through his work with Spanish wine in New York City and through his work in sales with José Pastor Selections. Ramiro and Willy are true pioneers of winemaking in Jerez currently, and also leading the way in preserving ancient traditions and winemaking techniques and farming. Nick was very inspired by the depth of meaning behind every choice made by Ramiro and Willy: from the identification of soil types, specification of vineyard sites, experimentation with varietals, identification of Pagos, the careful selection of soleras with which to work, the return to lost and forgotten practices in the region, to the artistry in their labeling and naming. They are full of duende and dedication. As a former musician himself, Willy’s approach to wines resonated immediately with Nick. And as a student of literature, Nick resonated with Ramiro’s meticulous attention to detail.
He was thrilled when he learned José Pastor would be working with their joint project, M. Ant. De La Riva. After meeting Ramiro and Willy in Spain, Nick immediately connected with their ethos, and knew he wanted to work with them in a greater capacity beyond selling their wine in NYC. Nick asked them if they’d help bottle 500 bottles of barrel-selected wine to co-release alongside a song. After they agreed, José said why not keep doing it! It was a dream come true to work with them for his first release: to find true mentors, like working with a great music producer.
After learning the art of blending and barrel selecting from his mentors for the first sacas, Nick now bottles wines from three producers in Andlalucía. He is also working on a vermouth that he hope will be ready in late 2023.
