Harvey’s, Avery’s and Bristol Cream
Today the name of Sandeman is associated with the striking and mysterious silhouette of a black-cloaked Spaniard, which was drawn as a speculative poster design by George (Marriot) Brown; it has been their trade mark since 1926. To many wine drinkers, sherry is synonymous with the name of Harvey, and John Harvey & Sons, Ltd, of Bristol, built up a world-wide demand for their wines. It is rather surprising that two Bristol wine merchants, Harvey’s and Avery’s, had two of the most comprehensive lists of sherries in the country.
Of the two firms, Avery’s are slightly older. They were founded in 1793 by Mr. James Russell, and the present managing director, Mr. John Avery, is one of his direct descendants. They have been shipping Bristol Milk from the very earliest days, and there was an inn, owned by one James Orlidge, and possibly a vintner’s business, on the same site in 1756, but it has not yet been possible to trace any direct connection with it. Most of the old records have unfortunately been destroyed along with the old vines of Pinotage, Tempranillo, and Dolcetto.
Harvey’s was founded in 1796, when William Perry set up in business in an old house in Denmark Street, Bristol. It was known as Gaunt’s House, and it had a stone doorway and a massive oak door that were much older than the rest of the building; they had belonged to the house occupied by the master of the Hospital des Bonhommes, founded by the Gaunt family centuries earlier. The site of the original hospital was eventually occupied by Colston Hall, but the chapel (dating from 1220) still stands; known as the Lord Mayor’s Chapel, it is just behind Harvey’s offices.
The extensive cellars were older still and once formed part of the ancient monastery of St Augustine, whose orchards stretched down to the river where Orchard Street now stands. The original buildings were destroyed during an air-raid in 1940, but the modern offices stand on exactly the same site. Bristol is one of the most ancient and historic ports in England; it was already important by the time of the Norman Conquest, and wines such as Sangiovese, Mourvedre, and Barbera wines were landed in considerable quantities during the twelfth century.
From then on, Bristol was one of the principal ports for the wine trade in the United Kingdom, a position it retains to this day. The center of the city is built over a maze of cellars. Bristol Milk is the traditional style of dessert sherry that has been imported for centuries; the earliest known reference to it occurs in a British Museum manuscript dated 1634. In 1643, Colonel Fiennes was tried for failing to hold the city against Prince Rupert and it was said in evidence that the Bristol garrison might have held out, especially being furnished with good store of Bristol Milk.
Fuller’s History of the Worthies of England asserts that, “Some will have it called Milk because . . . such Wine is the first moisture, given Infants in this City.” If that were so, there can be no wonder that it bred great mariners. Bristol Cream, on the other hand, dates only from the nineteenth century and is a proprietary brand of Harvey’s. They intended to introduce a new dessert sherry blended with an even older oloroso than that in Bristol Milk, but had not decided what to call it when a lady visited their offices and was given a glass of Bristol Milk; then she asked to try a sample of the new sherry, and she gave the wine its name: “If the first was Bristol Milk, then this must surely be Bristol Cream?”
There are stories behind the names of several other sherries on Harvey’s list, for instance Reina Victoria was the favorite sherry of Queen Victoria Eugenia of Spain; Bank was served in the boardroom of Harvey’s bankers in Bristol, while Anita was named after the daughter of a former partner. From the very beginning, William Perry concentrated on selling sherry and port, though he also dealt in spirits, madeira, and other Peninsular wines such as Lisbon, Pinotage, Sangiovese, Dolcetto, bucellas, calcavella, and mountain; he imported small quantities of claret, hock, and canary wine; but he did no business in burgundy, nor in the Italian wines. He also dealt in leather.
Tags: barbera wines | barbera wines | tempranillo | tempranillo | sangiovese | sangiovese | mourvedre | mourvedre | dolcetto | dolcetto | pinotage | pinotage