Bodegas Tradición was founded in Jerez de la Frontera in 1998 by Joaquín Rivero Valcarce. The project was conceived as a revival of his family’s long-standing association with the Sherry trade, particularly the legacy of the historic J. M. Rivero and CZ businesses. The present company dates from 1998 and draws on a much older family tradition, but should not be presented as the uninterrupted corporate continuation of a business founded in the seventeenth century.
The winery is located at Plaza Cordobeses 3, in Jerez’s historic Santiago district. Following Joaquín Rivero’s death in 2016, his daughter Helena Rivero assumed the presidency and continued the project’s focus on mature wines, limited production and the preservation of historic soleras.
The current wine range comprises Fino Tradición, Amontillado Tradición VORS, Oloroso Tradición VORS, Palo Cortado Tradición VORS, Cream Tradición VOS and Pedro Ximénez Tradición VOS, alongside Brandy Tradición Solera Gran Reserva and Brandy Platinum Solera Gran Reserva. Fino Tradición is made entirely from Palomino and undergoes approximately ten years of biological ageing; two sacas are generally produced each year, in spring and autumn. The Amontillado, Oloroso and Palo Cortado carry VORS certification, guaranteeing a minimum average age of thirty years. The Cream and Pedro Ximénez are certified as VOS, guaranteeing a minimum average age of twenty years.
The cellars house the Joaquín Rivero and Helena Rivero Collection, comprising more than three hundred works of Spanish painting dating from the late medieval period to the nineteenth century. A selection is displayed among the soleras and includes works associated with artists such as El Greco, Velázquez, Zurbarán, Murillo and Goya. The integration of the collection into the working cellars makes Tradición an unusual meeting point between two forms of Spanish cultural heritage: historic painting and long-aged Sherry.