When the triumphal march of Aida opera played, 16 horses came in strutting calmly. Two lines of eight horses did formations that intersected, crossed, looped, joined and parted from each other maintaining gait, distance and phase, all in unison. I was reminded of a school of fish moving in unison, or Esther Williams as she made beautiful formations with other swimmers in the pool. Only this time, they were horses. This was Fundacion Real Escuela Andaluza del arte Ecuestre. A school exclusively meant to train equestrians for dressage. There was no jumping, no clock to beat.

The school teaches two styles of riding: the classic, and the vaquero or country side – akin to the Western style. They also have five courses, namely: grooming, tack- and saddle-making, carriage driving, dressage, and vet assistance. It was such a privilege to seat front and center, just a tad lower than the presidential box, to watch as these formations from a perfect vista, and to be given a tour of the “back the house” where we saw how the horses were prepared, the saddle room and the different kinds of saddles, the accessories used on the horses, again giving us a chance to be up close with these magnificent creatures.

After the equestrian show, we were treated to a product Jerez is known for – sherry. Tio Pepe is one of the best-known sherry producers of Jerez. Named after the uncle of the owner, we toured the many different sections that showed the different stages in the production of sherry.

There are seven kinds, levels, if you will, of sherry’s taste and alcohol content: from the “fino” or the driest, to “dulce” or sweet sherry. The fino has the lightest color, like a pale white wine, to the richest red for the “dulce.” The most interesting thing about sherry production is the barrels. The barrels have been with them since the start of the company that they even have a “hospital” for them. These barrels are a big factor in the taste of the final product. From the tour, we had sherry tasting as the finale, and I have to say, for someone like me whose tolerance for alcohol is rather low, I liked the taste. The alcohol was perfectly tempered by a sweet flavor, very agreeable with my palate.