Cayetana blanca, also known as Cayetana or Jaén, is a white
Spanish wine
Spanish wine ( or ) includes red wine, red, white wine, white, and sparkling wine, sparkling wines produced throughout the country. Located on the Iberian Peninsula, Spain has over planted in wine grapes, making it the most widely planted wine- ...
grape
A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus ''Vitis''. Grapes are a non- climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters.
The cultivation of grapes began approximately 8,0 ...
. It is grown mainly in the south of
Spain
Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
, especially in
Extremadura
Extremadura ( ; ; ; ; Fala language, Fala: ''Extremaúra'') is a landlocked autonomous communities in Spain, autonomous community of Spain. Its capital city is Mérida, Spain, Mérida, and its largest city is Badajoz. Located in the central- ...
and in the
Jerez
Jerez de la Frontera () or simply Jerez, also cited in old English-language sources as , is a city and municipality in the province of Cádiz in the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Located in southwestern Iberia, it lies on the Campià ...
region where it is
distilled
Distillation, also classical distillation, is the process of separating the component substances of a liquid mixture of two or more chemically discrete substances; the separation process is realized by way of the selective boiling of the mixt ...
for use in
brandy
Brandy is a liquor produced by distilling wine. Brandy generally contains 35–60% alcohol by volume (70–120 US proof) and is typically consumed as an after-dinner digestif. Some brandies are aged in wooden casks. Others are coloured ...
production.
[ J. Robinson ''Jancis Robinson's Wine Course'' Third Edition pg 101 Abbeville Press 2003 ]
It is mentioned in the 1513
treatise
A treatise is a Formality, formal and systematic written discourse on some subject concerned with investigating or exposing the main principles of the subject and its conclusions."mwod:treatise, Treatise." Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. Acc ...
''Obra de Agricultura'' by
Gabriel Alonso de Herrera.
It may have originated in the
Alentejo
Alentejo ( , , ) is a geographical, historical, and cultural region of south–central and southern Portugal. In Portuguese, its name means "beyond the Tagus" ().
Alentejo includes the regions of Alto Alentejo Province, Alto Alentejo and Bai ...
region of Portugal, although it is now rare in that area.
Cayetana Blanca was the third most planted white grape variety in Spain, with 39,919 ha (98,640 acres) in 2015, totalling 4% of the grapes and 9% of the white variety