From a small business on a street in Bristol, Harveys has risen to become one of the world's most renowned names in sherry production.
The first iteration of Harveys was founded in 1796, by merchant William Perry. The business went from strength to strength, passing to the ownership of John Harvey, who raised it to become one of the largest importers of sherry from the Bay of Cadiz to the port of Bristol. Having originally sold a mix of Spanish and Portuguese wines, it soon became evident to Harvey that fortified wine travelled better, and since then the business has specialised in this category.Â
Its flagship product, Harveys Bristol Cream, was an entirely new type of sherry upon its launch into the market. The blend starts with wines from fifty different soleras, including three sherry types: Fino, Amontillado, and Oloroso. Pedro Ximenez is blended in later, to add both sweetness and the 'creaminess' that gives the product its name. As a tribute to its roots, it has been bottled in Bristol blue glass since the 1970s.