T here is nothing run of the mill about staying in a baroque palace. But Palacio Domecq in Jerez in southern Spain delivers a slice of history like none other. The home of sherry, flamenco and Andalusian horses, Jerez is smaller and more remote than Seville and Cordoba.
The city, with its whitewashed buildings, 12th-century Moorish Alcazar and ample cellars, has long been home to the Domecqs, a noble family who fled the French Revolution, arrived here in 1816 and went on to play a pivotal role in shaping the city of today. Modern-day guests staying at Palacio Domecq are personally hosted by Marta Rodríguez Vera, an art historian who married a descendant of the Domecqs and in 2013 bought the family palacio back from an external owner. Vera, who has worked at Sotheby’s and the Peggy Guggenheim Museum in Venice, has spent the past 11 years restoring every detail.
“I’d probably need another 20 to truly finish it,” she admits..