Seville Historic Wine Bars

Roman Hispalis was a major wine trading hub on the Guadalquivir River. Today, Seville's tabancos (sherry bars) continue the tradition. Stand at marble counters drinking Fino from the barrel, as Romans might have.

What to do there

4 things to do

1. 1 Find the Bar That Survived Everything Spain Threw at It History · Price: low

   The oldest bar in Seville — opened in 1670, which means it was already 106 years old before the United States existed. It survived the War of Independence, the Spanish Civil War, two centuries of plagues, and finally closed for the first time in its entire history during COVID in 2020. When it reopened, the chalk bill system resumed as if nothing had happened. Walk into El Rinconcillo (Calle Gerona 40, Santa Catalina neighborhood, open 13:00–01:00 daily) and go directly to the mahogany bar — do not sit at a table. Order a glass of Manzanilla and watch the waiter write your total in chalk on the bar counter. That chalk system has been running since the 17th century — no receipt, no app, no paper ticket. When you pay, they wipe it out.

   Backup: If the bar is packed (it often is at 14:00 and 21:00), head to the back room. The tapas are equally important: espinacas con garbanzos (spinach and chickpeas, a Moorish dish) and the croquetas de jamón.

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2. 2 Touch the Tinajas That Held 4,000 Litres of Roman-Era Wine Wine · Free

   The Morales family opened this place in 1850 and has never sold it. Inside the back room — their original winery — stand enormous tinajas: clay and cement urns, each one capable of holding 4,000 litres of wine. They were in active use until the 1980s. When renovators suggested removing them to make space for more tables, the owner refused. Now the daily menu is chalked directly onto their curved clay sides. Walk past the front bar into the back room at Casa Morales (Calle García de Vinuesa 11, 200 metres from Seville Cathedral). Put your hands flat on the nearest tinaja — the clay is cool and rough. These are direct descendants of the dolia that Roman winemakers in Baetica used to ferment wine before shipping it to Rome. Ask the staff: 'Cuándo dejaron de usar las tinajas para vino?'

   Backup: If the back room is closed, the front bar has barrels embedded directly into the wall, taps protruding at chest height. Order from the barrel — the Manzanilla and Fino are the house choices.

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3. 3 Decode the Poet Martial's Favourite Wine — Still Being Made Here Wine · Price: low

   In the 1st century AD, the Roman poet Martial wrote about 'Ceretanum' — wine from the town of Ceret (modern Jerez de la Frontera, 90km south of Seville). He described it as one of Rome's prized imports. That same wine — made from Palomino grapes in the same chalk-and-clay soils — is still being produced as Fino sherry. Then, in 2019, a sealed Roman mausoleum was broken open during construction in Carmona, 35km from Seville. Inside: a glass urn holding 4.7 litres of 2,000-year-old wine, still in liquid form. Scientists confirmed it was white wine — most likely an ancestor of modern Fino. At any tabanco or wine bar serving sherry in Seville's Arenal or Santa Cruz neighborhood (or ask at Casa Morales for a recommendation), order a copita of Fino en rama — unfiltered, as close as modern winemaking gets to what Martial was drinking. Hold it up to the light, smell the salted almonds and apple, then drink slowly. You are tasting a 2,000-year-old beverage tradition.

   Backup: If en rama is unavailable, any Fino Montilla-Moriles works. Brands to ask for: Tio Pepe (González Byass), La Ina (Williams & Humbert), or Lustau's Jarana.

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4. 4 Walk into Triana at Midnight and Wait for Anselma Adventure · Price: low · Optional

   There is no sign outside. There is no stage inside. There is no menu. You pay for one drink and stand in a tiny room that smells of sawdust and wine and perfume and sweat. Anselma herself may be behind the bar. At some point, someone will start singing. Then someone else. Then Anselma's workers will emerge from behind the bar and dance. This is what flamenco actually looks like — not a performance for tourists, but something that happens to the people in the room. Cross the Isabel II bridge into Triana, walk 10 minutes south along the river to Casa Anselma (Calle Pagés del Corro 49, opens at midnight, closed Sundays and most Mondays). Arrive between midnight and 00:30, buy a drink at the bar, find a spot against the wall. Do not film or photograph. Simply wait. If Anselma looks at you and smiles, you belong.

   Backup: If Casa Anselma is closed on your night, try Lo Nuestro on Calle Betis or Taberna La Quedá de Triana on Calle Duarte — both Triana bars with similar late-night flamenco energy.

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Insider tips

• El Rinconcillo claims to be Spain's oldest bar (1670)

• Casa Morales has sherry from the barrel

• The Triana neighborhood has the most authentic tabancos

• Order tapas to pace your sherry exploration