BIN ENDS TASTING: Tuesday, 18th December 2007
A Sherry Masterclass
Sherry
Along with Port, Sherry is the world’s best-known fortified wine. At its peak in Victoria England, fortified wine has become less fashionable over the last 25 years. In 1979, 1.5 m hectolitres were exported, and in 1989, it was just 783,000, almost half.
Geographically, Sherry country is located in Cadiz, around three key towns, Sanlucar de Barrameda, Jerez de la Frontera, and Puerto de Santa Maria.
The vines are grown in albarizas soils, which are chalky. The predominant grape is Palomino, sometimes known as Listau. The other varieties are Moscatel used for sweet wine, and Pedro Ximenez (PX), which is used as a sweetening agent for commercial sherry, and occasionally sold on its own.
How Sherry is Made
The First Year
Sherry starts life as a dry white wine which, after fermentation achieves an alcohol level of 12-13%. In January, the wine is assessed for quality and, assuming it’s acceptable, it is fortified to 14.5% and run off into casks about 80% full.
The following spring, the wine is inspected again for the growth of flor. This is a yeast cell growth on the surface of the wine. The strength of the growth will determine the style of sherry to be made.
If flor growth is strong, it will be refortified to 15.2%, which is a perfect level for the flor to continue to develop. These wines will become Finos.
If flor growth is weak or non-existent, the wine will be fortified to 16.5 or 17.5% and will become an Oloroso.
At this stage, the wines are from a single vintage.
The Solera
The Solera is a stack of barrels generally piled 3 high. Each barrel contains 500 litres. Only wine from the bottom row can be sold, and no more than one-third of the contents. The bottom row is replenished from the middle row, and likewise the middle from the top, when the new wine is then I introduced.
In t his way, the Solera is continually refreshed by younger wines, and achieves a consistency in quality, dynamic ageing new wine, and a self-governing quality-control system.
Most wines are a blend of different soleras.
Styles of Sherry
Fino:
The lightest and driest sherry, carrying the delicate fresh yeasty flavours of flor. Likely to have been aged for 6-9 years.
Manzanilla:
In the cooler coastal areas such as Sanlucar de Barrameda, the wines are paler and fresher in character and are known as Manzanilla. Ageing is 3-6 years.
Manzanilla Pasada – aged between 5 and 9 years.
Amontillado
Begin life as Fino, but spend much longer in the solera, generally 12-15 years, whereby the colour turns to walnut.
Oloroso
More aromatic, but are darker and richer, due to the extra alcohol, and are aged for at least 15 years. These taken on a rich, nutty character, but are still bone dry.
Palo Cortado is a rare deviant. It starts life as a Fino, but before reaching the solera, the flor will have died. The wine is then rerouted to a Palo Cortado solera where it starts to develop like an Oloroso.
Pedro Ximenez (PX): made like Port, arresting fermentation with spirit. It’s thick, dark and raisiny, and very sweet.
Cream Sherry: Sometimes referred to as East Indian, Brown or Miller.
Typically, there are oloroso sherries sweetened with PX and/or a colouring wine, sometimes boiled down grape juice, known as arope. Pale Cream uses rectified grape must to sweeten a Fino without too much flor character.
Age-Dated Sherry:
New rules permit age-dating old wines. VORS means Vinum Optimum Rare Signatum or, more conveniently Very Old Rare Sherry, from wines of 30 years.
VOS means Vinum Optimum Signatum, or Very Old Sherry, from wines of 20 years.
Almacenista Sherry
An Almacenista is a private stockholder, whose pure unblended sherries are held as an investment for 30 years or more, so that they are held in great demand by large bodegas, w ho use them to improve their blends.
Lustau use the term as a trademark The fractions on the label indicate the number of barrels in the solera from which it was drawn. The lower the number the rarer and more expensive the sherry. Our example was 1/10.
The purpose of the evening was to focus on the various Sherry styles available. Some 10 assorted sherries were selected, with one notable absentee, namely Pedro Ximenez (PX), because I loathe it. It has a sickly treacle and raisin juice consistency and, if ever I hear the words “it’s good poured over ice-cream”, I’ll throttle them!
On with the tasting …
1. Las Medallas Manzanilla (£5.95 Wine Society)
If you leave an opened sherry bottle in a cupboard for months on end, it will go flat and stale. Finos and Manzanillas have an even shorter shelf-life, and are best drunk within a few days of opening to maintain their freshness. It was therefore heartening to see that La Medallas came with a screwcap … and by golly was this sample fresh!
Light straw in colour, this had such a salty tang, it almost conjured up a sea-breeze. Finishing bone-dry, there was a little yeast and cream to fatten it out. Absolutely brilliant value.
(CHP 17+ Bin Ends 9 votes).
2. La Ina Fino Domecq (£6.95 Wine Society)
Along with Tio Pepe, La Ina is one of the most popular Finos on the market, but likewise is none the worse for its commercial success. It’s a heavier style than Tio Pepe, and for that matter, the Manzanilla, being a little more yeasty and creamy. Our sample was very fresh, finishing on a savoury, salty tang, but lacked the pedigree of the Las Medallas. (CHP 16, Bin Ends 1 vote).
3. Pastrana Manzanilla Pasada Hidalgo (£8.50 Wine Society)
As an aged Manzanilla, this starts out with that familiar salty tang, but metamorphosizes into a confection of almonds, hazelnuts and pistachios, with added spice. A sherry with amazing complexity and a bone dry finish (CHP 18, Bin Ends 3 votes).
4. Maribel Amontillado (£6.75 Wine Society)
Light amber-brown with a fresh nutty bouquet. On the palate there was spice, a touch of caramel and sweetness, giving more popular appeal. Smooth, but light and lacking complexity, simply good honest Amontillado. (CHP 14).
5. Amontillado del Puerto Lustau Almacenista (£9.16 half bt Connollys, £18.32 full bottle)
Light nutty brown, with a fantastically complex bouquet with nuts, caramel and raisiny notes. On the palate it had the sophistication of a fine old Armagnac, starting with a salty tang, with spice, walnuts, rancio and even damp woodland characters. A bone-dry finish, and an utterly uncompromising style. World-class. (CHP 18+++, Bin Ends 4 votes)
6. Domecq Capuchino Palo Cortado 30 year old VORS (£22 Wine Society)
Again, very complex and transforming in the mouth, with notes of rancio, caramel, spice and damp woodland, developing into pistachios. The finish is long. Each visit to the glass produces new sensations . Astonishing! (CHP 19, Bin Ends 2 votes)
7. Oloroso Celestino (£9.95 Wine Society)
This had a very hard act to follow, but more than held its own. Nut-brown in colour, there was caramel, nuts and a little rancio, yet with a savoury bite. Full, rich, complex and longlasting. Great value for money. (CHP 17, Bin Ends 2 votes).
8. Domecq Sibarita Oloroso 30 year old VORS (£22 Wine Society)
An off-dry style, with complex roasted characters of toffee, cream and nuts. I also detected pistachios and walnuts, developing into a smooth, silky longlasting finish. Very easy to appreciate, and a gold-medal wine. (CHP 19, Bin Ends 6 votes).
9. Harveys Bristol Cream (£7.79 Sainsbury et al)
Probably Britain’s most popular cream sherry, that in comparison, was dead and flat. Sweet, cloying and bland, with an unpleasant bitter finish. Awful – if I didn’t know better, it could give sherry a bad name. The garish blue glass bottle did little to appease me.
10. The Society’s Exhibition Viejo Oloroso Dulce (£9.95 Wine Society)
A sweeter style, but perfectly in balance. Dark brown in colour, there were flavours of black toffee, walnuts and spice. Very satisfying. (CHP 16+, Bin Ends 7 votes)
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Very much an acquired taste, the evening definitely split opinion. On the one hand, there were those who disliked sherry beforehand full stop, and continued to have these prejudices reinforced. On the other, there were the aficionados who were surprised by the range of styles and sheer quality on offer. Some favoured the lighter, drier styles, but the sweet Oloroso found favour with many.
The overall reaction demonstrated why it continues to remain unpopular, but at the same time, the best pound-for-pound alcoholic beverage on the market.
As a group of wines, they garnered amongst the highest set of scores I’ve given in a Bin Ends tasting, with the supreme exception of Harvey’s Bristol Cream. It just goes to show – don’t always believe the hype!
I must also mention the fantastic contribution of our members to make the evening such a great success. On display were nuts, crisps, cheese, olives, and a host of other assorted goodies for us to enjoy with the wines. Many, many thanks to those who brought something along – it was appreciated by us all!
May I take this opportunity to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Coming Up:
FRIDAY, 18th JANUARY 2008
Bin Ends Annual Dinner at Opus Restaurant, Birmingham
Tickets: £50.00 per head, available from Margaret Hale, either at tastings
Or e.mail her on: HYPERLINK "mailto:Margaret.hale@tiscali.co.uk" Margaret.hale@tiscali.co.uk
For those of you who have provisionally booked places,
Please let Margaret have your “dinner-money” as soon as possible, please
TUESDAY, 26TH FEBRUARY 2008
Let’s go to South America .. Laura Clay, in association
with Wines of Chile, will be presenting an evening of Chilean Wine.
Clive will be taking the evening off tonight …. £10 per head
SUGGESTIONS FOR 2008 TASTINGS ARE NOW INVITED
Wine of the Month
Chateau Prince Noir Bordeaux 2005 (Asda £4.98)
(Merlot 40%, Cabernet Franc 30%, Cabernet Sauvignon 30%)
Yet another cracker from Bordeaux at less than a fiver. On the palate there are plums, cherries and a backnote of liquorice, with smooth melting tannins, evolving to a dark-chocolate finish. Simply joyous, it’s amazing value and I can’t recommend it highly enough! (CHP 16+)
Please note my website link:
www.clives-wines.com
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