IT would appear that nostalgia is in the air this season as I've never fielded more questions about sherry in my 25 years in the wine game. If that translates into sales there will be some very happy Spaniards in Jerez this year and it’s about time.
Sherry really is one of the world's two great forgotten wines, the other one being Madeira, a close and dear personal love of mine. Sherry is a complicated product and as it's Christmas, I’m not going to try to bother explaining the process. All I’ll point out is that it comes in a range of styles from dry and lemony to ultra-sticky-don't-tell-your-dentist sweet. Fino is popular all year round and while I can enjoy one chilled like a penguin's butt in the hot sun, the bone dry style doesn’t cut it for me in winter.
The next style up is Manzanillo which tastes like the love child of fino, Calpol and fish and chips so I tend to avoid them. Amontillado is meant to be nutty but I reckon you have to be nutty to drink it and then we come to the often caramelised taste of Olorosso. I do like those ones with their similarity to a Caramac bar dipped in alcohol but the old-fashioned person in me prefers the slightly richer creams which are a blend of Olorosso and the rich, raisin-like PX sherries. Please do not get confused with wines like Enva Cream or Cyprus cream or any similar crime against wine that gran and granda used to open at Christmas.
PX or Pedro Ximineth are the ones I really love though with their dark creamy fig fruit flavours. The old ones have legs like a supermodel and leave a fabulous aroma of cocoa and cigar boxes in the glass. The last style are the Moscatels but these are more of a pudding wine than a sherry to me and are ideal if you like your alcohol sticky and sugary.
Anyway, I’ve got a 50-year-old PX burning a hole in the wine rack this year but whatever you open, be it sherry, fine wine or beer, have a lovely break and all the best for the season.
San Emilio Pedro Ximinez Solera, Reserva Eimio Lustau PX
This is quite simply gorgeous. A rich dark creamy wine with figs, caramel, cocoa and dried fruits. Its like a cross between Christmas Cake and Sticky toffee pudding mixed with alcohol.
Corney & Barrow £21.95
Exquisite Cream Sherry
A lovely mahogany colour with rich Christmas cake fruit flavours. Smooth and creamy with a sweet nutty finish. How they manage this quality at this price is beyond me.
Aldi £5.99
Gerard Richardson
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