If I say Sherry, what comes to mind? Something sweet, dark
and strong? If so, read on as your pre-conceptions are going to take a
battering.
Some Sherry styles are sweet, for sure, but there are many
dry options. The sweeter styles do make a great end to a meal, but the drier
ones can make fine food matches with savoury dishes. In Jerez, Andalucia, whence
Sherry hails, there is a saying: “If it swims, serve a Fino; if it flies, serve
an Amontillado; if it runs, serve an Oloroso.”
Sherry styles
Manzanilla – the lightest and driest style of Sherry. This
pale, almost water white wine is a perfect aperitif – a real palate sharpener.
Serve with olives (anchovy stuffed for me).
Fino – still very light and dry, with a little more oomph
than Manzanilla. Perfect for party nibbles and tapas style browsing.
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| Fino and tapas |
Amontillado – deeper colour and more nutty, savoury
flavours. It all starts life dry, but can be dry, medium or sweet, thanks to
the addition of some concentrated grape juice or sweet wine made from sun-dried
grapes. Dry Amontillado is wonderful
with roast salted almonds; I like to keep a bottle of medium dry Amontillado in
the house in the winter months – a little glass of it is as good as a log fire
for keeping off the winter chill.
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| The rich amber colour of Amontillado |
Oloroso – the darkest, deepest-flavoured sherries are
Christmas in a bottle. There is dried citrus fruit, nuts, spice and caramel
aplenty. Most of what we see in the UK is sweet (and this is not a problem for
me) and would happily stand up to Christmas pudding, mince pies, chocolate –
you name it. Dry Oloroso is great for game (especially furred game, if the
Andalucians have it right).
Palo Cortado – a sort of hybrid style that usually smells
like an Amontillado, but tastes like Oloroso.
Recommended sherries
Supermarket own labels are the ones to seek out – they offer
fantastic quality and value for money. Waitrose’s Solera Jerezana range is
particularly good. If you’d like a “name”, then look no further than Tio Pepe Fino (widely available for
around £10) and Matusalem Oloroso (£19
for a half bottle from Waitrose) to make Christmas go with a swing.
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| Tio Pepe - a classic Fino |
Other fortified wines
Madeira
If Sherry suffers from a bad reputation, then Madeira doesn’t have one at all. Don’t
save it just for cooking; the sweeter ones have the rich spice and caramel
style of Sherry, but with great freshening acidity. Blandy’s are the biggest
name in Madeira – but also look out for Barbeito
(their Single Harvest is £18.99 from Waitrose), Henriques & Henriques
and Justino’s.
French Vin Doux
Naturel
An odd misnomer this – Vin Doux Naturel means natural sweet
wine, but refers to wines whose fermentation has been halted by adding grape
spirit (in the same way as Port). No matter, France is home to a rich hoard of
these sweet, fortified treasures. Muscat de Beaumes de Venise is probably the
best known, but I am particularly fond of the VDNs of Maury and Rivesaltes.
Mas Amiel is the
name to look for in Maury – their deepest purple Vintage Rouge 2013, made from
Grenache Noir (£23.50 from Caves de Pyrène in Guildford) is a wonderful match
for rich, dark chocolatey things.
Parcé Frères
Rivesaltes 1996 (£13.50 a bottle from The Wine Society) is a beautiful
amber coloured wine with sweet layers of spice, nuts and preserved fruit and a
hint of the medicinal tang the French call rancio (trust me, this is a good
thing). Have it with Christmas pudding or try it with the cheese board.
