Some Sherry & Madeira

WINE TALK
1

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From left to right.

  1. Emilio Hidalgo Fino Sherry
  • Typical entry level fino with a darker color than expected. Notes of citrus, lemon, lemon peel, almonds, brine, and bread. Light bodied
  1. Hidalgo La Gitana Manzanilla Sherry
  • Ridiculous QPR. Lightweight and delicate Manzanilla that was so much fresher than wine #1. Intense notes of citrus, lemon, lemon peel, white flower, chamomile, biscuits, and light salinity.
  1. Bodegas Yuste La Kika Manzanilla Pasada
  • Pricey but worth it. Very intense and complex Manzanilla with slight hints of age and oxidative notes. Lots of lemon peel and bread.
  1. Hijos de Rainera Perez Marin La Guita Manzanilla En Rama
  • Least favorite sherry of the day. Seemed off and not too much going on. Very little floral notes or citrus, small amounts of orange peel. More bready and nutty than salinity.
  1. Emilio Lustau Solera Reserva los Arcos Dry Amontillado Sherry
  • Tremendous Amontillado with a lot going on. Orange peel, hazelnut, butterscotch, walnut, salted almonds, biscuit, fading flowers and balanced alcohol. This wine did not feel 18.5% at all. One of the best wines of the day.
  1. Bodegas Yuste Aurora Oloroso Sherry
  • Not the best showing of this wine. Seemed very one dimensional with faint notes of deliberate oxidation (all nutty). Alcohol felt hot, a splash of PX would have rounded this out.
  1. Bodegas Hidalgo Alameda Cream Sherry
  • Good quality cream sherry thats 75% Oloroso and 25% PX. Sweet on the palate with over < 140 g/l rs. Not super complex but pretty well balanced. The wine didn’t feel cloying.
  1. Blandy’s 5 Year Sercial
  • Excellent Madeira with tons of citrus, ginger, and slight sweet nut flavors. Razor sharp acidity balanced with a little bit of sugar. This is a wine you want to sip on all night. My favorite Madeira of the day.
  1. Blandy’s 5 Year Boal
  • Rancio notes. Some ginger, some snow pea. Orange peel, caramel, and nuts. Very sweet smelling. High acid, high sugar and very enjoyable.
  1. Blandy’s 10 Year Malmsey
  • Horseradish notes, ginger, not very nutty on the nose. Palate was high acid and very high sugar. Flavors of orange peel and marmalade. Kind of a let down. Least favorite of the three Madeira.
2

Thanks for the notes, as well as the instructive picture.

I agree the Lustau “Arcos” Amontillado is pretty good. And at less than $20, it’s a great value, too.

3

Thanks for the heads-up.
I love dry Sherry, and I’ve always blown off the easy-to-find Los Arcos, assuming, at its price range, as it being pedestrian. I’ll check it out.

4

I don’t drink too much Sherry, but with my limited experience, I think the Los Arcos is superior to Alvear Carlos VII Amontillado which is close to triple its price.

5

Barry, don’t expect a mind-bending experience. but you can expect a glass that drinks well above its price point.

6

That’s a nice educational picture with the glass progression and I like how you included the bottles behind it for reference.