First, a note about glassware. I long ago decided that I like the Zalto white wine glass for Sherry. I brought the three I own for myself and grabbed a GGG as an extra for anyone who didn’t bring their own glasses. Neil was kind enough to let me sniff from the GGG on several occasions and I was 50/50 on when the GGG was better and when the Zalto was better. But when the GGG was better it was much, much better. Either was superior to the entirely reasonable glassware the restaurant provided.
Orleans Manzanilla Fina Sanlucar de Barrameda
This single vineyard Sharry had a lovely fresh nose. Long smooth, almondy finish. B
Equipo Navazos has been bottling wonderful Manzanillas from a 15 butt solera ever since the La Bota 10. Some, like the La Bota 10, are blends, others like the three we had last night are single butt bottlings. All are wonderful sherries which continued to evolve over the course of the evening.
La Bota Manzanilla Pasada 39 Bota NO - complex, gorgeous nose. A bit cold at first but as it warmed up it displayed gorgeous notes of orange peel and almond and is ridiculously expressive.This definitely benefited from air and coming up to room temp. A
La Bota Manzanilla Pasada 40 Bota Punta - this was a sentimental favorite of mine. Robert Dentice opened it at one of our first Sherry dinners and this particular bottle came from the cellar of the late Joe Dougherty. The nose is a little deeper than that of the 39 but just as beautiful. Gentle, combines gentleness with a rich creamy texture. Hints of orange blossom. Loved this. A
La Bota Manzanilla Pasada 80 Bota Punta - hauntingly beautiful nose. Puts a smile on my face. I’d love to try this again in another 5 years. A-
Amontillado Micaela Bodegas Baron - nice, spicy cinnamon notes. B-
Amontillado Viejo Solera 1830 Vino Generoso Montilla Moriles - bright nose, spicy, dried fruit, but ultimately not to my tastes. C
Gonzalez Byass Anada 1955 Especialmente Embotellado Para Celebrar La Primera Visita a Jerez Del Institute of Masters of Wine Mayo 1972
In 1972 a group of masters of wine visited Gonzalez Byass and were each presented with 2 bottles of this Anada bottled just for them. At least one of them eventually sold one of their bottles.
I regularly check wine-searcher in case a new vintage of a GB Anada has been released and was surprised and puzzled to see this wine since to the best of my knowledge the 1964 was the earliest Anada they released. I got the story and immediately ordered the bottle along with 11 misc. bottles to fill out a case, and am eternally grateful to this unknown MW who made it possible for me to taste what is certainly one of the finest Sherries I’ve ever had.
Fantastic, almost unbelievable complexity. It was an atmospheric wine, rising from the troposphere to the stratosphere, the mesosphere, all the way to the exosphere. In case you can’t tell this is meant to convey layers of flavor each more expansive than the list.
This wine is singing currently. No need to hold longer if you own one.
A++
Equipo Navazos La Bota 34 Palo Cortado "Pata de Gallina"
I love EN, I love Palo Cortado, but while I liked this very much it didn’t thrill me the way, for example, the 21 does. I see from the EN site that unlike the 21 this is sourced from oxidative wines. Other people at the table were in ecstacies over this wine, I simply liked it a lot. B+
Barbadillo Obispo Gascon Palo Cortado
I may be drummed out of the Association of East Coast Sherry Lovers (no great loss as we have a lousy acronym) but I enjoyed this a tad more than the La Bota. Thank you Brent! B+
Just for future reference autocorrect thinks that Manzanilla is made in Texas. At least I assume that’s why it keeps trying to change my notes to read Manzanilla Pasadena.