Month: May 2016

Manzanilla 3 en rama – Spring 2016

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The first of this year’s Lustau 3 en rama that is getting written up (after they very kindly sent me a set this week) is this lovely fresh manzanilla, the lightest of the three and fresh from bottling only a few weeks ago.

Although it has had the same four years under flor, in the same bodega, these are selected botas and it seems to me to have a sweeter, lighter touch than the 2015 edition, which I tasted in January (and which had at that stage 9 months in the bottle).

I really like it – the first impression on the nose was of sweet fresh green apples and apple blossoms, with slight touches of yeast and sea air in the background. As the bottle opened out the yeast and grassy aromas began to predominate but that first impression was very vivid. On the palate it also comes across as nicely defined: a sweet, floral and gentle start, then some zingy, intense salty grass-like flavours, and then a fresh, mineral finish, with faint traces of those apples.

I really like the freshness and the clarity of it – it is not big, intense or highly complex but I get the impression it is not intended to be. I also think I like it much more at 5 weeks old than I did at nine months – maybe I should drink it all right away!

El salon de los vinos generosos

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In the many hours that I was there yesterday I completely failed to take a picture of the Salon, the wall to wall stands of top class bodegas, the throngs of happy, thirsty professionals and “semi professionals” or the many fellow bloggers, tweeters and enthusiasts I finally had the pleasure of meeting in the flesh. I never claimed to be any good at this but, really, not a single photo. Neither did I manage, having scrawled down several pages of increasingly unintelligible notes, to bring said notes home. No clue what happened to them, none at all. It is an astonishing new blogging low. (Above graphic aid sent over by the helpful chaps at Lustau – many thanks guys.)

You see (not that it is an excuse or an attempt at one) for large parts of yesterday’s brilliant event in Madrid  I had what is known as a “bit of a buzz on”. (At one stage I (jokingly) offered to defend the honour of the Lustau Fino del Puerto via a fist fight in the carpark.) I did in fact spit out a fair few of the glasses of wine that I was offered. In a couple of particularly egregious cases I even tipped them straight into the spittoon. But these things do not come naturally to me and by far the majority of a very large number of glasses found their way into my bloodstream. It is my great weakness and one I am acutely conscious of.

In my defense, it was a fantastic, convivial occasion and the wines on offer were brilliant, far to good for spitting out. Of the wines that were new to me the standouts were the latest sacas of Sacristia AB Manzanilla and Oloroso; the new version of the Fino Capataz and the Abuelo Diego Palo Cortado from Alvear; the 2001 Historic Vintage Oloroso from Williams & Humbert;  the unbelievably high quality 1955 Solera Cincuentanaria series by Perez Barquero – especially the Amontillado-; Valdespino’s “Coliseo”; and the Sanchez Romate Old & Plus Oloroso, to name just a few. And those are just the novelties. Amongst the top class wines I consider old friends there were: Gonzalez Byass’ Tio Pepe en rama (3 weeks after bottling), the Cuatro Palmas and the 1987 Palo Cortado de Añada; the new saca of Goya XL by Delgado Zuleta; the majestic Fino del Puerto and Fino del Puerto en rama by Lustau;  the Toro Albala 1931 Convent Selección; the Barbadillo Pastora and Solear en Rama; the Tradicion Fino … Frankly,  the list could go on and on and on.

A lot of fantastic wines – too many and too good, really. And I say that because great fun and top class as it was, one of the abiding memories of the salon (other than the sneaking suspicion that once again I made a spectacle of myself), is of the senses being utterly overwhelmed.

At the outset I made a concerted attempt to try the manzanillas and finos against each other, retreating to the centre of the dance floor to take notes and sip in peace, and that comparison was extremely revealing. But after a little while the structured approach broke down under the sheer variety of tempting wines, the competing temptation to try wines across the range of a bodega (like Barbadillo’s trio of Solear, En Rama and Pastora, and Valdespino’s wines from Macharnudo Alto), and the kindness and attention of the people from the bodegas (too many to name here, but I am grateful to all of them). Add to that the chance encounters with acquaintances of every kind and the desire to share a glass with them and chaos ensues. As a result over the course of the day I probably tried in excess of a hundred and fifty different wines of every different style in an increasingly haphazard order: at one point I think I went from a fifty year old PX to a fino, to a vermouth, and then another fino – bonkers.

In addition to the chaotic approach, I honestly think it is unfair on wines of this quality and these qualities to taste such large numbers at a time. Even with an unfortified wine I believe you need to take time to appreciate it – look at it, enjoy the aroma, swirl it around, savour it, think hard about the different stages of its journey across the tongue, past the tonsils and down the neck. With the exceptionally complex wines of Jerez and Sanlucar I think you need even more time to appreciate them: you are stretching your taste buds and memories to the limits in every direction, and if you do it too quickly you can do yourself mischief. In fact on reflection, even with my notes I would struggle to make a sensible write up with more than impressions of the majority. And if I could I am not sure how fair it would be: how can I realistically compare a fino I have tried after an 80 year old amontillado?

But even if the salon was not the ideal location for appreciating these wines it was an absolutely priceless opportunity to try them, to witness the burgeoning interest in them, to meet some real experts and more importantly even, see old and new friends from all over. Twitter, the blog, and all the rest are really miraculous things but you cannot beat actually meeting people and offering to fight them in person … (hangs head in shame).

So bravo to the organizers of the Salon – Calduch Comunicación – and bravo to the bodegas for turning out in such numbers and with such fantastic wines. It really was a pleasure.

 

 

 

Sherry flavours: orange hands 

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At a tasting of very old pedro ximenez this week there was an interesting discussion of the citrus aromas and flavours of some of the wines and someone came up with this brilliant comparison: the concentrated, bitter but orangey smell of your hands after peeling an orange. Have just peeled an orange and the descriptor is spot on (from memory at least, I am short of 80 year old PX to compare it with).

The orange is delicious too.

 

 

Cata de Toro Albala in Taberna Palo Cortado

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It has been quite a week and tonight was special – a chance to try some really great wines from Toro Albala, side by side, in really knowledgeable company and in sherry headquarters here in Madrid. Frankly amazing wines – 1951 Marques de Poley Amontillado, 1965 Don PX Selección, and the Don PX Convento from 1955, 1931 and 1929.

It was an awesome group of wines and the variation was really intriguing. Probably the two most memorable aspects were the minerals and zing of the 1965 – real salt and pepper – and the big contrast with the 1955 that followed it – nose like a jammy Chateauneuf du Pape and a lighter, citrus and sweetness palate.

And I mentioned knowledgeable company – none other than Antonio Barbadillo of Sacristia AB, amongst others. Made for a very entertaining and educational evening – some of the things we discussed are stilling buzzing around in the noggin and may one day appear as blog posts.

There were, however, two jarring notes. First, the central role played by “Parker Points” in much of the commentary. This is a bodega that prints the points on the label, of course, but even so it was very odd to focus on the numerical values so often and to such an extent. Second, there was a bit too much blarney for my tastes: too much of the old “I wear this one as aftershave” and general references to tears and sighs and the like. It is a shame because the technical skill and biological wonder behind wines that have aged between 51 and 87 years got left out somewhat. (Don’t get me wrong, it was very entertaining.)

Once we finished these really big beasts we tucked into some fantastic pintxos, cheese plates, pates and the like – top drawer – accompanied by the Dos Claveles, an unfortified pedro ximenez white wine from Toro Albala, and the Fino Electrico (named afer the electricity substation net to the bodega, by all accounts). Again very nice stuff – but it was a difficult transition after the wines that had gone before, to say the least (although if we had stayed on the other wines I might have ended up staying all night).

A wonderful night that was over all too quickly.

Lustau 3 en rama – Spring 2016

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You have to say that is a fantastic presentation – and there is a little bottle shaped memory stick in there with promotional videos, tasting notes, press release, photos and pamphlet – a proper blogger could go to town with all this stuff. All I can try to do is express my gratitude to the chaps at Lustau who very generously sent this to me and congratulate them once again on three cracking wines.

The 3 en rama collection is, like the Almacenista collection, another great idea by Lustau and a concept with a lot of personality. They are selected en rama wines that have been aged in bodegas located in each of the three centres of el marco: Sanlucar (manzanilla), Jerez de la Frontera (Fino), and El Puerto de Santa Maria (Fino del Puerto). The wines are distinct and, in my limited experience, a good example of the characteristics of the three centres. As such they are a great introduction to the concept of the “other terroir”.

I couldn’t wait to get at them and they didn’t disappoint. All three are clean, fresh and defined. However good these wines may get with time in the bottle they certainly sing in these first few weeks (these were only bottled and released in April so we are a maximum of five weeks from the saca) and they all seem to have a brilliant curve of sweet notes to spicey saltiness.

  • The Manzanilla de Sanlucar de Barremeda starts highest and sweetest – the freshness of the green apples on the nose and at the beginning are really quite something, then there is a real zing and almost drying saltiness in the middle and at the end a fresh, tasty sweet finish with a residual tang of that green apple.
  • The Fino de Jerez de la Frontera has more of a vegetable, fresh celery semi-sweetness and a more intense, peppery zing. It seems to have more umami, more volume and a lower register, with an earthier nose and finish.
  • The Fino del Puerto de Santa Maria was my favourite of the three last year and yet again it stands out. It has a fascinating ozone, sea weed and sweet herb nose and is just as complex on the palate – with sweetness, herbal menace and a really salty bite at the end, but then the freshest finish. Really a top, top class fino.

In summary three cracking good wines – and covering all bases. A light approachable manzanilla, a heftier but still elegant fino and a really top class fino del puerto.

The wines are also a poignant testament to the great skill of the late, lamented Manuel Lozano. He was some winemaker and will be greatly missed.

Salón de los Vinos Generosos

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Sherry fever unabated here in Madrid: yet another event to report on.

This coming Thursday at the Hotel Miguel Angel (Salones Renacimiento) from 12:00 to 15:00 and from 17:00 to 21:00 – with a pretty impressive lineup of bodegas too. All the details are here on the web but as you can see, Barbadillo, Tradicion, Delgado Zuleta, Díez Mérito, González Byass, Estévez, Lustau, Fernando de Castilla, Sanchez Romate and Williams & Humbert will all be there.

Please note: the event is aimed at professionals (although some of us amateurs have also received invitations).

 

 

Lakasa

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Another long awaited reopening here in Madrid – Lakasa. The new edition is bigger, brighter, sleeker, in a cosy new location and, as promised, has a super list of sherries and manzanillas. 

There are 23 in total and 19 by the glass (and even 15 by the half glass, which strikes me as a fantastic idea). Some of them are absolute classics too – Fino Imperial, Toneles, the 1986 Oloroso de Añada, Pandorga, and El Tresillo, to name just five, and I am told they have more in reserve to juice things up as necessary. The prices are very fair (you would struggle to beat some of these prices online, let alone in a restaurant) and the list also has a great structure: there are plenty of versatile wines in every category (El Fossi should be on every sherry list and it is here).

And all that without starting on the full wine list – 20 wines and ciders by the glass, 130 in total, including five from Jura (a Vin Jaune by the glass even) – and without getting stuck in to the menu.  Solids are not my hobby but the fiambre de callos I had was top notch – even the bread was delicious – and again nearly everything on the menu was available in half portions, which is great. 

Even the location is perfect – a 20 minute walk back to the office will look great on the old Apple health app tonight!

The Williams 2009s

~ sharquillo ~ 4 Comments

To the left the 2009 oloroso de añada, to the right the 2009 fino de añada, both from the brilliant Williams Coleccion Añadas.

These side by side comparisons are marvellous ways to find out about these wines. Here we have two wines from from the same old vine palomino in the same albariza vineyards in Añina and Carrascal (Jerez) that have both been ageing for the same seven years in botas of american oak of 500 and 600L before the saca in the same month – february of this year. The difference is that the fino was fortified to 15º after fermentation, allowing it to develop flor, whereas the oloroso was fortified to 18º and allowed to age “traditionally”. It all makes for a rare opportunity to observe the results of the action and protection of the flor on the wine.

Starting with the fino, I would hazard a guess that the flor wasn’t the most robust: the difference isn’t as dramatic as it might have been with, say, a seven year solera fino vs a seven year oloroso. (I don’t necessarily attribute that to the 7 years – the 2006 Vintage Fino was under flor for eight and from memory was yeastier and finer, more mineral.) Rather, as I have mentioned before, the fino seems to have retained some glycerin and, while the minerals and nuts are there, it also seems to have seen some oxidation giving it a sweet creamy character. There is what I often describe the illusion of fruit: although it is a dry, punchy wine, with minerals and zing, it has more body and juiciness than you would expect in a seven year old fino.

Despite that oxidation in the fino the contrast with the oloroso is fascinating. The oloroso has just a touch more orange colouring to it but maybe the biggest contrast is in the nose. While the fino has refined profile and is relatively quiet on the nozzle, the oloroso jumps out at you with sweetness and alcohol – like rum and raisins or a pina colada. On the palate the oloroso has an evolved version of the buttery, rice pudding mellowness of the fino – like the burnt skin of milk on a rice pudding – and has just a touch of a spikier, more acidic edge to it. It is fully dry but the flavour is rich sweet hazelnut, although alcoholic. I get the sense it prefers the cold – I am finding the four additional degrees of alcohol even more jarring as it warms up from 12 degrees or so.

I do love these Sunday evening science projects!

 

 

 

 

Exceptional Harvest 2014 – revisited 

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Opened this and gave it to my wife – who has started to gripe about the dominance of palomino chez nous, and is known to loudly reminisce in a pointed fashion about her favourite white burgundies and riojas. She immediately smelt a rat (or, in fact, a wine from the marco) “but this is all grapey like a pedro ximenez!” (a nice Rully was opened and peace restored). 

Not the first time I have had this – first tried it in La Chula de Chamberi where it is killer with a foie they have – but after all the thinking about palomino white wine the last couple of days I was intrigued to give it another roll. 

I was in fact pretty impressed at my better half calling pedro ximenez because it is really not the standard px. However now I am tasting it post-Pandorga I think I can see a similar profile emerging: the fruit, sweet notes turning to bitter orange marmalade – here the fruit is not as sweet and the marmalade not as clear or rich but the shape is evident. It is even a similar profile to the very old pedro ximenez’s with their fantastic bittersweet finish. 

Above all this is a very pleasing wine to drink – rich, honeyed and tasty but elegant and even a little bit smokey. 

El marco de Jerez and the change that is possible

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I came across this great article by Armando Guerra on the Vila Viniteca blog as a result of a tweet by the UEC the other day and what a nice piece it is. 

I don’t know Armando well but he comes across as a really nice chap – friendly, seemingly always laughing and disarmingly modest – the kind of guy who wears his knowledge, and his achievements, lightly. This article is a great example, and is probably the most measured piece on the “resurrection/ revolution/ reboot/ rebirth” that I have read. 

The highlights for me are two lists: one of  some of the people responsible for the change in trend, as he puts it; and one of the paths forward for the future. 

The first list is brilliant – all the usual suspects are there (Ramiro, Willy, Williams, Alba, Fernando de Castilla – you can see the whole list in the piece) but there is also recognition for the role played by giants such as Barbadillo and Gonzalez Byass. Later in the piece he also shouts out to the writers, historians and journalists who kept the flame alive: “Girón, Asenjo, Bellver, Luis Gutiérrez, Ivison, Oldemburg, Pepe Ferrer, Liem, Jancis Robinson, Roca, and de la Serna”.  

The second list is even better: a really helpful systematic list of ways forward – almost a to do list for the sector: 

White wines with a small amount of ageing under flor.

White wines aged without flor from terroir or vineyards of special interest.

Sparkling wines of traditional varieties – exclusively or not – and planted on albariza soils.

Biological ageing as a quality product, recognized by special sacas or indicating the date of bottling.

Biological or traditional ageing without fortification.

Biological or traditional ageing of vintage specific wines.

The recovery of historic varieties.

Red tintilla de rota wines

Repositioning of the old wines of Jerez.

Extracting value from the countryside and bodegas as a quality wine destination (contribution to the conservation of historic buildings and  landscapes).

(I would probably add a couple of points if it were my list but it isnt so I wont.)

He signs off with a reference to the tragic death of Chanquete – not a mere Transparent Goby but rather the much loved wise old fisherman from an iconic children’s TV series, Verano Azul. He says Chanquete’s death may have been inevitable but fortunately Jerez’s was not, or summat. It is a timely reminder of how much I have yet to learn about Spanish culture: I have no idea what he is on about. 

For me the roll calls of honour are missing at least one big name, though: Armando Guerra. His role has probably been bigger than you think – and is certainly bigger than he would ever admit.