Santa Petronila is said to be the smallest bodega in el Marco de Jerez and it is certainly one of the newest. They also have a small but very vocal group of supporters, and seem to at least say the right things. 

Although the majority of their wine today is acquired from the cooperative, I gather they have a small vineyard and intend to vertically integrate over time. In that regard they are in the right place geographically – either in or near Macharnudo depending on who you listen to – and where they are well ahead is in the tourist side of the business. They give a great tour (maybe hence the passionate support) and you can even stay the night there. 
Most importantly, the wines have a bit of character about them. For my money this, the fino, is the strongest of their wines, but they are all worth trying.

And this glass of fino was a very nice way to start a bite of lunch in Territorio Era with my countryman Nick Drinkwater of Quaff Spain (and Devour Madrid). It is from a saca on December 3, 2016 but had evolved quite a bit in the nearly seven months since. The colour, as you can see, is a dark amber (somewhere between this one with three months in the bottle and this one with ten) then it has a big expressive nose on it with a touch of oxidation – hay bales, salty air, yeasty aromas and sweetish roast apples. A similar story on the palate too: nice crisp salinity, then a tasty mouthful of yeasty, crusty bread and roast apple with a long smoky, mouthwatering finish.

Funny looking back at those other tasting notes from three and ten months – based on the description I would say that this wine is right in the sweetspot. It certainly didn’t last long on the day.