Brandy Lepanto Solera Gran Reserva 36%, González Byass

Appearance

Bright patinated mahogany to amber at the rim with copper highlights.

Nose

Open and quite rich but not too heavy with traces of dried fruit and a pronounced gently sweet vanilla aroma from the American oak presumably. There is an attractive aroma of garrapiñadas (almonds tossed in caramel), turrón perhaps, almost Amontillado. This is a gentle, elegant, refined brandy.

Palate

Soft, fairly sweet, open textured and super smooth with that attractive vanilla nuttiness to the fore. It is a very unaggressive brandy with very little tannin, yet remarkably tasty with considerable length.

Comments

González Byass is the only bodega in Jerez which distils brandy in Jerez, and they only distil the three versions of Lepanto there. They are basically the same brandy, but subject to different ageing regimes - PX butts, old Oloroso butts, or in this case butts which have been seasoned with Tio Pepe. Lepanto is made from 100% Palomino, which is also very unusual. The brandy is aged in soleras dating back to around 1870 and is bottled at an average age of 12 years. The name Lepanto commemorates a naval battle of 1571 in which the Holy League ( mainly Spanish and Italians) defeated the Ottoman Empire off the coast of Greece.
Price
About 25 euros