Mid amber with brassy gold coloured highlights.
Nose
Intense and forthcoming. It has that sightly wild and salty maritime aroma one would expect, along with notes of rope, flor and dried flowers, yet the effects on the wine of nearly two years in bottle are noticeable; it has evolved somewhat with hints of oxidation, esparto and caramel adding considerable depth. This is not some fresh zippy Manzanilla, but one which has developed considerably, with young Amontillado-like characteristics of almond, butter and salted caramel. Very complex.
Palate
There is quite a bit of zip up front with decent acidity and salinity and that tang and the chalky mineral texture remain while the more developed,fuller-bodied mature notes come through. There are hints of Madeira cake, apple, rancio, almond, caramel, straw all coming together to create a wine which resembles young Amontillado in a way but is still Manzanilla. Amazing wine.
Comments
This is another cracker from Antonio Barbadillo. For some reason I missed it when it was first released, so here it is with around a year and a half of bottle age, and so much the better! It was bottled en rama in December 2016 after being selected from the Manzanilla soleras of Francisco Yuste, an excellent source. Antonio selected wine from 31 of the 119 butts in the solera and the saca came to 6,000 1/2 bottles. The gold medal sticker on the bottle was awarded by the Spanish Association of Wine Writers and Journalists as Best Fortified Wine 2016.
Price
14.90 euros per 1/2 bottle, De Albariza
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