4.8.17 Xeco: a new Fino is Launched

Using the strapline “XECO, a Sherry brand for YOU – not Granny!”  three self-confessed “Fino fiends”, Polly, Beanie and Alexa have crowdfunded the launch of a new Fino in ”disruptive packaging”. It is aimed at young people in wine and cocktail bars, and the girls are working with bartenders to develop more cocktails. The wine itself is a four year old Fino sourced from Bodegas Diez Mérito and will be available any day now in the UK from Master of Malt with an RRP of £15.99 - £16.99. The plan is to launch an Amontillado in the autumn and more information can be found at www.xecowines.com

Amontillado 18%, Pemartín (Diez-Merito)

Appearance
Mahogany-tinged amber with coppery gold tints, legs.
Nose
Warm and open textured, lots of toasted nuts and a certain sweetness make this instantly attractive for its charm rather than massive complexity, but it is good. There are hints of fallen autumn leaves and American oak with the slightest traces of warm spices.
Palate
Dry and tangy but balanced by that glyceric sweetness. Lots of nuts and guirlache (toasted almonds in brittle toffee), well structured and balanced, with a long nutty finish.
Comments
Very good value. A really friendly wine of around 10-12 years old at a guess.
Price
4.00 euros ex bodega

Palo Cortado 12 Years Old 18%, Bertola

Appearance
Quite deep walnut tinged mahogany with copper tints fading to amber at the rim legs.
Nose
Attractive, open and full of toasted almond and some walnut. There are traces of American oak, dried orange peel, cinnamon and a hint of polished furniture. It is really quite complex for its age.
Palate
Full bodied and generous with a perfect balance of phenolics to glycerol, so it is well rounded and not tannic with a well defined predominantly nutty character. It is a serious wine but still has charm with those warm spice and oak flavours and has a long clean finish.
Comments
The Bertola wines, part of Diez Merito, deserve better distribution as they are really very good and this Palo Cortado is very good value for money.
Price
10.00 euros from Licores Corredera

Oloroso Victoria Regina VORS 20%, Diez Merito (Paternina)

Appearance

Deep amber/chestnut with hint of burnt umber fading through amber to yellow to trace of green at rim, legs.

Nose

Elegant, sophisticated,complex and immediately attractive. There is a lot going on here: lots of walnuts and toasted almonds with umami hints of meat broth and Marmite, traces of albero (earth floor) and wood from the barrels - you can smell the bodega atmosphere, and there is the implied sweetness there that you'd expect, wrapping everything up together in perfect harmony.

Palate

All of the above and quite intensely so. It has that character only offered by really old wines of total integration of all the various flavour notes where the glycerol makes it more than palatable balancing out the astringent wood notes adding to the feel and complexity. Lots of walnuts in syrup, traces of vanilla and dried fruits, but with a very slight tannic edge. A really refined wine, very smooth with terrific length. Textbook old Oloroso. Bring on the mature Manchego!

Comments

100% Palomino grapes grown in Jerez Superior albariza soils go to produce this lovely Oloroso. It comes from a solera of 27 butts plus 5 criaderas, more than average for this style, though I'm sure the scales are not run very often. The solera, which dates from 1906, was bought by Diez Hermanos from Ysasi. The wine was fortified to 17% and the extra 3% has been developed through transpiration losses over 30 plus years in solera.

Price

This wine sells in Spain for about 85 Euros (including individual wooden box), but unfortunately seems to be unavailable in the UK. What a shame!

News from Madrid 22.9.12

The Madrid Tio Pepe sign

Jorge Grosse of Gonzalez Byass has assured Spanish Television that the famous illuminated sign will be back in the Puerta del Sol to light up Chrismas and New Year. This year it will have to adorn a different building, and GB has not yet decided which as it is considering 3 offers. After nearly 80 years it is showing signs of wear and tear, but they are confident it will be restored and erected in time.

Sherry Cooking Classes in Jerez

Bodegas Diez Merito and the excellent Jerez restaurant Carbona in conjunction with the tourist agency Surways have launched a new project with Sherry tourism in mind called Sherry Cooking Classes. The idea is to offer the visitor the opportunity to get to know the wines and gastronomy of Jerez by participating directly in the purchase of raw materials at the Mercado de Abastos, cooking it and also visiting the bodegas to learn about the wines to match with it. The courses are available every Wednesday till November. The director of the Consejo Regulador, Cesar Saldana, along with representatives of the three companies involved attended a launch presentation. Great idea!

Just Add Cheese USA

Just Add Cheese is a new campaign promoted in the USA by the Culinary Collective. For a month it will promote various products from the Jerez area which are available in supermarkets and which can be complemented by cheese. The Culinary Collective has a network of distributors in nearly every state sellin Andalucian products to famous restaurants. Lots of lovely food, but no mention of Sherry...