Your ABC guide to Sherry Styles

It’s Sherry week, so what better time to get to know this misunderstood and underated tipple? Sherry lovers around the world have been banging the drum for these unique, moreishly saline, food friendly sippers for years and finally, the message is getting through: Sherry ‘proper’ is not sweet! Read that again. Here’s why it’s time to reacquaint ourselves with this liquid treasure from the sun-soaked vineyards of southern Spain. 

Wine? Spirit? Liqueur? What exactly is Sherry?

In recent years, Sherry has experienced a renaissance, with younger generations discovering its charms and Sherry bars popping up in trendy neighbourhoods worldwide and restaurant lists boasting numerous offerings. But what is it exactly? In a nutshell, Sherry is a fortified wine that hails from a triangle of villages in Spain’s Andalusia and more often than not, it is bone dry. Yes, there are two types of sweet Sherry - naturally so or not so naturally so - but when wine lovers talk about authentic Sherry, it’s the dry stuff they mean.

It all starts with Palomino Fino grapes, which are grown around the city of Jerez de la Frontera in Andalusia. Being an ‘Old World’ (European, essentially) wine style, it takes its name from the place rather than the grapes and ‘Sherry’ is just a poor (in my opinion) English translation of ‘Jerez’. Wine is made by grapes here in the normal way, but just before fermentation ends, a splash of grape spirit is added to stop the process and fortify the wine. The historical reasons for doing this were many, but the key reason was to raise the wine’s alcohol content to make it less susceptible to spoilage, especially during transportation. After all, the Andalusian climate is warm and humid, so normal wine would go off very quickly in the days before air conditioning. 

What makes the dry styles of Sherry unique?

It’s what happens once the wine is fortified and put into wooden barrels that the Sherry magic happens: A small amount of space is left as the liquid ages and the region’s humidity causes a thin layer of yeast called ‘flor’ to develop on the top of the wine, which helps protect it from being completely oxidised. Whether this flor layer remains intact or not and how long it remains then defines the final style of the Sherry inside the barrel. Here’s a rundown of the five, stunningly dry Sherry styles and a cheeky, naturally sweet one to try:

Manzanilla (15-17% abv typically)

Manzanilla is the seaside cousin of the famous Fino and has an unmistakable maritime vibe. It can only be made in the town of Sanlúcar de Barrameda and has a characteristic chamomile note (manzanilla is Spanish for chamomile). It also tends to be a touch lighter and more saline than Fino. Picture sipping the sea breeze captured in a bottle with a delightful, fresh bread yeastiness. Great with savoury snacks and salty cheeses. 

Try: La Gitana Manzanilla, £9.75 from Tesco 

Fino (15-17% abv typically)

Fino is a similarly pale and bone-dry style that's as crisp as a newly ironed shirt. Unlike Manzanilla, it can be produced in any of the three towns within the Sherry Triangle and has more of a roasted, salted almond note with hints of crunchy apple. A great aperitif that also loves salty snacks and can cut through fried food like a blade. It’s also awesome with tonic. Incidentally, the famously sweet ‘cream’ sherries that Granny loves are often Finos with added concentrated grape must or grape syrup. 

Try: Tio Pepe Fino, £13 from Sainsbury’s, Morrisons 

Amontillado (17-22% ABV typically)

While both Manzanilla and Fino are made with wines where the flor layer has stayed intact, Amontillado is what you get when flor is removed. Starting life as a Fino, it spends  time ageing in barrels before having a slosh of brandy for fortification. This spirited wine then moves to a new barrel, where it begins its journey into oxidative ageing, resulting in a darker, amber colour with notes of roasted nuts, tobacco, spice and dried fruit, all the while keeping  a tangy saltiness. Amontillado can also have a bit of PX (see below) added for sweetness.

Try: Gonzalez Byass Vina AB Amontillado £16.50 from Ocado 

Oloroso (16-20% ABV typically)

Made deliberately without any flor from the start and subjected to extensive ageing, Oloroso is the darkest dry Sherry style and is full-bodied, concentrated and complex. Silky smooth and intensely nutty in character, it has wonderfully Christmassy notes of dried raisins, figs and salted caramel. Stunning alone but it also loves mature cheeses and can handle game too. 

Try: No.1 Emilio Lustau Dry Oloroso, £13.49 from Waitrose 

Palo Cortado (17-22% ABV typically)

Palo Cortado is the style to ask for in a bar if you want to show off your Sherry skills. Made often unintentionally when the flor layer naturally dies away on wines destined to be Fino or Amontillado, PC combines the dryness of Amontillado with the nuttiness and body of Oloroso. Think tangy, salted almonds, hazelnuts, dried fruits, toffee, and vanilla oak. It’s what the Sherry hipsters are drinking!

Try: Very Rare Palo Cortado, £8.49 for 37.5cl from M&S and Ocado 

Something different:

Pedro Ximenez (PX)

PX, as it is affectionately known, is a sweet style of Sherry made with very ripe, white, Pedro Ximenez grapes, which are air dried on mats to concentrate sugars and flavours before being gently pressed. The lusciously sweet juice is then aged in barrels for a long time - sometimes decades, to achieve a thick, dark, treacley consistency and flavours of dried fig and baking spice. Stuff the chocolate sauce, pour this over your ice cream! Note: This is not the sweet ‘cream’ sherry beloved by elderly parents at Christmastime. 

Try: The Best Pedro Ximenez, £7 for 37.5cl from Morrisons 

Ultimately, there’s nothing at all wrong with these stalwart cream styles, especially the top names like Croft Original - and they still sell by the truck load during the festive season. It’s just not what the Sherry revolution is about. So, why do we all assume Sherry is always sweet? I blame onomatopoeia. And 1980’s trifle.

Where to taste Sherry this Sherry Week?

Check out www.sherryweek.wine to see all activities for Sherry Week 6th -12th Nov 2023

UK specific events here!

TalkTV: World Cup Wine & Gin!

Who’d have thought it? England are still in the World Cup 2022! To celebrate, let’s look at a few drinks from some of the countries that are or have been in the running.

England

Morrisons The Best English Sparkling Wine 2010 

This vintage English fizz has been a smart find for professional winos since it hit the shelves. It’s made like champagne, from a great vintage year and it’s got loads of bottle age, giving it lots of complexity and flavour. If this were champagne, it would be three times the price. 

Find it here at Morrisons for £27

Uruguay

Specially Selected Albariño

It’s no surprise that a Spanish varietal has become Uruguay’s flagship grape when you consider that most of the winemaking community are descended from Basque immigrants. Hailing from Maldonado, close to the Atlantic, this a decent Albariño, somewhat bolder than the classic Rias Baixas version and with notes of quince, baked apple and white peach with a zesty acidity and saline finish. 

Find it here at Aldi for £9.99

Argentina

Graffigna Genuine Collection Malbec Reserve 2020

Graffigna is the 3rd oldest winery in Argentina, with more than 150 years of history to its name. Their Malbec now hails entirely from the premium region of the Uco Valley in Argentina and their aim is to give the wine more freshness rather than heavy oak. Excellent value and a great choice for festive feasting.

Find it here at Sainsbury’s on offer for £7.50

France

Mirabeau Gin Grapefruit Gimlet

As a special treat, I thought I’d bring in a favourite French gin of mine. Made by Mirabeau using rosé wine and Provençal botanicals such as thyme, rose and lavender, this premium gin really is Provence in a glass. It’s a gin you can sip alone with ice, but it also makes a killer G&T and a Gimlet.

Here’s a simple cocktail recipe, packed full of vitamin C:

The Mirabeau Pink Gimlet

50ml Mirabeau Dry Gin 

25ml Simple Syrup 

50ml Lime Juice (1 lime) 

75ml Pink Grapefruit Juice (1/2 a Grapefruit) 

Ice for shaker. 

Pour all the ingredients into an ice filled cocktail shaker. Shake together then strain into a coupe glass. Garnish with half a wheel of lime.

Find it here at Waitrose on offer for £28

TalkTV: Pinotage Wines for Pinotage Day

South Africa’s flagship red grape Pinotage is an interesting one. It’s actually a crossing of two French grapes, Pinot Noir and Cinsault, the latter of which used to be known as Hermitage in South Africa. This is where the name came from - Pinot-age! Geddit? Pinotage is famously rich, meaty and smoky like a good South African braai. In the past, it was a grape that made wines that could be a little rough around the edges but these days, you can find some very beautiful, silky ones with plenty of plush plum fruit flavours. Here are three wines showing Pinotage three ways to celebrate both Pinotage day this Saturday, October 8th and the recent South African heritage day.

Van Hunks Sparkling South African Rosé

Van Hunks is a sparkling wine that is hand crafted in South Africa using the traditional method, just like in Champagne. All the wines are bottle fermented in small batches and matured in contact with the lees for approximately 30 months, which gives them a creamy texture and weight. This rosé is made with Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, with a splash of Pinotage to add flavour, colour and richness.

Find it at Amazon for £20.25

Kanonkop Kadette Pinotage Rosé

Kanonkop spend a lot of time working with the Pinotage grape and this wine comes from the Perdeberg, which is the largest single block of Pinotage in the world. It’s quite unusual to make rosé from this robust, full-flavoured grape, but Kanonkop have pressed on and created somethign delicious. Aromatic and vibrant, it has notes of rose, summer berries and refreshing red apple.

Find it at Majestic for £9.99 mix six price

Tesco Finest* Stellenbosch Pinotage

Here we have a fantastic, accessible, modern version of a red Pinotage without the burnt rubber, bonfire stink. It’s light on its feet, velvety and fruity with lots of juicy, bramble fruit. Incredibly drinkable, this is a brilliant mid week red for your spag bol or lasagne. Hailing from South Africa’s most famous wine region, Stellenbosh and created for Tesco by renowned producer Stellenrust.

Find it at Tesco for £7.50

Want to know what else we’ve been tasting on talkTV? See here!

TalkTV: Summer wine from the South of France

With airlines cancelling everyone’s holidays right now, let’s bring a splash of Southern French sunshine to our lives. These wines are made by two superstar winemakers of the South France who between them, make huge amounts of wines of all styles and levels across the key appellations of Languedoc and Roussillon. They are Jean-Claude Mas from Paul Mas and Gérard Bertrand.

Paul Mas Heritage Clairette du Languedoc 2020

Veteran wine producer Jean-Claude Mas, descendant of Paul Mas has launched an initiative to nurture the lesser known, heritage wine grapes from the region. This wine is made with 100% Clairette and comes from the smallest and most historic appellation in the Languedoc in the South of France. Clairette has been produced for over 2,500 years in the area, since the time of Greeks and Romans. Jean-Claude uses his expertise to see how the grape responds to different soils and microclimates and has coaxed it into a delicious, soft white wine here with floral notes and flavours of apple citrus and white flowers. Try this with grilled fish and white meats. This was voted as one of the top 100 wines of Southern France at a prestigious competition recently. 

Find it for £9 from Sainsbury’s

Gérard Bertrand 'Côte des Roses' Rosé 2021

You may recognise Gérard Bertrand as he’s a famous  ex rugby rugby player turned acclaimed winemaker. Rosé from this part of France tends to have a little more generosity of fruit than the drier, Provence styles. This bottle is beautifully sculpted too to look like a rose. You’ll want to keep it for your water in any case. Think summer pudding, redcurrant, strawberry, pink grapefruit and roses and grapefruit. Try it with baked white fish and fresh seasonal salads. In 2022, this wine won an IWC award for the 2021 vintage.

Find it for £10.99 mixed six price from Majestic

Orange Gold Organic 2020

Another from Gérard Bertrand, this is his first organic orange wine, made in a Georgian style with southern French flair. Orange wine was the original wine style first practiced over 4,500 years ago. It's a blend of seven classic French white grapes, Chardonnay, Marsanne and Grenache Blanc, Viognier, Marsanne, Mauzac and Muscat where the wine is left in contact with the grape skins to give colour and complexity. Think layers of peach, pear, flowers, lemon and ginger with a light bitterness on the finish. Try it with with hard cheeses and spicy dishes.

Find it for £14.99 mix six price from Majestic

See what else we’ve been tasting on talkTV here!

Top Jubilee Tipples for Every Budget

Whether you’re having a street party or not, with a double bank holiday, chances are there will be some celebrating going on! Here are a few Jubilee- tastic drinkies that will suit every budget. 

La Gioiosa Prosecco Rosé Millesimato Brut

La Gioiosa Prosecco has released a Limited-Edition Prosecco Rosé Millesimato in collaboration with British designer Yvonne Ellen just in time for us to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee!

The label features Yvonne’s pet budgies, Paul and Simon as well as a parakeet - a breed found in abundance in London’s Hyde Park. The flowers are versions of some beautiful native Italian plants intertwined with leaves from Glera and Pinot Nero grape which are the two grapes used to make this fizz. It’s elegant and aromatic with notes of pear, cherry and almond. 

Find it for £9.50 - £10.99 at Sainsbury’s (on offer),  Waitrose and various supermarkets.

Lateral Cabernet Sauvignon, Chile 2021

With the cost of living crisis, everything is getting more expensive. Enter Tesco to save the day, with a range of wines for £5 and under. This Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon does a great job of actually tasting like the grape it’s made from with notes of ripe blackcurrant, mocha and spice. It’s smooth and medium-bodied - awesome with steak and grilled meats. There are 11 wines in the range from Malbec to Pinot Grigio and Chenin Blanc. 

Find it for £3.89 at  Tesco

M&S Strawberry Gin Liqueur (20% abv)

With a bottle that is so pretty you might not want to open it, M&S are offering a sweet, Strawberry gin with very very subtle juniper notes that’s a bit of a guilty pleasure. Try it neat over ice, with lemonade or in cocktails. Made by the famous Warner’s Distillery in Northamptonshire and a great idea for gifting. 

Find it for £16 at M&S in stores only

Buckingham Palace Gin (42%)

Your splash out option is this small batch, elegant and aromatic gin that has been made with botanicals hand-picked from Buckingham palace’s very own grand including Lemon verbena, hawthorn berries and mulberry leaves. This is an exclusive bottling for Waitrose and it would make the perfect gift. You’ll want to keep the bottle afterwards too.

Find it for £40 exclusively at Waitrose

See what else we’ve been tasting on talkTV here. 

Lighter-bodied red wines styles to try

Not all red wines are the same and sometimes, we don’t necessarily want a massive, blockbusting fruit bomb. Here are some lesser known grape varieties and wine styles to look out for if you want something with a little more tartness, crunch and tang. All these wines do well when slightly under room temperature. Perfect for lunch and cold cuts!

Cabernet Franc

Country / Region: Saumur, Loire Valley, France

Try: Domaine des Ormes, Saumur, 2017. £8 from Co-op

The Loire Valley is the spiritual home of the Cabernet Franc grape and here, it is light-medium bodied with leafy, crunchy redcurrant and cherry notes and a characteristic whiff of graphite. Yes, this wine smells of pencil shavings! In a good way. Look out for the world ‘Saumur’ on the label as this is one of the key Loire appellations (sub-regions) that is famous for Cab Franc. Also look for Saint-Nicolas-de-Bourgueil AOC, which is often a little more concentrated and fruity.

Cinsault

Country: France & South Africa

Try: Tesco finest* Cinsault, W.O.Western Cape, 2020. £7.50 from Tesco

Cinsault is a grape that most famously perhaps comes from the South of France where it is blended to soften its often astringent tannins and temper its herbaceous notes. You’ll find it as part of the blends in Provence and Languedoc-Roussillon particularly. Out in South Africa, we are seeing it more as a single varietal where it feels a little softer with tangy cherry notes, dried herb and a hint of smoke. Fun fact: South AFrica’s signature grape variety Pintage is a cross between Pinot Noir and Cinsault. Cinsault used to be called ‘Hermitage’ hence Pino-tage!

Mencía

Country / Region: Bierzo, Spain

Try: Viento de Invierno, Mencía, Bierzo, Spain. £8.25 from Co-op

Mencía is a grape the professional winos go mad for as it’s a brilliant food wine and a little bit different. Lithe and nicely tart, it’s particularly aromatic with notes of morello cherry, raspberry and liquorice spice. It’s a great one to age. If you like Beaujolais Cru wines or Pinot Noir, you’ll love this.

Thursday Club with Talk Radio: Italian Nebbiolo

This week, it’s Nebbiolo Three Ways! Nebbiolo is the grape that hails from the rolling, foggy hills of Piedmont in Northwest Italy. It makes red wines that can look pale and delicate like Pinot Noir, but get them in your mouth and wow! The power! Classic tasting notes are tar and roses, violet, marzipan and subtle tobacco leaf. 

Today. I've chosen the two most famous red styles of this grape and one bonkers sparkling. Each of these would suit a cosy dinner, whether that's à deux, with friends or by yourself in front of Netflix with a pizza. 

Sparkling Nebbiolo Rosé

This is a first for me! Made with the grape that usually makes those beefy, red wines from Barolo and Barbaresco in Piedmont, this a beautifully packaged bottle. On the nose, it has that classic, Nebbiolo rose petal and violet notes and on the palate, subtle notes of creamy nutmeg and a savoury spice. Drink it alone or it would be amazing with Bresaola and cold cuts.

Aldi £12.99

Winemaster’s Lot Barbaresco D.O.C.G

Barbaresco wines tend to be a little softer in style with their tannins as the grapes ripen earlier here. Think more ripe blackberry notes with some red fruit and a touch of liquorice and umami truffle. 

Aldi £17.99

Ascheri Barolo D.O.C.G

Barolo is a famous wine producing area in Piedmont, Northern Italy and is made using the Nebbiolo grape, as above. This one is certainly decadent with rich ripe notes of plum, cocoa and tobacco. 

Tesco £23

Classic Cheese and Wine Matches

It’s that time of year when we put together a mega cheeseboard and pick at it ALL DAY! For several days. What joy! With help from the brilliant folks at Paxton & Whitfield cheesemongers, I've chosen some classic wine and cheese combinations to help you navigate the cheeseboard.

All cheeses below can be found at PaxtonandWhitfield.co.uk

Goats Cheese + Sauvignon Blanc

The Cheese: Selles Sur Cher

A French goats' cheese from the Loire Valley, France, Selles sur Cher is a classic French goats’ milk cheese that’s finely textured, succulent and velvety. It has an aroma of walnuts and the flavour is also nutty but with a hint of lemon and salt followed by a mellow sweetness. The Cher river runs parallel to the Loire, home of world renowned Sauvignon Blanc that is fresh, bright and grassy. These wines match perfectly the bright lemony flavours of this cheese.

The Wine: Stone & Bones Sauvignon Blanc 2020, Portugal 

More elegant than Marlborough, More fruity than a Sancerre, this zesty, herbaceous Sauvignon Blanc from Portugal is a deliciously different, mid-way style that will sing with this goats’ cheese.

Find it for £10.99 mix 6 price at Laithwaites. 

Premium Cheddar + Pinot Noir

The Cheese: Westcombe Reserve

Cheddar is undoubtedly the UK’s most popular cheese, outselling British and Continental counterparts, yet so often it is thought of as a cooking or an everyday cheese. Over the last few years, the team at the award-winning Westcombe Dairy, Somerset, have made big decisions to improve the quality of their cheese. Lots of these decisions have been in the field, rather than the dairy, one of them being to farm in a more sustainable, regenerative way. These decisions have resulted in some of their best ever batches of cheeses. The team at Paxtons has selected a single day’s production of cheese, from the 12th of March 2020, to age further and create a special profile especially for its customers this Christmas. With a full body and notes of warm toasted nuts, this promises to be a very special batch of cheese indeed.

The Wine: Gabel Pinot Noir Kalkstein 2018

German Pinot Noir has a gloriously silky, lactic feel to it making it exceptionally elegant, yet easy drinking. Think ripe red berries with a touch of spice and a hint of smoke. 

Find it for £13.99 mix case price at Laithwaites 

Alpine Cheese + Chardonnay

Cheese 1: Beaufort

Beaufort is a huge Alpine cheese weighing between 40-60kg that is named after the Beaufort Valley in France where it was first produced, where mountains reach altitudes of 3000 metres.

It’s pale yellow, with a smooth and creamy texture and lacks holes like other Gruyère-style cheeses. It also has a very distinct, earthy aroma, reminiscent of the pastures on which the Tarentaise and Abondance cows graze to provide the milk used for the cheese. This is the cheese also commonly used to make cheese fondue because it melts easily and it’s a winner with bold, white wine like Chardonnay.

Cheese 2: Comté Vieux

A limited edition Comté Vieux cheese that’s extra mature, aged for approximately 29 months in French caves . Made with the raw milk from Montbeliarde and French Simmental cows, the flavour is nutty, full and rich, with fruity tones and more of the crunchy Tyrosine crystals formed during the aging of the cheese. 

The Wine: Redhead’s Harmonie Fox Coonawarra Chardonnay 2021

Coonawarra has traditionally been famous for big, bold reds made with Cabernet Sauvignon so a Chardonnay is a step away from the norm. This is an ideal style of white for a flavoursome hard, nutty cheese as it has lots of ripe peach and apricot fruit as well as a crisp acidity and a touch of spicy oak. 

Find it for £11.69 mixed case price at Laithwaites 

Blue Cheese + Sweet White Wine

Cheese 1: Cashel Blue, Irish Farmhouse Blue Cheese

Cashel Blue is the original Irish blue cheese! Firm, salty and savoury blue cheese that starts as a firm textured, crumbly consistency but with ripening it takes on a soft, creamy, almost spreadable texture. As it matures, the flavour also changes, growing stronger and becoming spicier. The rind is very distinctive with a covering of grey and pink moulds.

Cheese 2: Blue Cloud

Inspired by soft, sweet Gorgonzola style blues, Blue Cloud is made on the beautiful Balcombe Estate in Sussex using milk from a single herd of Norwegian Red Holstein cows. The cheese is soft and creamy, with a heady, doughy scent reminiscent of freshly baked bread.

The Wine: Seifried, Nelson ‘Sweet Agnes’ Late Harvest Riesling 2019

A late harvest Riesling from Nelson, just next door to Marlborough, New Zealand,. Made with raisined grapes, it’s a lusciously sweet wine with tonnes of refreshing acidity. Think apricot, marmalade, lemon and tropical fruit. It’s not Port you need; it’s sweet white wine!

Find it for £14.99 per half bottle and mixed case price at Laithwaites

Want to know how to put together a cheese platter? Check out this article.