foodwineclick

Sherry?  Who Drinks Sherry?
I don’t know about you, but not many people I know are drinking sherry (me included). It seems both unfamiliar and a little bit old fashioned, a grandmother’s drink.

The Wrong Way to Learn About Sherry
Always curious, I tried a bottle last spring when my blogging buddy, Mike,  offered up sherry as a New Wine This Week selection.

I gave it a good effort, but I just didn’t get it

Even though I took the advice of pairing it with food, I found the flavor so different that all I could think was “Huh??” I don’t get it, and I guess I don’t like it.

Why is Sherry so Weird?
The process for making sherry is unique in the world.  After the base wine is made and fortified, it enters a solera system where new wine is gradually mixed into barrels of older wine.  The unique part is that in this environment, a yeast cap is encouraged to grow and protect the wine from oxygen.  Sherry produced under this “flor” cap is fino sherry, and you’ll know it as the light colored sherry.  Oloroso sherry is either sherry that never developed a flor cap, or was never intended to do so. Fino sherries are always bone dry.  Oloroso sherries can range from totally dry to super sweet. I can’t explain any better than this excellent sherry 101 article by Ryan Opaz, I’d encourage you to go and read it.

The Only Way to Learn About Sherry – A Guided Tour
Fast forward to last week.  I try to keep abreast of interesting tasting opportunities locally, and I saw a post on an introduction to sherry being held at a new wine shop in our area, Wine Republic.  The class was being led by April Amys, a wine person I follow on Twitter, and this would be a chance to meet her in person, always fun. Through the course of the evening, we learned sherry the best way, by instruction along with a guided tasting.

Conclusion
If you have any interest at all in sherry, get yourself to a class and tasting guided by someone like April.

(click on any photo to start slideshow)

April Amys was our sherry guide

This is the ONLY way to introduce yourself to sherry; a guided tour. Unusual flavors, but with some understanding.

Fino – ripe tropical nose, but briny. Bone dry. This one is pretty intensely flavored, maybe not your 1st sherry. Try with oysters on the half shell.

Manzanilla – Fino sherry, but from another town nearby. This one was softer. Marzipan nose, smooth texture, totally dry. I’ll be trying this one again.

Amontillado – Rich vanilla & nuts on the nose, but surprisingly, bone dry. Especially nice with game. Another one to try again.

Oloroso – figs & caramel, orange rind in the background. Medium sweet with lively acidity. Easy to love after dinner with nuts & cheese.

Pedro Ximénez (PX) – old, raisiny nose. Super ultra rich, sweet & smooth. Liquid fig newtons. A bit too much of a good thing for me.

And a few sherry cocktail ideas!

Real Wine Republic offers a nice, intimate space for a small group

Sherry spans a wide range of flavors

I loved the range of colors, aromas and flavors.

Thanks to April Amys, our sherry professor,  and to Patty of Wine Republic for hosting the event!