Guess what? We are Sherry fans on this blog. Get us slightly tipsy at a wine bar, and we will never shut up about how delicious the aged, fortified wines from Jerez are. My readers are lucky that The Sherry Fairy is an even dumber name for a website than The Wine Fairy, or else you might never stop hearing about the stuff.
Most people think that Sherry is a dusty, overly sweet Grandma drink of dubious provenance. And yet, if you make them a proper cocktail with Sherry, or serve them a Sherry-cask whiskey, they will marvel at the complexity and depth of its nutty, dried fruit aromas. For folks of a certain age, Sherry is a traditional tipple at Christmastime. But if you only drink it at Christmas, you’re missing out.
Sherry is perfect at either end of the meal. Dry Sherries are delicious with cheese, cured meats, fruit, and olives. Full of rich flavors but compact in its dainty little glass, aged Sherry is the perfect dessert when you don’t have any room for dessert. I’m not the first person to say it, of course, but Sherry just might be the most underrated category in the whole wide world of wine.
As I write this, I’m fresh from the liquor store in a small Houston suburb on Christmas Eve. I wanted Sherry to sip while I waited up for Santa and my options weren’t limitless. So I settled on this bottle from Sandeman. (Sandeman is better known for their Port, of course–but I enjoy the Port so I decided to take a chance on the Sherry).
Ta-da! Sandeman “Character” Medium-Dry Amontillado Sherry:
Sandeman recommends serving this Sherry chilled, as an aperitif. I parked the bottle in the fridge for a couple of hours, grabbed a Crown Royal glass from my sister-in-law’s pantry and we’re ready to taste!
The label says it’s based on dry Amontillado Sherry with Pedro Ximenez added. (Puts on wine student hat.) So it’s mostly from the Palomino grape with both biological and oxidative aging, and sweetened after fermentation.
Color is a pale burnt orange, body is medium. Sour and yeasty aromas are immediately apparent in the glass. Nose is sourdough and bread crust, wet hay. First sip gives up tart tangerine, fresh apricot and blanched almond.
Mid-palate is lightly creamy with PX raisiny flavors punctuated by quite high acidity. Golden raisins. Thin caramel. Vanilla extract. Pasteurized orange juice. Long-ish finish includes toasted hazelnut and a touch of lingering golden raisin sweetness that builds as you sip it.
On that topic, the label describes this wine as “Medium Dry” and “off-dry.” But it’s got nothing in common with all those syrupy Cream Sherries I dodged at the corner store. Truly, it’s only a notch sweeter than regular dry Amontillado.
So how should we rate Sandeman “Character”? Well, it depends on what your platonic ideal for a Sherry is. If you prefer your Sherry like I do–closer to a sipping whiskey, brown and dry and absolutely redolent with cooked fruit, spice and walnut flavors–then this bottle comes up a little short. I’ll also admit I don’t love the taste of flor yeast. (Give me fruitcake notes over unbaked bread any day.)
But that’s a personal preference and I can say that this a complex and versatile Sherry for the price. Really, it’s only crime is that it’s not an Oloroso. Its orange-citrus notes and tartness would make it a fine choice for Sherry-based cocktails. (Later in the evening, we began serving it with Cava and a lemon wheel, and it added earthiness and much-needed acidity to my mediocre bottle of bubbles.)
Food-wise, Sandeman recommends pairing this one with smoked fish and pate. It would stand up to almost any savory canape or soft cheese. It’s not sweet enough to pass as a dessert wine, even with salty or buttery sweets. (I tried pairing it with the Costco baklava…that’s a no-go.)
If for some reason you don’t finish your Sherry over the holidays, don’t cork it and save it for next year! A bottle will only last about 2 months open before it begins to decline in flavor. Instead, tip this magical elixir into cream of mushroom soup, lobster bisque or chestnut stuffing.
Bottle: Sandeman “Character” Medium-Dry Amontillado Sherry (NV)
Variety: Palomino and Pedro Ximenez
ABV: 17.5%
Suggested retail: $20.99
My rating: 7.5 (out of 10)
Review disclosure: I was not compensated or provided any free products for this review. Opinions expressed on The Wine Fairy blog are entirely my own.
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