This is fantastic. It’s a special bottling of Gonzalez Byas’ Tio Pepe Fino Sherry, taken from the cask when the flor (the layer of yeast cells growing on the surface…
A thrillingly good, inexpensive Mencia
Mencia, the red grape of the Bierzo region in the northwest of Spain, is the same as Portugal’s Jaen. And it’s a grape I really like. Now this wine is…
Making Sherry sexy: Equipo Navazos
Equipo Navazos make mindblowing Sherries. I’m drinking one at the moment, and it’s a life-enhancing experience. It’s Manzanilla No 16 – powerful, intense with nuts, herbs, minerals, citrus notes and…
On the road, finishing in the Douro
Quick update from Lisbon airport, at the end of a really good trip. Yesterday was busy: we started off in Toro, drove to Bierzo (some lovely wines from Victor Arroyo…
Sweet wine season, 9: Hidalgo Triana, an amazing PX sherry
This is amazing stuff. Totally mind-blowing. Very, very sweet and concentrated, but really complex, too. Hidalgo Pedro Ximenez Triana VORS 30 Years Old Sherry Amazing stuff: rich and intense with…
Two classy Spanish reds
I’m painfully aware that while I’ve focused in-depth on Portugal, I’ve neglected Spain. I’m sorry about that. In an attempt to begin to redress this balance, here are two rather…
Sweet wine season, 4: Pedro Ximenez, an extreme style
This is about as extreme as sweet wine gets. Very ripe grapes dried in the sun, then fortified and aged for a long time in old barrels in a solera…
Some lovely wines tasted at SITT
Top wines of the SITT tasting, February 24th 2010 Here’s a selection of some of my favourite wines from today’s SITT (SITT = specialist importers trade tasting). It’s now a…