Sherry

Sherry

A glass of Amontillado Sherry.

Sherry is a fortified wine produced in southern Spain around the towns of Jerez, Sanlúcar de Barrameda, and El Puerto de Santa María. In the 1990s, the European Union restricted the use of name "Sherry" to the wine made from this region. It mostly made from the Palomino grape, accounting for nearly 95% of the region's plantings, but Moscatel and Pedro Ximenez can also be used. While the wine is ageing in the barrel, a naturally occurring yeast native to the region, known as flor, will develop and distinguish certain styles of Sherry. The flor needs fresh wine in order to survive and is added by the use of a solera system that also gradually blends the wines of different vintages together. Palomino wine, by itself, typically ferments to an alcohol level of around 12% with Sherry producers adding brandy to the wine in order to increase the alcohol level or kill the flor yeast which will not thrive in alcohol levels above 16%.[10]

Sherry has many categories:[10]

• Fino Sherry is a very light and delicate Sherry. These wines are characterized by flor. It often contains 15 to 18% of alcohol.
• Manzanilla Sherry comes from the Sanlucar district along the sea coast. The sea air leads the Sherry to develop a salty taste. These wines also have flor. This wine is produced using exactly the same process than Fino, but as weather conditions are very different in Sanlucar district it develops into a slightly different kind of wine. It often contains 15 to 19% of alcohol.
• Amontillado Sherry is similar to Fino. However, it does not have as much flor development.It is deeper in colour and drier than Fino and is left in the barrel longer. It often contains 16 to 22% of alcohol.
• Oloroso Sherry is deeper/darker in color and has more residual sugar. It is more fortified, and often contains 17 to 22% of alcohol.
• Cream Sherry is very rich and can be a good dessert-style wine. It often contains 15.5 to 22% of alcohol.
• Pedro Ximénez Sherry is very rich and is a popular dessert-style wine. It's made from raisins of Pedro Ximenez grapes dried in the sun. It often contains around 18% of alcohol.
• Palo Cortado Sherry is very rare, as it is an Oloroso wine that ages in a different, natural way not achievable by human intervention. It often contains 17 to 22% of alcohol.