Sherry is too cheap! The quality of wine you get from a half decent sherry producer for the money you spend is so much higher than any other wine region in the world. It used to be joined with Madeira, but the prices of quality Madeira has been creeping up over the past couple of years. Sherry however remains firmly under the shadow of Harvey’s Bristol Cream and Croft Original, and as a result, prices are stupidly low!
And trying four sherries from Williams & Humbert at Gleneagles proved that these wines are insanely cheap! First up was the Jalifa Amontillado 30 Year Old. This sherry had a gorgeous nutty and dried fruit aroma. Citrus peel came through on the nose too. The palate was burnt orange peel, very dry, with the alcohol creeping in and rising to a peak just before you swallow. The finish was then long, with Earl Grey tea flavours slowly dissolving in your mouth. OK, so the wine would be about £25 for a half bottle, but this is really fine wine! 9/10
Moving on to the 15 year old Dry Sack Oloroso I saw loads of tea, starting with a hint of sweet toffee and yet with some dried flowers. There was sweet honey on the palate, with a bundle of citrus peel, some candied and some fresh. An interesting wine as it leads you up one path so you think you know what to expect next, but then it says “nope, come this way on a different path”! I liked this, and at around £18 for a half bottle, it is cracking stuff. 8.5/10
The 20 Year old Dos Cortado Palo Cortado was very subtle, with gentle aromatics with citrus, pineapple skin and, for some reason, apple seeds! A lovely texture, very soft and gentle. A nice wine with a yeasty element on the finish. 8/10 and £20. Finally, the 20 year old Don Guido Pedro Ximinez. When I’m tasting PX I’m always overloaded by a bundle of sweet, prune flavours which are so insane you really can’t enjoy the wine without a huge slice of chocolate cake. This wine from Williams & Humbert was no different, a lot of dried fruit, and sticky prune flavours, treacle galore and toffee. The palate was very sweet, with liquorice, chocolate and dates. It was all I expected – massive and sweet – but then it cleaned the palate on the finish. 8/10 £20
These aren’t cheap, I’ll grant you that, but they are fine wines, and fine wine is never cheap. Compare them to other fine wines and you’ll realise that these sherries are very good value for money. Treat them as a wine rather than as a spirit, as is so often done by bad barmen and older people, and put a bit of food with them and you’ll appreciate how glorious sherry can be.
Williams & Humbert
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