2.3: Sherry - Styles of Sherry Flashcards
To be labelled as a specific standard style, the wine must conform to what?
certain attributes as set by the Consejo Regulador
What are the main attributes that the wines must conform too?
- level of residual sugar
- typical alcohol level
- colour
- other characteristics that are in line with how the wine has been matured
What is the maximum residual sugar Dry Sherries must have?
5 g/L
How are Fino and Manzanilla Sherries aged?
spent their entire ageing process under a film of flor (biological ageing)
Describe Fino and Manzanilla Sherries.
- pale lemon in colour
- dry
- light to medium bodied
- low acidity
- low alcohol of 15-15.5% abv
- aromas and flavours depend on the length of time they have spent in the solera but may include aromas associated with acetaldehyde rather than primary fruit, bread dough and almonds
- good to outstanding quality
- inexpensive to premium, even super-premium
What wines qualify as Manzanilla? What is their full name?
- wines that are matured in the coastal municipality of Sanlúcar de Barrameda
- Manzanilla de Sanlúcar de Barrameda
What does aging in the coastal municipality of Sanlúcar de Barmaids mean for the wines?
- ideal conditions for flor growth: proximity to the Atlantic, and hence its maritime climate, means that it does not have such extreme summers and winters and that humidity is relatively high
- thick layers of flor year round
Do Manzanilla sherries have higher levels of acetaldehyde than Fino? Why or why not?
- no
- differences in the flor strains between the two towns
- strain shown to produce highest levels of acetaldehyde not present in flor samples taken from Sanlúcar de Barrameda
Why do Manzanillas often taste lighter and fresher than Finos?
greater protection from oxygen and lower levels of acetaldehyde
What do the thicker levels of flor in the Manzanilla solera systems mean? What does this mean for the release of these wines?
- they need replenishing with young wines more frequently to support this growth
- small volumes of wine will be released and bottled several times throughout the year to ensure that the flor is constantly maintained
What is Manzanilla Pasada?
labelling term that describes a Manzanilla subjected to a short period of oxidative ageing
Describe how Manzanilla Pasada is aged. Describe the wines.
- flor may be left to die naturally by not refreshing the barrels with new wine for around a year
- wine then enters Manzanilla Pasada solera system
- wines on average a couple of years older than Manzanilla wines, beyond which they start to become more like Amontillado
What is Amontillado?
must have attributes from both biological and oxidative ageing
Describe how Amontillado is aged.
- wines will start in a Fino solera system
- re-fortified to 17% abv to kill the flor
- then matured oxidatively in an Amontillado solera system
How is inexpensive Amontillado typically made?
likely to use young biologically aged wines (e.g. those taken out of one of the youngest criaderas in a Fino solera system) that then are blended into an Amontillado solera system, again, for a short period of ageing
How is more expensive Amontillado typically made?
matured for longer and hence be more complex
What is the typically quality and price range for Amontillado?
- good to outstanding in quality
- mid-priced to premium, even super-premium
What style of Sherry is the most difficult to define?
Palo Cortado
To be classified as a Palo Cortado, what must be true? (Think about the general attributes and also the specific regulations.)
- aromas similar to those of an Amontillado
- palate more similar to that of an Oloroso
- consequence of its oxidative ageing once the initial film of flor has disappeared
- sugar level under 5 g/L
- alcohol of between 17-22% abv
What are the winemaking and maturation specifications for Palo Cortado?
None!
Most commonly, how are Palo Cortado sherries made?
undergone a number of years in a Fino solera system to then be put into a Palo Cortado solera system
What wines are typically selected for the Palo Cortado system?
generally Finos at the Second Classification that are
- less delicate
- show more complexity
- perhaps less able to support a thick layer of flor so have already undergone some mild oxidation
How does a producer’s Palo Cortado compare to their Amontillado? Why?
- acetaldehyde aromas present but less prominent than Amontillado
- glycerol levels higher, concentration of the components in the wine, means that Palo Cortados usually have a slightly fuller, rounder body than those of Amontillados
- Palo Cortado will generally have spent less time biologically ageing than their Amontillado
What is the typically quality and price range for Palo Cortado?
- some mid-priced Palo Cortados
- more often premium price
- very good or outstanding quality
Describe Oloroso sherries.
- attributes from oxidative ageing
- brown in colour
- dominated by tertiary, oxidative aromas of toffee and walnut
How are Oloroso sherries made?
after fermentation, fortified to 17% abv to stop flor developing
What is the typically quality and price range for Well-matured Olorosos?
- very good or outstanding quality
- premium prices
When will inexpensive wines of acceptable to good quality will be released from the solera system?
earlier than more expensive, higher quality examples
What is en rama?
- hard to define, with no legal definition
- describes wines that have been finished and packaged in a way to be the best representation of the wine straight from the barrel
En rama could mean what?
- no fining nor filtration
For wines that are exported and also en rama, what could that mean?
it is common that a light fining and filtration (using large pore size to capture particles of flor) will have been carried out
To what types of sherries can the term en rama refer to?
any dry styles of Sherry
To what style of sherry is the term en rama most typically applied?
Fino En Rama
How do en rama wines taste?
tend to taste more intense and complex than the bodega’s regular bottling
What is the price point of en rama wines compared to regular bottlings?
sell for higher prices than the bodega’s regular bottling
How are naturally sweet sherries made?
- once harvested, the grapes laid out to dry in the sun for 2-3 weeks
- water evaporates from the grapes
- concentrating their sugar levels
- raisin-like aromas develop
When does the fermentation for naturally sweet sherries stop? Why?
- 4-6% abv
- due to the very high sugar levels
How much are naturally sweet sherries fortified?
to a concentration of 15-16% abv
How are naturally sweet sherries typically matured? What effect does this have on the wine?
- oxidatively in their own solera systems
- gradual evaporation causes the sugars and flavours to concentrate further
What are the most common grape varieties used for naturally sweet wines? Which do most producer use?
- PX and Moscatel
- single varietal PX
- single varietal Moscatel much less common
What is the minimum residual sugar level required for naturally sweet PX sherries? What level is common?
What is the minimum residual sugar level required for naturally sweet Moscatel sherries? What level is common?
- min: 212 g/L
- common: 450-550 g/L
- min: 160 g/L
- common: 325-375 g/L
Describe naturally sweet PX sherries.
- full bodied
- consistency similar to syrup
- low in acidity
- pronounced aromas and flavours of raisins, molasses and liquorice
- minimum sweetness level of 212 g/L
- tend to have 450-550 g/L of residual sugar
What are the options when it comes to aging naturally sweet sherries?
can either be protected from oxygen to give a non-oxidative style or aged in barrels for several years and made in an oxidative style
What is the price point and quality level of naturally sweet sherries?
- inexpensive to premium price
- good to outstanding quality
What can naturally sweet sherries made with PX and Moscatel be used for?
blending components for Sweetened Sherries
How are sweetened Sherries made? What grape is used?
made from Palomino that has been fermented dry, fortified, aged and then sweetened using a sweetening component
How are inexpensive sweetened Sherries likely to be made?
from relatively young wines that are sweetened just prior to bottling
How are mid-priced and premium sweetened Sherries likely to be made?
sweetened wine may be further matured in its own solera system
Give an example of a sweetened sherry that is further matured in its own solera system.
Gonzalez Byass’ Matusalem VORS Cream Sherry remains 15 years in a solera system after the dry and sweet Sherries (already aged for 15 years) have been blended
What are the 3 types of sweetened sherries?
- Pale Cream
- Medium
- Cream
What are the requirements for Pale Cream Sherries?
must have undergone a period of biological ageing prior to sweetening
What is typically used as the sweetening agent for Pale Cream Sherries? Why?
- RCGM (rectified concentrated grape must)
- does not add colour or its own flavours to the wine
Describe Pale Cream Sherries.
- very subtle flor character (sweetening component dilutes some of the flor-derived characteristics)
- medium-sweet to sweet
- inexpensive price
- acceptable to good quality
Are Pale Cream Sherries aged for long?
often not be aged for very long
What is the difference between Medium and Cream sherries?
- medium wines must show characteristics of both biological and oxidative ageing
- Cream wines only have oxidative characters
With what are Medium and Cream sherries typically blended?
PX for sweetening
What is the difference in sweetness between Medium and Cream sherries?
- Medium: off-dry to sweet
- Cream: usually always sweet
What is the typically price and quality of Medium and Cream sherries?
- inexpensive to premium price
- acceptable to outstanding quality
How are the cheapest Medium and Cream sherries made?
tend to be made from younger wines
How are the premium examples of Medium and Cream sherries made?
will be made from a high proportion of well-matured Amontillado, Oloroso and PX wines
What are the categories used to denote Sherries that have been aged for long periods of time?
- VOS
- VORS
- 12-year-old Sherries
- 15-year-old Sherries
What is VOS?
- Vinum Optimum Signatum / Very Old Sherry
- denotes wines with an average age of 20 years or more
What is VORS?
- Vinum Optimum Rare Signatum / Very Old Rare Sherry
- denotes wines with an average age of 30 years or more
How are sherries given the label of VOS or VORS?
Each batch of these wines released from the bodega is assessed for typicity by a tasting panel and also sent for laboratory analysis to provide evidence of the age of the wine (e.g. carbon-14 testing)
How do VOS or VORS wines typically taste? What can be done to remedy?
- old and dry
- a little astringent
- producers can blend in a little sweet wine, usually PX, as long as it does not mask the original dry wine (as judged by the tasting panel)
What types of sherries are eligible for the VOS or VORS categories?
Amontillado, Palo Cortado, Oloroso and PX
Describe VOS or VORS wines.
- produced in very small quantities
- very good or outstanding quality
- relative rarity
- premium and super-premium prices
What are 12- and 15-year-old Sherries? What are the requirements?
- categories for wines with a slightly lower average age
- wines must undergo a tasting and laboratory analysis, however, this is carried out on a yearly basis rather than for every individual batch of wines released
What types of sherries are eligible for the 12- and 15-year-old categories?
Amontillado, Palo Cortado, Oloroso and PX
