Wake up to this dream of an opportunity
Imagine, if you will, a wine which is made from top quality grapes, vinified with meticulous care and attention to standards, aged in oak for at least 10 years and which is readily available on the market. Imagine further that the same wine consistently achieves internationally-acclaimed standards of excellence, doesn't cost a fortune and is readily available from your wine merchant. Dreamland? No, but you could be forgiven for imagining that it has probably all been snapped up. The truth of the matter is that such a wine does exist and there are oceans of it just waiting to enhance your wine list and reputation. The wine to which I refer, is arguably Spain's most noble wine sherry. Over the years, decades probably, our customers have come to associate sherry in pubs with a bottle of the "Cream" variety gathering dust on the back display and served in the virtually useless Elgin-style glasses. What a waste of an opportunity. The term sherry covers a whole range of truly wonderful wines that have been nurtured and guided through the Solera system with no compromise to commercial propriety. They are incredibly good value for moneyand they are increasing in popularity two excellent reasons for licensees to sit up and take notice. But first, we need to understand a little bit about them. To my mind, the principal types of sherry can be broadly divided into three categories: fino and manzanilla; amontillado; oloroso.
Fino is a pale, straw-gold wine that is at once both light and fresh but impeccably dry, with a delicate, slightly almondy nose and taste. Manzanilla is the same only more so and has the added dimension of a faint saltiness, a whiff of sea breezes. Both are classic aperitif wines but make an excellent accompaniment to tomato-based soups, tapas, seafood, mild cheese, white fish and ham. They are especially good with oysters. Always serve them chilled.
Amontillados are slightly deeper in colour and are smooth, dry and rich with an intriguing nutty nose and taste. Of fino and manzanilla parentage, amontillados make a superb aperitif but are also the perfect match for white meats, oily fish and mature cheese. I think that they also have a special affinity to fruitcake. Serve them chilled to bring out that wonderful flavour.
Olorosos are fuller bodied wines that have a dark, deep amber or mahogany colour and with age, rounder and softer in texture with a dry, walnut like taste. Cream sherries, which are still very popular, are a blend of olorosos and a sweet wine made from the Pedro Ximenez white grapes. They are smooth and rich and, although good to drink at any time, are perhaps at their best served as a dessert wine. Serve them chilled and watch your sales increase. Top Tips for the festive season and beyond Forget convention, if you are still servingsherry in Elgin-style glasses, throw them away and invest in some copitas. Failing that, use International Standards Organisation tasting glasses or any other style of glass that allows room for those wonderful aromas to be appreciated. If you think that a particular style ofsherry would make the ideal partner for one or more of the dishes you feature, why not say so on the menu and offer your customers the option of a glass at an inclusive price? As fino and manzanilla have a particular affinity to tomato-based soups, why not take advantage of this glorious alliance by creating a sherry-based Bloody Mary cocktail? Simply make a Bloody Mary as normal but replace the vodka element with a measure of manzanilla or fino. An acquired taste, yes, but once acquired, never relinquished.
