PX-Sherry Bertola – herbal sweetness


Courtyard Bodegas Diez-Mérito

Pedro Ximénez Sherry is one of the sweetest wines in the world. Only the Pedro Ximénez grape variety is used for its production. For this purpose, the overripe grapes are dried in the sun after the harvest, which not only increases the sugar content, but also the aromas and at the same time the acidity. Moscatel sherry is made the same way. These two wines are so-called

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Don PX – Sherry from Montilla-Moriles


Finally, after Corona, for the first time there was a tasting with winemakers and other fellow tasters. The Spanish economic and trade department ICEX invited to the Charles Hotel in Munich, where the Spanish Wine Fair 2021 entitled Wine in Motions took place on October 11th. 22 wineries were represented, one of which caught my attention as it had wines made exclusively from Pedro Ximénez (PX). A grape variety that is grown in southern Spain, mainly in the Andalusian region of Montilla-Moriles, and is mainly used there and in Jerez for the production of sherry.

The Bodega Toro Albalá, founded in Córdoba in 1922, is very well known … Read more ...

Cream-Sherry: Oloroso plus sweetness

Cream means sweetened sherry, a category that also includes Pale Cream and Medium, is considered by quite a few sherry lovers as a purely commercial product. This may be true if Oloroso is sweetened by the addition of sweet or even cooked, concentrated grape must (Arrope). But that holds not true if of blending a dry sherry is done with a sweet sherry, such as PX (Pedro Ximénez) or Moscatel, as is the case with the three Cream Sherries, we have tasted.

The name Cream for this type of sweet sherry goes back to Harveys’ Bristol Cream, which introduced it in the 1860s … Read more ...

“Liquid raisins”: Sherry from PX or Moscatel

Innenhof Fernando de Castilla

“Like syrup! – Liquid raisins! – Incredibly sweet! ”- this and the like can sometimes be heard when tasting sherry made from Pedro Ximénez (PX) or Moscatel grapes. These Sherries are definitely sweet, as Moscatel sherry must have at least 160 g / l residual sugar – PX sherry even at least 212 g / l. Simple, not very mature specimens can then often be too little complex and such appear “just sweet”.

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González-Byass – Sweet Sherry

Gonzalez-Byass Logo

Signierte Sherry-Fässer
Signed sherry barrels

A visit to the Bodega Tío Pepe of González-Byass in Jerez de la Frontera is practically a “must” if you are exploring sherry in the sherry triangle between the cities of Jerez, El Puerto de Santa Maria and Sanlúcar de Barrameda. A visit to this bodega was also on the agenda of the trip of the wine academy beginning of October this year.

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Styria meets Spain

Kuerbiskernparfait mit Gewuerz-Orangen.. is applicable for the dessert Pumpkin seed parfait with spice-oranges (recipe in sweet wines and food), in which the Styrian pumpkin seed parfait is served with oranges from Spain. The two wines (tasted wines) we tasted are also of Spanish or formerly Spanish origin: a PX (Pedro Ximénez) sherry from Montilla-Moriles and a French Rivesaltes Hors d’Âge from Roussillon, – a state formerly governed by the King of Mallorca.

PX Sherry Alvear

Pedro Ximénez Solera 1927, Bodegas Alvear (16% alcohol by volume)
Dark brown, pronounced scent of raisins, in the mouth with dried dates and figs, rancio and in the background delicate eucalyptus notes. Although very sweet (405 … Read more ...

Sweet wines with spicy desserts

Gewuerzkaffee-Birnen mit Milchschaum
Which wine goes best with spice coffee pears with milk foam? In addition to espresso, the spiced coffee also contains cinnamon sticks, cardamom and cloves. The pears are poached in that mixture overnight. At the first attempt, we underestimated the flavor of the coffee and therefore were wrong choicing the sweet wine.

Knowing about the spiciness of the coffee, we chose the Deluxe Cream Sherry Capataz Andrés from Lustau and the 10 Years Old Bual Madeira from Henriques & Henriques for further tasting (Tasted wines).

Deluxe Cream Capataz Andres Lustau

Lustau’s cream had aromas of walnut, dried fruits such as plum, pear and fig, mocha, complemented by smoky and roasted notes. Soft and … Read more ...