FERNANDO DE CASTILLA. ANTIQUE AMONTILLADO
For those who think sherry is something Granny drinks, try this. It is staggeringly good!
Jerez, Spain
Non Vintage
19% ABV.
100% Palomino
50cl
£42.95
Price includes VAT
Tasting note:
Tasted July 2012
The Antique Amontillado is a lovely rich golden amber colour. It is very crisp and clear. I hope the photo does the colour justice!
The nose is a distinct aged sherry nose. It is tangy and beautifully oxidized, showing tight orange peel and marmalade, varnished oak, some smoke and toffee, all the time with sharp nutty overtones.
The palate is a wonder of austere sherry. The initial burst is of sweet flavours such as toffee, caramel, dried fruits and mincemeat, but this is not a sweet sherry. The dryness and acidity is absolutely perfectly balanced in this wine. Headache notwithstanding, one could drink this as an aperitif, at the end of a meal or as a nightcap, or all three. Truly delicious.
About the wine:
The palomoino grapes are sourced from partner vineyards in the Jerez district. The soils in these vineyards is a white marl composed of clay, calcium and sea fossils, light in colour reflecting the heat back to the vines helping ripening.
Harvesting is in early September.
Fernando de Castilla deals only in prestigious, premium wines. The sherries are all from individual soleras. They are bottled without blending, cold stabilization or filtration of any kind in order to preserve the subtlety, purity and distinctive aromas of these premium wines.
The products are all bottled in clear glass to show off the wonderful colour of the wines. Fernando de Castilla Antique Amontillado comes from a very old Fino (8 yrs old) which is refortified from 15.5% to 18.0% ABV and introduced into a solera of Amontillado where it spends a further 12 years.
About the producer:
One of the most exceptional of the small, independent sherry houses, Fernando de Castilla was revitalised in 1999 by Jan Pettersen - a Norwegian with a passion for top quality sherry and 15 years experience at Osborne.
After taking over the cellars of the Sherry shipper Jose Bustamante, located next door to the main facilities of Fernando de Castilla, Jan quickly established Fernando de Castilla as masters of the production and ageing of fine, unblended, untreated Sherries.
The bodega's reputation is based on the excellence of the Antique range of intensely pure and complex single solera Sherries whose award winning packaging makes them even more impressive. The Antique Palo Cortado was awarded 'Best Dry Fortified Trophy' at the 2011 New Wave Spanish Wine Awards, whilst the Antique Amontillado scooped the trophy for ‘Dry Fortified over £10’ at the 2011 Decanter World Wine Awards.
Awards:
Wines From Spain Awards 2012 - Best dry Fortified/Best of Show (Joint winner)
Sommelier Wine Awards 2012 - Gold
Decanter World Wine Awards 2011 - Dry Fortified over £10 Trophy
International Wine Challenge 2011 - Gold
Sommelier Wine Awards 2010 - Gold List
New Wave Spanish Wine Awards 2010 - Top 119 Wines
Decanter World Wine Awards 2009 - Dry Sherry over £10 Trophy
International Wine and Spirits Challenge 2008 - Silver (Best in Class)
New Wave Spanish Wine Awards 2007 - Top 109 wines
International Wine Challenge 2007 - Silver