Wine importer André Tamers continues to praise the virtues and value of sherry. When asked what the next undiscovered wine gem is, he answered “people think I am crazy, but I think it’s sherry.”

10 Things you should know about sherry

Explaining sherry...

It’s kind of strange, but I would sort of say it’s like a dirty martini. It’s has a really nice briny quality that people look for when they’re having a martini, when they don’t want something sweet, but want something with a more earthy character.

Why is sherry so exciting?

Sherry is the umami of the wine world. If you let your guard down and realize that it’s one of the most versatile food wines, and also a really great aperitif, you’ll realize that you just want to have a glass of sherry all the time.

People cook with sherry because it adds salinity. If you put a little bit of oloroso sherry in meatballs in a meatball stew, it doesn’t taste like oloroso, it tastes like something different. It’s the next level of it.

How to try sherry for the first time...

I would say that a fino or manzanilla would be the best first sherry. But don’t have it by itself, you need to have it with some olives and almonds and specifically Marcona almonds. See how the sherry tastes on its own and with nuts or olives.

Favorite sherries...

Argüeso San León Manzanilla Clásica. It’s one of my favorites and a delicious manzanilla. It’s light and fresh in style.

Hidalgo La Gitana. It has more of a fresh quality to it. I like it for its freshness and its proximity to the ocean.

La Cigarrera Manzanilla Sanlucar de Barrameda. Instead of being sort of fresh on floral notes, it has more ashy tones.

Emilio Hidalgo Fino is an excellent fino.

Tio Pepe Fino is really good. What’s incredible is you look at a really big brand like Tio Pepe and the volume that these guys produce -- it’s on a monster scale., but that wine is still delicious and really drinkable.

Outside of sherry, in Montilla-Moriles, the line of Alvear is produced. It’s really surprising how good those wines can be. They are sherry-like, but they are another undiscovered region. I was really deeply impressed by the fino and their whole line. And they are very inexpensive and delicious.

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Favorite sherry pairings...

A meal based around sherry:

Aperitif / Appetizer

Fino: is great paired with little fried sardines.

Oysters on the half shell and fino are one of those undiscovered little pleasures that are just an amazing combination.

With a beautiful jamon, you should be drinking fino, not a Rioja. Even jamon producers themselves have switched over and have Rioja with their ham. It’s just crazy, but that’s sherry.

Entree

Oloroso: caramelized pork belly paired with an oloroso works brilliantly. It’s very interesting, because you think of meat and you think of red wine. But actually just the opposite, because the sugar in the caramel will destroy wine. But something like an oloroso is a perfect complement to that kind of dish.

Amontillado: a really old amontillado with foie gras is a fantastic combination.

Dessert

There are two forms of dessert wine sherries.

Moscatel: one of the things I like to do is have a little glass of moscatel with coffee in the afternoon.

PX (Pedro Ximénez): I am not sure how you drink a glass by itself, but a little bit over some panna cotta or ice cream is always a nice idea.

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Keeping sherry...

Sherry has this unique quality that it is immanently drinkable, but fino and manzanilla sherries only last a year after they have been bottled. Sherry has vintages, they have dates when they were bottled.

Sherries Imported by De Maison Selections with “Bottled On” Dates

Finos and manzanillas are all about the freshness. It’s the critical factor about these wines. Our goal is to have our sherries at six months range.

How long will it keep when open?

One month. Sherry is fortified, so assuming it’s fresh, you can keep an open bottle of sherry in the fridge for a month.

- it’s perfect to drink within a 1 to 4 day range.

- after 3 days, it gets all glycerol and rich.

- after a week, it’s still really good, but over two to three weeks some of the fruit starts dropping out a little bit.

Where to drink sherry in New York?

Tia Pol, The Dutch, Terroir, and of course big proponents are Blue Ribbon Wine Bar. They always have flights of sherry. If I am going late night, I am going straight to Blue Ribbon.

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Where to drink sherry in Spain?

There is a place in Chipiona, called Bar Franchi, where we drank sherry and ate fried shark (pescado frito) and it was just fantastic. The dish of sherry, one of the great dishes, is shark in a cornmeal with a little vinegar. Nobody has ever heard of this place. It is particularly special.

Sherry is so under-appreciated in Spain, that it is really, really hard to find. I went to El Bulli last summer and we were in Barcelona looking for sherry and we couldn’t find any fino anywhere. It’s Catalunya, so they are interested in Cava and Priorat and things like that. We go to El Bulli and the first thing that the sommelier says is “would you like a glass of sherry?” On the wine list, there is a full page of sherries. El Bulli was a really big proponent of sherry when they were open.

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How to buy sherry...

As opposed to just walking into a store blind somewhere, develop a relationship with somebody who has a passion for sherry and let them guide you through it. It is such a minefield and so complex. Find someone with knowledge, like Chris Barnes at Chambers Street Wines or Kerin Auth at Tinto Fino.

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