Bodegas Poniente Amontillado

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This rare Amontillado sherry is named after the Poniente winds, cool Atlantic western winds. Following the arc of history, winemaker Alberto Orte embraces his family’s rich tradition of solera system wines from Montilla-Moriles to create this unparalleled project from El Aljibe. El Aljibe. Poniente sherries are the product of the thoughtful blending of precious, treasured soleras and criaderas from the 18th and 19th centuries, refreshed in the traditional method each year with wine from our own organically farmed estate vineyards (San Cristóbal, San José y El Aljibe) in the Pago Añina, one of only three Pago sites in Jerez designated as Jerez Superior. The wines are produced and aged in our historical estate, a restored house tucked among the vines of El Aljibe.

WHAT MAKES THIS WINE UNIQUE?

This Amontillado comes from a system of six criaderas and one solera with a median age of over 40 years. The wine used to refresh the sixth criadera comes from organically farmed vineyards and has a median age of 10 years. Unlike others, this Amontillado has not been fortified prior to its entry into oxidative aging, but instead gradually transitioned into the oxidative aging phase of its life thanks to a gradual depletion of flor-sustaining nutrients creating a slow but steady concentration of the wine. This is the saca or bottling by one of the few bodegas which ages the wine surrounded by the vineyards giving it an authentic sense of place.

RATING HISTORY:

NV 95WA, 93JS

GRAPE:

100% Palomino

PAIRING SUGGESTIONS:

Pair with grilled artichokes, tuna tataki, croquetas de jamon, seared chanterelle mushrooms, grilled asparagus and Kafta (Lebanese beef skewers). We recommend serving in a white wine glass, starting around 50F with optimal consumption reaching 57F. The bottle can remain open for one year, although the longer it remains open, the wine may present with a slight haziness which will not affect its taste or texture. If cellaring for a long time in bottle, we recommend decanting before serving.

VINIFICATION AND AGING:

This Amontillado comes from a system of six criaderas and one solera. The sixth criadera was sprinkled with a biologically aged wine with an average age of 10 years. This Amontillado is not fortified prior to its entry into oxidative aging. but instead gradually transitioned into the oxidative aging phase of its life thanks to a gradual depletion of flor-sustaining nutrients creating a slow but steady concentration of the wine. The average age of this wine exceeds 40 years.

LOCATION, SOIL, CLIMATE:

The wines are produced from estate vineyards (San Cristóbal, San José y El Aljibe) in the Pago Añina, and aged at our historical estate, a restored house tucked among the vines of El Aljibe. Jerez is one of the most southerly growing regions and is known for hot dry summers mitigated by the Atlantic Ocean influence. The growing season, spring and summer, are marked by the influence of the Poniente (cool and humid westerly wind) and the levante (hot and dry wind from the south east). The area receives a predominately high exposure of sunlight hours ranging from 3,000 to 3,200 a season. During the fall winter an average of 600 meters (almost 2,000 ft) of heavy rains drench the parched white loam of chalk and clay known as albariza, which forms a crust and locks in the moisture for summer reserves.

TASTING NOTES:

The color is quite dark and with a green touch around the edge, and the nose seems dominated by oxidative notes of noble woods and some rusty nails with an unusual leafy/balsamic twist. The palate is very salty, dry and saline, with echoes of low tide and seaweed, leaving a dry sensation in the finish - Luis Gutiérrez

ALCOHOL CONTENT:

20.50%

UPC CODE:

8437015799902

BOTTLE WEIGHT:

1.4 lbs (.65 kg)