Flight Savor Fare

“Sherry is the perfect drink to have before dinner, said David Wondrich in Saveur Magazine, “or after it, or really anytime at all.” All sherry is fortified white wine made in or near the city of Jerez and aged in oak. Sherry is divided into three categories. There are the pale, dry sherries called flor which include finos, manzanillas and amontillados. (Try Gonzalez Byass Tio Pepe Fino $18, the benchmark fino, the very essence of dryness or Sandeman Character Medium Dry Amontillado $15 which Wondrich calls “perfectly balanced: nutty and raisiny, with a hint of brininess and a good acidity.” A great sherry for mixing.

Then, there are the darker, richer olorosos. (Try Lustau Solera Reserve Dry Oloroso ‘Don Nuno’ $28, a classic from a 112-year-old winery or Williams & Humbert Dry Sack 15 Year Sweet Old Oloroso $25. Dry Sack is a proprietary blend and not dry at all. When old, like this Dry Sack, sherries become intense, dark, fruity, and redolent of blackberries. A perfect dessert wine.

And then there are the very sweet dessert sherries called PX for Pedro Zimenez, the grape variety used in making them. These sherries are usually used for blending.