Viejisimo Solera 1922

[Really Nice!]

I have a bottle of Vino de Alta Calidad de Las Bodegas Toro Albala, S.A. Viejisimo Solera 1922.

The only thing I can find on it is it's amber, nutty and bone dry. The alcohol level is 17 percent.

What should I serve with it? I'm guessing a Spanish cheese, but what style? Cabrales or Picón?

[Brad Ballinger]

I admit to not being even close to knowledgeable about Spanish cheese, but I believe Calabres is a blue. I'd stay away from that and go toward a harder aged cheese. And nuts. And olives. Or simply by itself.

[pedro]

First thing to do here is determine which kind of wine are we talking about here. Is it an Amontillado or a Pedro Ximenez (PX)?

[Rogelio]

I think that this wine is a 25 year old Amontillado, it is the perfect company for fried almods or smoked fishes.

Amontillado is a type of sherry whose must come from the finest musts and has suffered biological evolution under flor (yeasts) for the first years of its life. Biological echoes are a plus in this case. This is the ultimately pure sherry style, in the best cases a perfect marriage of biological and oxidative ‘crianza’. Its potential complexity is otherworldly.

[pedro]

According to one of the Sherry wines gurus I know, this wine goes very well with Parmeggiano. Also with good olive, I would say.

All the above, of course, assuming that we're talking about Amontillado.

[Alberto]

I'm no particularly aknowledged about, but according to this forum it seems that Bodegas Toro Albalà make some of the best "sherries" without making Jerez, actually. I've seen their Don PXs very well priced, especially their GR 1975 (but I've not seen the 1972 yet, alas!), if compared to other very old Jerez/Sherries.

Are their wines natural or fortified?

Alberto

[Rogelio]

I'm no particularly aknowledged about, but according to this forum it seems that Bodegas Toro Albalà make some of the best "sherries" without making Jerez,

I don't understand you when you say "Without making Jerez" Do you mean without making fino? because they do.

actually. I've seen their Don PXs very well priced, especially their GR 1975 (but I've not seen the 1972 yet, alas!), if compared to other very old Jerez/Sherries.

Are their wines natural or fortified?

Indeed they do very good Pedro Ximenez (PX) sherry wines, I haven't tasted the amontillados. The GR72 is a bit over the 75, but it's been discontinued now (maybe you can find any spare bottle somewhere).

And yes, all the sherry wines are fortified, if you want an introduction to sherrys, here is a very comprehensive thread by a friend.

[Alberto]

Thanks for the reply and the link Rogelio!

I don't understand you when you say "Without making Jerez" Do you mean without making fino? because they do.

I was trying to say that they make sherry without making one because they make Montilla-Moriles DO wines and not Jerez/Sherry DO wines.

BTW, I think that Viejisimo has 21% ABV "natural" as they state in the technical sheet (and on the label), and not 17% ABV as they say earlier, which is the ABV of some Don PXs.

Very detailed informations in their website, anyways.

Cheers,

Alberto

[Really Nice!]

First thing to do here is determine which kind of wine are we talking about here. Is it an Amontillado?

Yes. I found more information that it's along the lines of a dry sherry.

[Really Nice!]

I think that this wine is a 25 year old Amontillado, it is the perfect company for fried almods or smoked fishes.

Yup! That's exactly it!

Thanks!

[Really Nice!]

Thanks for all your help. We served it with fried almonds, 5-year old parmesan shavings, and Spanish olives.

It had a very stong almond aftertaste and went well with the items above. But we mostly noted a bit of a sourness to it. Is this a preferred characteristic of this wine?

Thanks!