Pedro Ximenéz Cardenal Cisneros (Sweet raisins and smoky toast)

The Pretty Lady loves sweet dessert wines, and Pedro Ximenéz is one of her favourites. We picked this bottle up at Madrid-Barajas duty-free on our way back from Peru, and have been dipping into it ever since. It's very good indeed, although not the best we've ever tasted.

Besides the taste, the great thing about Pedro Ximenéz is that deep brown raisiny colour. It looks and tastes sweet, grapey and gorgeous (of course, some taste more gorgeous than others). This particular one is very dark brown, almost black, with little hints of gold near the surface.

There's a whole wide world of this varietal sherry to explore, especially now that wineries in Australia and Argentina have started to grow the grape. The Pretty Lady and I look forward to it.

Pedro Ximenéz Cardenal Cisneros
Sherry
Spain (Jerez)
Pedro Ximenéz

Nosing: Raisins, brown paper, honey, cane sugar, grape seeds.
Mouthfeel: Sticky, smooth, very thick, mouth-coating.
Tasting: Sweet and silky, nutmeg and honey, massive hit of raisins, caramel and burnt toast.

This particular wine is made by Bodega Sanchez Romate, founded in 1781 and still family-owned. It's located in Jerez de la Frontera, the home of sherry, and has a large ageing complex where the winemakers mature their wines.

The bodega makes a range of brandies, wines, sherries and vinegars. They have house styles of Amontillado, Manzanilla, Fino, cream, and Oloroso, in addition to Pedro Ximenéz of course. The Cardenal Cisneros label denotes a sweeter wine, where the grapes are left to ripen longer than the regular Pedro Ximenéz . It's a mid-range option - there are cheaper sherries, branded Romate, and old solera matured ones (some very old indeed), branded La Sacristia. They also make 2 Spanish brandies, Cardenal Mendoza and Romate. The former is their marquee brand, while the latter is solera-matured.