Flor Lore

Most people think of Sherry as a sweet, cloying drink sipped by little old ladies, certainly beneath a serious wine-lover’s notice. But real Sherry, which comes from the Jerez area of Spain, can be not only dry but complex and sublime as well. In fact, the driest, fino, is one of the finest drinks to match with food.

Of course, in the United States, there is no guaranteeing that when you buy a fino Sherry, you’ll experience this. There is a major problem with most fino Sherries that come into the United States, and that problem is freshness. Fino should be consumed as young as possible. When it is too old, it loses its crisp edge and can seem flat and dull.

Unfortunately, there is little consumers can do to protect themselves from less-than-fine fino. “This is really an unsolvable problem, given that the large shippers don’t want to put the (bottling) dates on the bottles,” says Darrell Corti of Sacramento, one of the most knowledgeable American merchants of Spanish wines. “Moreover, the Consejo Regulador (the governing body of Sherry producers) has disallowed the dating of the bottles, because this could cause too great a problem for some companies.”

Corti says the only way for consumers to know they are getting fresh fino Sherry is to have a good relationship with a merchant who will sell only recently arrived stocks.

Among the best commercial fino Sherries in the United States today are La Ina and Tio Pepe, both about $12, both from major houses. They are not as good as some of the lighter finos from some of the smaller producers, but when they are fresh they can be delightful.

One great alternative to fino is Manzanilla-Fina, from the area just outside the town of Sanlucar de Baromeda. And one of the best of these is a surprisingly delightful wine from the firm of Hidalgo called “La Gitana” ($10). This bone-dry wine, which spent five years aging in the traditional solera barrel system, is made in the same way as fino .

Hidalgo also makes a special, limited bottling of a rare fina that is sold in half-bottles only, so there will be no partial 750-milliliter bottles sitting around getting oxidized. Called “La Gitana Guadalquivir Especial,” this light, fresh, crisp wine is packed with the date of bottling on the box.

The wine is neither cold-stabilized nor sterile-filtered, so it may not be absolutely clear, but the process leaves more texture in the wine. Unlike some fino Sherries, which are more heavily dosed with brandy to preserve them, it has only 15.5% alcohol. It is bottled only on demand, and at $13 for a half-bottle is a value for the interested consumer.

Corti recommends two other Sherries. “La Guita” ($12) is actually a Manzanilla Pasada and thus is a little heavier and more flavorful, because it’s a little older. And Osborne Fino-Amontillado ($19) is a fino that has not yet become Amontillado. It is a wine starting to lose its fresh fino quality and developing a hazelnut aroma.

The firm of Lustau makes some of the better oloroso -style Sherries, which are richer and fuller-bodied. These are usually slightly sweetened, but Lustau also makes a range of Oloroso Seco wines that are drier.

But there are other Spanish wines worth considering. The Spanish wines with the greatest number of cases in distribution in the United States are sparkling--the so-called Cavas. Made by companies such as Freixenet and Codorniu, these are excellent values in French-method bubbly.

More than a million cases of Spanish Cavas came into the United States last year; most of the wines sell for less than $10 a bottle. By and large, they are dry and match well with food. But even the best Cavas don’t usually appeal to lovers of true French Champagne (which is more complex) or California sparkling wine (which is fruitier).

A tiny quantity of Chardonnay-based sparkling wine (for instance, one from Raimat Estate, owned by Codorniu) is being produced, but most are not widely distributed in the United States.

Table wine is coming into its own in Spain, too. No longer do we see the dull, lifeless white wines and the oxidized-smelling, orange- or brown-tinged reds. The Torres firm pioneered the new style of wine, and today virtually every wine Torres brings into the United States represents good value. I have always been a fan of the winery’s “Gran Sangre de Toro,” a hearty, bold red wine that sells for less than $10.

A new wine I tasted within the last few weeks is 1989 Pesquera “Crianza” ($20), a red wine from the Tempranillo grape. It has a fresh, fruity aroma similar to a cross between Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon, and excellent fruit in the mouth.

The wine is made by winemaker Alejandro Fernandez, who also produced the 1986 Pesquera “Grand Reserve” ($90) that will be released this fall, one of the most expensive Spanish wines of all time.

I was also intrigued recently by the 1991 Morgadio Alberino ($20), an amazingly spicy and complex white wine from the Alberino grape, which some feel has a distant relationship to the Viognier variety of the Rhone Valley.