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THE TIPSY TAILENDER

Sherry sherry lady…

Photo: Sangeeta Barooah Pisharoty

Full-bodied: Sherry is primarily a product of Spain

I adore all things Spanish…their music, dances, food, dresses, and the drinks of course. Sherry, the topic of this space this weekend, is a true blue Spaniard. And to blame it on its nationality, it heaves with life to the brim, yet so matter of fact. Extremely enjoyable, yet suitably frill-free.

Though serious wine connoisseurs in parts of the world are now looking at sherry as an underappreciated brew, many here still regard it with some degree of disdain. One such high brow clinker of the tall glass once told me, “Sherry is high class vinegar.” The mean streak in me promptly replied, “Hope you are not confusing sherry with sherry vinegar.” Well, he now avoids me like an epidemic, and I am in high spirits, with the happy thought that there is at least one name less to claim my share of sherry in common friends’ parties.

But now that I have brought in sherry vinegar here, let me first weave into the yarn what it is. It is a gourmet wine vinegar made from Sherry. Like Sherry, it comes from the “Sherry triangle” – the region between Jerez de la Frontera city (famous for its Brandy de Jerez) and Sanlúcar de Barrameda and El Puerto de Santa María, popularly called the Spanish province of Cádiz. It has a patent protected by Spanish and European Union law and is mandatory to age it in American oak for about six months. The country has a special wing to monitor its production and quality.

So now you know that it is not a cut-price produce to be used to pickle anything and everything. In fact, what is left after producing sherry becomes sherry vinegar. A fortified wine, sherry is made from the Palomino grapes, harvested in Spain in September, and lightly pressed to haul out the must. Only the must from the first pressing is used to produce sherry, the rest of the musts are used to make Sherry vinegar and also some lesser wines.

Sherry too is a protected produce of Spain. You can’t use the name ‘sherry’ and produce it from elsewhere. If you do, like many in the U.S. do now, you better use the place of production before ‘sherry’. Sherries come in different types – Fino or the palest and driest variety, Amontillado (darker than Fino), Oloroso (darker than Amontillado), sweet sherry, cream sherry (the most common one), Palo Cortado (a rare variety) , etc. Sherries don’t need much ageing like wines do, though that means sherries have less shelf life than wines. Some have to be finished the same day of opening the bottle and so, they are sold in half bottles to avoid any wastage.

Though I feel sherry is best drunk neat, you can make some great cocktails with it. Mix it with vodka and orange juice. Or add to it lemon and orange juice and honey. Or spike it with French vermouth.

Sherry is also a great cooking material. In case you are game for it this weekend, I have an interesting recipe. It is by well-known chef Heston Blumenthal, who loves his sherry. He calls it gruyere fondue with Fino sherry and clove. To 750 gram of Fino sherry, add nine crushed cloves of garlic, 8 black peppercorns and six sprigs of thyme in a saucepan and bring to boil. Let it cool for about 10 minutes before straining it. Pour the brew into a pan and heat it again, whisking in 16 grams of sodium citrate. Shift the mixture to a cheese bowl and heat over the flame. Gradually stir in the Gruyere cheese until it becomes evenly fluid. Add one tsp ground clove and mix it well. Serve with cubes of country bread while you sing aloud “Viva espania”.

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