Sherry: Why, Where and WTF?
We explore the beautiful drink that's so often condemned to being a mere staple of your nan's liquor cabinet, before showing you where's best to drink the stuff in Leeds, Liverpool and Manchester.
WTF is sherry?
The straight-up explanation is that sherry is a fortified wine – much like port, Madeira, Marsala and vermouth – made from white grapes. You get your wine and you strengthen it. In short: it's the bomb diggity.
Of course there’s the banal assumption that sherry is a drink reserved solely for maiden aunts and crap trifles, but it goes beyond the kitsch. Sherry’s more than that, so let's just cut the bullshit, shall we?
In the same way that
Just like wine, styles range from dry to sweet based on sugar content, from drier types like Fino and its lighter iteration Manzanilla, through Amontillado and Oloroso and onto the super-sweet Pedro Ximenez and Moscatel. There are also cream styles, made using a blend of different sherries such as PX and Oloroso – all too often found getting mugged off at the back of the drinks cabinet, sadly.
And contrary to popular belief, sherry is not enjoying a ‘recent resurgence’ in popularity; it’s already been back for years, so catch the fuck up.
How tho?
[Photo: Simon Thomas]
Arguably it’s best to drink sherry neat, either from a 215ml wine tasting glass or a smaller liqueur glass. Some sweeter styles also taste great poured into a rocks glass filled with cubed ice – equally perfect both for lazy summer evenings out on your balcony or in the dead of night sat in a Chesterfield armchair, probs with a cigar.
And in cocktails? Oh man, here we go. Thanks to its unrelenting versatility, you could kinda stick sherry in anything, whether that involves using a quick glug of PX to sweeten something up, or a splosh o' fino in place of vermouth. To pick one undisputed champ, it would have to be the Sherry Cobbler, an old school cocktail from the mid-1800s that traditionally blends a triple hit of sherry, sugar and citrus. Banger.
Note: anyone that puts a shot of sherry in their Bloody Mary is a bloody hero. We heart you.
WTF should I eat?
Getting intrepid now, eh? Too right. After all, sherry’s true calling is to be paired with food, being a product of Spanish tapas culture that we all like to think we're continental enough to adopt. Drier styles taste great with roasted, salted almonds, Padrón peppers, anchovies and the like, or you can use it in cooking as you would with wine; try it in your risotto or, better still, shellfish. Moules-frites? More like moules-shiiiiiit son. Medium sherry also tastes great when you whack it in gravies and sauces.
For dessert, either pair the super-sweet Pedro Ximenez with rich, blue cheese or pour over ice cream as an alternative to the Italian classic affogato. Absolute trailblazer.
Where's good?
[Ambiente Tapas]
Where to drink sherry in Leeds
Your best bet is to get down to your nearest Spanish restaurant or somewhere that specialises in small plates, such as beloved beer and charcuterie hotspot Friends of Ham and Call's Landing tapas joint Ambiente. You can also head to Ibérica for a bottle of Tio Pepe or go get yourself a Fizz Vasco from Basque bar and kitchen Pintura, promising a blend of Amontillado sherry, Licor 43, lemon, cava, olive and thyme.
[Neon Jamon]
Sherry-drinking spots in Liverpool
Liverpudlian faves Lunya are probably your first port of call for the good stuff, with a menu that spans the entire dry-to-sweet spectrum. They're also great at pairing sherries with food, suggesting dry sherries with olives, salty snacks and fish, nutty and medium sherries with cured meats and cheese and sweet sherries with dessert or blue cheese.
It's also worth heading over Neon Jamon for a few small plates (clams in Fino sherry anyone?) and a glass of Fino or Manzanilla, or go and take full advantage of Salt House Tapas' sherry bar.
Maray's also a good shout if you want to team your tapas with a decent sherry cocktail; try The Jackal, made from Applejack, PX sherry, Fernet Branca, maraschino and flamed orange.
[El Gato Negro]
Sherry hotspots in Manchester
Tapas staples like Evuna, Lunya and Iberica are all worth a visit for the classic Spanish experience, or you want somewhere relaxed and refined, simply head on over to Mr Cooper's House and Garden for a quiet glass of Nectar Pedro Ximenez or head on up to The Black Cat bar at El Gato Negro to capitalise on their dedicated sherry cocktail menu – though if you do need a bite to eat, don't forget about the sourdough with oil and PX balsamic vinegar, or the PX glazed ribs. Righteous stuff.
[Mr Cooper's House and Garden]
Even more excitingly, Manchester's also soon to get its very own dedicated sherry bar. Housed in the old Incognito site in the Northern Quarter's Stevenson Square, Flok will be a joint venture between Incognito owner Martin Hennin and Justin Parkinson of Folk and Wine and Wallop in Didsbury, and along with a specialism in sherry and Madeira, there'll also be bar snacks like jamon, charcuterie and cheese, along with live music and DJs.
West Didsbury wine merchants Reserve are worth a visit if you want to buy bottles to try at home, as are Hanging Ditch in town.