El Maestro Sierra Amoroso

El Maestro Sierra was founded by master cooper José Antonio Sierra in 1830. Today, the bodega remains in the family, headed by two generations of women. Following years of selling to larger sherry merchants, they have bottled their own wines since 1992. The wines still rest in the master cooper's original barrels.

El Maestro Sierra sits at slight elevation in the centre of Jerez de la Frontera, the town that gives sherry its name. Here in the Sherry triangle in southern Spain, the terroir of the bodega is as important as that of the vineyard. The bodega is exposed to the cooling Pontiente wind, shaping the maturation of their long-lived fortified wines. The white sand floor of the bodega is dampened with non-chlorinated water from an internal well, to maintain humidity for the precious old casks and the wines.

Like most producers in the region, El Maestro Sierra doesn't own their own vines, instead purchasing their base wines from growers in the pagos of Balbaína and Miraflores y Trebujena. This Amoroso is a blend of their dry Oloroso sherry, made of Palomino grapes and aged oxidatively for 15 years, and their sweet Pedro Ximénez. The blend — about 90% Oloroso — is aged together for a further 4 years in American oak butts, and the touch of sweetness is said to make the wine more 'loveable.' 

Echoing Medium-sweet or Cream Sherry styles, this Amoroso has notes of toasted hazelnuts, ash, and citrus oil, with the PX bringing dried fruit and caramel notes. Lush yet balanced, it will pair well with cheese or nutty desserts like pecan pie.