Which dry amontillado sherry has the best value?
Here I will be talking about the best amontillado sherry, as well as other incredible amontillado sherries for their value. I will be separating the amontillado sherry by the age of it. Amontillado is my favourite type of sherry, because of its complex biological and oxidative ageing in the same wine, how it pairs well with everything and more. In fact, my dog is called “Monti” from the amontillado sherry!
Information about sherry production
Learn more about amontillado and the different types of sherry wine are produced please click here. On the other hand, you can watch the following video to learn how each sherry wine is made.
Moreover, you can buy the book “sherry” written by Julian Jeffs by click here. This is one of the many sherry books I love, and one of my favourites together with “el jerez y sus misterios” written by Beltran Domecq.
As I do sherry tours in Cadiz province, I have had some guests asking me which sherries I recommend, and I gave them several options. I will be talking about these options in this blog. If you are planning to buy one of these amontillado wines, I am leaving you a direct link to buy them through Amazon. It won’t cost you more, but It will really help out this project.
If you are interested in all this, you may want to know about the new changes in the Sherry rules. Please click here to read about the new regulations that the DO Sherry has done in 2022.
Hopefully this blog helps you decide which amontillado sherry to buy. I use many of the following wines on my routes, as I consider them my favourites. I never receive benefit from any sherry winery, not even doing the routes, only in this case from Amazon. Sadly in the British amazon there are only two of all the manzanilla sherry wines I recommend.
However, if you live in Spain, click this link to find all the options in the Spanish version.
Other types of sherries, from dry to sweet
If this blog makes you feel like you need a sherry in hand and it doesn’t fit, you may want to check out the following blogs. Click on any of the following links if you are interested in knowing my favorite sherry wines for each type of sherry.
Is your favorite sherry wine el palo cortado? If so, click here to see some of my favorites. If you prefer biological ageing and your favorite is manzanilla wine then click here. However, if you prefer sweet sherry wines, click here to see what I recommend within cream sherry.
On the other hand, if you want to learn more about: biological and oxidative aging; the soleras system; and the “flower” (the layer of yeast that grows on some sherry), click here.
Best Amontillado sherry
In this section I will be writing down the two most incredible amontillados, in my opinion, that you can buy. The price is higher, but not as high if you compare the quality of the wine to other types of wines like champagne, wines from Bordeaux, Bourgogne or Napa Valley regions. These amontillados are both over 30 years old and incredible quality, so they are VORS. However, sometimes when the sherry is so unique, some bodegas decide not to put it in a category, as they are in a category on their own.
You may ask yourself, how can you compare these wines to those famous regions? Well it surely has the history, considering that sherry has between two to three thousand years of history. But not only that, sherry has the quality as well to compare itself to them.
Gonzalez Byass Tio Pepe Cuatro Palmas amontillado sherry
If we see which wine received the prize of the best wine in the whole world of all wine types by the renowned IWC in 2019 it was González Byass Tio Pepe Cuatro Palmas Amontillado. Therefore it was not only the best amontillado sherry, but the champion wine of champions. This sherry of course is spectacular. Each year they bottle the sherry from a different cask and therefore, it has a different age. Gonzalez Byass 4 Palmas amontillado ranges from 45-60 years old. I believe that the amontillado was 48 years old in 2020, and 53 years old in 2019.
Conde de Aldama amontillado
My favourite and for my personal taste, the best amontillado sherry, is the amontillado Conde de Aldama. This is an extraordinary amontillado sherry that is over 100 years old. How is it possible to drink a century old sherry for around €100? This is the main problem for sherry; since it is not a very well known wine, not many people drink it and it is very undervalued. Thus, for me, sherry wine has the best value in the world.
Great value amontillado sherry
In this section I will name a couple of sherries that have great quality, have been in an american wood cask long enough to taste the oxidative process, but you are also very clearly able to taste the biological ageing, which gives a nice complexity.
Amontillado Aurora of Bodegas Yuste
When you are able to very easily taste the biological ageing in the sherry like in the amontillado Aurora sherry, you know that you have found a gem. This sherry is over 20 years old average, and it has undergone biological ageing until the “flor” (layer of yeast) died. This sherry did not need to add more alcohol to become amontillado. The alcohol level increases because of the “angel’s share” (the evaporation through the pores of the wood).
If you are interested in this incredibly complex wine you can buy your 6-pack of amontillado aurora botles in the button below.
Amontillado Napoleon VORS
This amontillado VORS is around 50 years old old it has a great value. Because of its 50 years of age and its intense aromas, the amontillado Napoleon VORS received 94 points by Parker. Only 1,000 half-litre bottles are filled each year. For the quality of the amontillado sherry, the price is very low, under a Euro for each aged year!
Great dry amontillado sherry for everyday
In this section I will talk about the best amontillado sherries that are very accessible for under 15 Euros. Thus, amontillado sherry is a very affordable wine that pairs with almost everything because it has undergone the biological and oxidative ageing.
There are incredible amontillado wines outside of the sherry triangle, however I will only talk about those inside of it.
Amontillado Bertola
This sherry has an average of 12 years old. You are still able to taste the biological ageing as well as some aromas of the oxidative ageing, vanilla and dried fruits. Peñin gave it 92 points. For those who do not know Peñin is a Spanish wine guide, slightly similar to Parker.
Amontillado Zuleta
This amontillado sherry has the lowest price of all sherries named in this blog. It has an average of 8-9 years old. However, because of the quality Parker gave 91 points to this wine.
1822 Amontillado
This sherry has around 20 years old, similarly to amontillado Aurora but for less price. It is from the same company but a different bodega, this one comes from the Argueso cellar. This sherry did not need to add more alcohol to become amontillado. The alcohol level increases because of the angel’s share again.
Sherry wine tours in Cadiz province
Thank you so much for reading this blog of the best amontillado sherries. If you are looking for Sherry wine experiences to taste and understand the types sherry wine even better, contact us. We do cultural and culinary experiences throughout Cadiz province. I will now take advantage to show off to you the great food tours in Cadiz province that we do. Officially, Vejer de la Frontera is one of the most beautiful villages of Spain, you should come and meet us!
Sherry wine tours
Join my virtual online sherry tour if you are interested in doing a sherry tasting from home with me while we learn about sherry history, sherry production and how each type of sherry is made.
Join my Ultimate Sherry wine Tasting tour within Jerez-Sherry-Xeres D.O. and Manzanilla, and learn the full sherry process from the vineyard to your glass. Enjoy the best Sherry bodega tours, local culture and traditions and the local gastronomy. In case you don’t have a car we can arrange transport, restaurant and the rest of your trip for you. We can design a private tour just for you and your family.
Please watch the next video to see what do we do in the sherry winery tour:
If you are staying in Vejer de la Frontera or within Cadiz province we can organise a private Sherry wine tasting with local gourmet tapas for your group. We will go to your place and do a Sherry wine or Andalusian wine tasting for you privately. Each sherry wine will be paired with with a local food tapas. We can focus on premium Sherries; a mix of VORS and premium Sherries; or Andalusian wines in case you do not like Sherry wine.
Our sherry & tapas tour in Cadiz or Vejer de la Frontera is always a good hit! Learn about 5 different sherry wines (from dry to sweet), wine tastings, and how to pair it with gourmet traditional food from the area. The tour includes 5 gourmet tapas and 5 wine/Sherries.
Sherry wine love is very contagious, surely you will also become a sherry lover!
Contact us
To learn more about sherry, culture and travel guides, please hit the big blue button to read other blog posts. If you have any ideas and suggestions, please do not hesitate to write us an email at info@explorelatierra.com. Please read our privacy policy before you get in touch with us. We will take your new recommendations into consideration.
