Friday 27 June 2014

Oloroso Anada 1997 Abocado 20.5%, Lustau

Appearance
Mahogany through amber to slightest green tinge at rim, legs.
Nose
Beautifully refined and elegant with that Lustau hallmark note of turron yema tostada. This is not your usual slightly unsubtle Oloroso, it is quite lovely. There is certainly sweetness there, which has been influenced by the wood, but there is little or no pasa (raisin) which you would expect in a sweeter Oloroso. There is a lot of nuttiness though, mainly almond and a touch of walnut, and a hint of brown sugar along with marmalade and some wood.
Palate
Medium to medium sweet with that beautiful grape pulp texture only sweet wines can offer, traces of wood are balanced out by that sublime nutty turron flavour and hints of caramel - even toffee. Marmalade and dates are there, as are dried figs. This is mouthfilling and beautiful, exactly as you would expect from the tech specs, but much better. Delicious!
Comments
Unusual in Jerez, this is a vintage wine, not having gone through a solera. It is only made in outstanding years, and is produced by only partially fermenting the must, thereby retaining much of the natural grape sugar. The word "abocado" means  smooth and pleasant to the palate, but in wine terms it means fairly sweet. The grapes are 100% Palomino - no PX in there -  and they come from Lustau's 170 hectare Montegilillo vineyard in the pago Carrascal, which is noted for Olorosos. Only a limited amount is made, and this was bottle number 5221 of 14,000. A quick calculation reveals that there must have been about 14 butts of this wine, which after ageing for 13 years, was released in 2010.
Price
In Spain, around 25 Euros, and in Britain around £25 if you can find it. 50 cl. bottle. UK importers Fields, Morris & Verdin don't include it on their list.




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