Sherry and Food Pairing

One of the best parts of traveling to a wine region you’ve never visited before is having the opportunity to taste the wines in the context in which they’ve always been enjoyed: With the local foods.

But while I knew that I’d gain an appreciation for Sherry in all its many styles, I didn’t expect to be as blown away as I have been by its astounding facility at the table.

From the simplest seafood to the spiciest dishes to the ingredients that bully most other wines into submission (artichokes, asparagus, etc.), Sherry makes easy work of seemingly everything. Every meal here, in fact, has been accompanied by Finos, Manzanillas, Amontillados, Olorosos, and more, and has provided an amazing in situ demonstration of how much I’ve been missing by not pairing more meals with Sherry.

The photo above is from the lunch we had yesterday at Bodegas Osborne, and included Iberico ham, lomo, green olives, fried potatoes, marcona almonds, and pâté, and from the Manzanilla to the Amontillado to the spectacular Oloroso, every Sherry worked brilliantly with at least two--and often more--of the dishes.

I’ll report back if we find a dish that Sherry can’t handle, but I’m not holding my breath: Like Champagne, it’s a flat-out winner with food. Which has made for spectacular eating and drinking this week.