The Oloroso 2003, from the Williams Vintage Collection, was selected by François Chartier to reveal the gastronomic DNA of Sherry wines.
Chartier is an internationally renowned sommelier, recognized as one of the most influential figures in the search for recipes and pairings between wine and food. Alongside his collaborator, Nicolas Roché, he deciphered the keys to molecular pairings and Sherry at Copa Jerez. In the case of Oloroso 2003, these experts analyzed the molecules of this vintage, as well as those of what they consider its ideal pairing: the corn arepa. For Chartier and Roché, the molecules that make up the ingredients of this dish marry perfectly with those of Oloroso 2003.
This fascinating presentation took place during the Copa Jerez Forum. Alongside this compelling conference, Williams & Humbert also participated in the winemakers’ talk, featuring wines selected for the menus of this Copa Jerez anniversary. On this occasion, Juan José Mesa, winemaker at Williams & Humbert, showcased the defining characteristics of Amontillado 2001, the Sherry selected by the Ambivium restaurant—the Spanish finalist team in this edition of Copa Jerez—which chose this winery vintage to accompany their main course.
VINTAGE OLOROSO 2003
June 2023 Saca
Unlike traditional Sherry wines, aged through the “Solera y Criaderas” system, these vintage wines undergo static ageing. For their production, musts are selected from old vines in the Pagos de Añina and/or Carrascal, which are fortified to 15% for biological ageing, or 18% for oxidative ageing. These wines are monitored throughout their ageing process, during which no intervention is made until the moment of selection for bottling. In contrast to the homogeneity provided by the Criaderas and Solera System, in which wines of different ages are methodically blended, each of these wines is unique and special. These wines are a reflection of the year’s harvest and its particular weather conditions, as well as the peculiar evolution of each one during its static ageing.
For this Oloroso, free-run must from the 2003 harvest was selected. Following controlled fermentation and the subsequent decanting of lees, it was fortified to 18%, thus beginning its 20-year static oxidative ageing in American oak casks. Hailing from a warm year with normal-to-high rainfall, the result is a very fine and elegant wine—mineral, vibrant, and of great complexity.
Amber in color, with highly complex aromas of noble woods and toasted nuts; on the palate, it is dry, mineral, round, and persistent.
