Gonzalez Byass Palo Cortado ‘Apostle’ 30 years Sherry

In 1835 Manuel María González bought a small winery in Jerez which he named Tío Pepe after his uncle, who had taught him everything about winemaking traditions in Jerez. That fino would soon start to grow in status in both Spain and abroad to the point that today it stands as one of the most internationally prestigious and recognised Spanish brands.  Amongst the Sherry products they make, one of the premium ranges are known to be VORS. These Sherries have a “certified age” of over 30 years, true wine treasures of the highest standard recognisable for their unmatched quality.

Palo Cortado is a lesser known style of Sherry. The name means ‘cut stick’, in reference to the mark made on the cask when this style of wine is recognized. Since the wine was originally destined to be a Fino or Amontillado, it will initially have had a single stroke marked on the cask. When the overseer realizes that the wine is becoming a Palo Cortado, he draws a cross (or cut) through the initial stroke (or stick), resulting in a crossed stroke or ‘cut stick’ (/). At this time the wine will be fortified to about 17.5% alcohol, to prevent spoilage from contact with the air.

As the overseer continues to monitor the wine over time, he may feel it necessary to add more measures of alcohol, or grape syrup to the cask to continue its development. These additional measures are marked on the cask as more crosses, with the resulting wine being designated ‘dos cortados’, ‘tres cortados’, etc. according to the number of ‘cuts’ marked on the cask. The greater the number of cuts, the older the wine. The result is a wine with some of the richness of Oloroso and some of the crispness of Amontillado. Only about 1–2% of the grapes pressed for sherry naturally develop into Palo Cortado.

The ageing process of 30 years grant the wine more complexity in tertiary aroma. On the nose, the wine is rich in dried fruit syrup, black olive, tobacco, sultana, leather, hazelnut, licorice, cinnamon, and a bit rancio. There is a hint of sweetness, but limited to the senses of tongue tip only. A wine worth continued ageing if necessary.