Harveys Bristol Cream N/V

Harveys make Bristol Cream within the D.O. Jerez-Xérès-Sherry from a blend of Palomino and Pedro Ximénez. Cream sherry is not a single wine but a blend: here Fino, Amontillado and Oloroso, all dry sherries, are married with sweet Pedro Ximénez to create a medium-sweet style. The component wines age through the criaderas and soleras system, a fractional blending across tiers of casks, and this blend draws on thirty separate soleras. The dry Oloroso base brings oxidative, nutty depth from years of ageing in old oak with exposure to air, while the Pedro Ximénez, made from sun-dried grapes, adds raisined sweetness and body. The balance of dry oxidative wine and sweet concentrate gives the style its creamy, rounded character. The colour is deep amber. The nose shows fresh raisin, soft caramel and a nutty edge. The palate is medium-sweet and gently full, with raisin, toffee, walnut and dried apricot over a smooth, creamy texture and a warming finish. Serve lightly chilled in a small glass after dinner or over ice as an aperitif. It suits hard cheese, fruit cake and caramel puddings.