Amontillado: The Dry Sherry Aged Under Flor, Then Oxidatively

Under the pliego de condiciones of the DOP Jerez-Xérès-Sherry, consolidated by the Orden of 13 May 2026, Amontillado is a wine whose ageing includes a first phase of biological ageing followed by a phase of oxidative ageing. The first stage takes place, as with Fino and Manzanilla, under a film of flor, and these early years in the criaderas give the wine a sharp, pungent note. At a given moment the flor begins to disappear, giving way to a second stage of oxidative ageing that gradually darkens the wine and enhances its concentration and complexity. Wines classified for ageing as finos and manzanillas are fortified to 15% vol, a strength that lets the yeast form the flor; above 17% vol biological activity cannot be sustained and not even flor yeast can survive. After an average of seven or eight years, depending on the microclimate of the bodega, the yeast grows weak, having consumed practically all the nutrients in the wine, and can no longer protect it from the oxygen in the surrounding air. Once in direct contact with air, the wine undergoes a slow process of oxidation, seen in the gradual darkening of its colour.

• Stage one: biological ageing under flor; wines destined for flor are fortified to 15% vol
• Stage two: oxidative ageing once the flor disappears; above 17% vol not even flor yeast can survive
• Flor's natural limit: after an average of seven or eight years the yeast grows weak
• The balance between the phases shapes the style: wines aged longer under flor are paler, with very sharp notes and faint memories of yeast, while in others the spice and wood of oxidative ageing predominate

Amontillado is one of the vinos generosos of the DOP Jerez-Xérès-Sherry, whose delimited zone covers the municipalities of Jerez de la Frontera, El Puerto de Santa María, Sanlúcar de Barrameda, Trebujena, Chipiona, Rota, Puerto Real, Chiclana de la Frontera, Lebrija and San José del Valle. Lebrija belongs to the province of Seville. Rule changes the Consejo Regulador had approved by 13 September 2021 ended the Sherry Triangle: until then the maturation of Sherry was restricted to Jerez de la Frontera, Sanlúcar de Barrameda and El Puerto de Santa María, and going forward Sherry can be aged throughout the entire production zone. The predominant soil, albariza, is a soft white marl that is easy to work and highly moisture-retentive, with calcium carbonate normally in concentrations of at least 25% and up to 40%, alongside clay and silica. Two winds prevail: the Poniente from the west, cool and humid, and the Levante from the south-east, hot and dry. The zone is divided into pagos, and Annex 2 of the pliego lists Macharnudo Alto, Macharnudo Bajo, Añina and Balbaína Alta among the pagos of Jerez de la Frontera.

• The first Spanish Wine Law, published in 1933, referred to the Denomination of Origin Jerez and its Consejo Regulador, the first to be legally constituted in Spain, which makes the Jerez-Xérès-Sherry Consejo the oldest in Spain
• Albariza: calcium carbonate normally at least 25% and up to 40%, with clay and silica
• Winds: the Poniente is cool and humid (humidity levels can reach ninety-five percent) and the Levante hot and dry (around thirty percent)
• Pagos of Jerez de la Frontera listed in Annex 2 of the pliego include Macharnudo Alto, Macharnudo Bajo, Añina and Balbaína Alta

Sherry may be aged either in the criaderas y solera system or as añadas. Criaderas y solera is a traditional, dynamic system of periodic extractions, or sacas, from each butt in a scale of homogeneous age, replaced through rocíos with wine from a younger scale; the solera is the final scale, from which wine is drawn for shipment, and the criaderas are the intermediate scales. The tier containing the oldest wine sits at floor level, the term solera deriving from suelo, the Spanish word for floor. The average age of a solera wine is calculated by dividing the total volume of wine in the system by the volume extracted from the solera each year, and the Consejo Regulador requires that proportion to be greater than two so that no Sherry reaches the market with less than two years of ageing. Ageing takes place in oak butts of no more than 1,000 litres, and the preferred and most widely employed type is the 600 litre American oak butt. For long-aged wines, the Consejo Regulador created two categories of certified age in 2000: V.O.S. (Vinum Optimum Signatum, Very Old Sherry) for Sherry over 20 years old and V.O.R.S. (Vinum Optimum Rare Signatum, Very Old Rare Sherry) for Sherry over 30 years old. Certification is granted to each individual saca after assessment by an independent Tasting Committee, and a certified-age wine must be an Amontillado, Oloroso (sweet or dry), Palo Cortado or Pedro Ximénez. The Consejo also certifies Sherries with an average age of 12 and 15 years.

• Criaderas y solera: periodic sacas from each scale, refilled through rocíos from the next younger scale
• Average age equals total volume in the system divided by annual extraction; the Consejo Regulador requires this proportion to be greater than two
• V.O.S.: over 20 years; V.O.R.S.: over 30 years; both created by the Consejo Regulador in 2000 and certified saca by saca
• Sugar: 4 g/L or less for Amontillado, while a Medium, made from vinos generosos, carries 4 g/L or more and under 115 g/L

Amontillado ranges from pale topaz to amber in colour, with a subtle, delicate bouquet on an ethereal base, aromas of hazelnut and plants, and reminders of aromatic herbs and dark tobacco. On the palate it tends to be light and smooth, with well-balanced acidity, a dry finish and a lingering aftertaste with a hint of nuts and wood. Colour descriptions differ by source: the pliego's organoleptic description sets tones from pale gold to amber, aromas of nuts and/or vegetal notes along with wine-seasoned noble woods, and a dry, balanced flavour that may be slightly acidic, while the Consejo Regulador's glossary gives an amber to mahogany colour and slightly pungent hazelnut aromas. Style depends on the balance of the two phases: some Amontillados are paler, with very sharp notes and faint memories of yeast from longer ageing under flor, while in others the spice and wood of oxidative ageing predominate. The butt also loses water through its walls, an evaporation known as merma that accounts for losses of 3 to 5 percent a year, so the wine's other components are continually concentrated, which shows in the increased alcoholic strength of wines aged without flor.

• Colour: pale topaz to amber (Consejo Regulador Amontillado page); pale gold to amber (pliego); amber to mahogany (Consejo Regulador glossary)
• Aromas: hazelnut and plants, reminiscent of aromatic herbs and dark tobacco
• Analytics: total acidity 4 to 6 g/L (tartaric), volatile acidity under 0.8 g/L, glycerine 3 to 5 g/L
• Style spectrum: paler and sharper with longer flor influence; spice and wood where oxidative ageing predominates

Serve Amontillado at between 12 and 14 degrees Celsius in a white wine glass; VOS and VORS wines are served at approximately 15 degrees. The Consejo Regulador advises against the small copita, which does not allow the wine to fully express itself, and prefers a good quality generic white wine glass with a generous bowl. Unlike other wines, Sherry bottles should be stored upright to reduce the surface exposed to oxidation, in a dark, quiet place free of temperature fluctuations or vibrations. For wines other than Fino and Manzanilla, the guideline is up to 3 years in a closed bottle and up to 2 months once opened, tightly corked in the refrigerator; Amontillado can also be stored in open bottles for months. At the table, Amontillado suits soups and consommés, white meat, blue fish (tuna), wild mushrooms and semi-cured cheeses, and vegetables such as asparagus and artichokes.

• Serving temperature: 12 to 14 degrees Celsius; VOS and VORS approximately 15 degrees
• Glass: a generous white wine glass rather than the small copita
• Storage: upright; once opened, up to 2 months tightly corked in the refrigerator for wines other than Fino and Manzanilla
• Pairings: soups and consommés, white meat, tuna, wild mushrooms, semi-cured cheeses, asparagus and artichokes

The first rules governing the Denomination of Origin were the Regulations of the Guild of Raisin and Grape Harvesters of Jerez, established on 12 August 1483, and the solera and criadera system, bodega architecture and Jerez wines as known today began to take on their distinct characteristics in the late 18th century. Phylloxera arrived in the Sherry region in 1894. Three producer Amontillados show how the two phases are balanced in practice. González Byass's Viña AB begins life as Tío Pepe, is fortified to 15.5% alcohol, remains a minimum of 4 years under flor and then a further 8 years in the Viña AB solera, and is bottled at 16.5% vol. Valdespino's Tío Diego is a single-vineyard Amontillado from Viña Valdespino in the Pago de Macharnudo Alto, aged biologically for its first 10 years and oxidatively for its last 7, reaching 18 degrees. Lustau's Los Arcos Amontillado is aged for equal periods under flor and in contact with oxygen in Bodega Emperatriz Eugenia in Jerez de la Frontera.

• 1483: the Regulations of the Guild of Raisin and Grape Harvesters of Jerez, the first rules governing the Denomination
• Late 18th century: the solera and criadera system began to take on its distinct characteristics
• Viña AB (González Byass): an average of 12 years in American oak casks
• Tío Diego (Valdespino) comes from Pago Macharnudo Alto, and Los Arcos (Lustau) is aged in Jerez de la Frontera

Primary sources: https://www.sherry.wine/documents/597/21052026_Pliego_Jerez_1wBQg8y.pdf, https://www.sherry.wine/sherry-wine/dry-sherry-wines/amontillado, https://www.mapa.gob.es/es/alimentacion/temas/calidad-diferenciada/dop-igp/detalle/vcprd/dop_jerez, https://www.sherry.wine/sherry-wine/production/ageing, https://www.sherry.wine/sherry-wine/special-categories, https://www.sherry.wine/sherry-wine/production/viticulture, https://www.sherry.wine/sherry-wine/production/fortification, https://www.sherry.wine/sherry-region/sherry-wine-region, https://www.sherry.wine/sherry-region/history-of-sherry, https://www.sherry.wine/enjoying-sherry/conservation-serving, https://www.sherry.wine/professionals/glossary, https://www.gonzalezbyass.com/sites/www.gonzalezbyass.com/files/2025-10/Vin%CC%83aAB-ENG.pdf, https://www.grupoestevez.com/tienda/tiodiego/, https://lustau.es/en/coleccion/sherry-wines,solera-familiar-en/amontillado-los-arcos/. Secondary sources: https://www.decanter.com/learn/know-your-sherry-279407/, https://www.decanter.com/wine-news/sherry-do-regulations-to-see-historical-changes-464747/. Last verified 2026-10-05