If you want to taste place and grape, extraordinary care in the making and find out just how good Palomino can be, stop here and enjoy. I think this probably isn’t the high yielding Palomino California clone but from older versions producing fruit with flavour. And what flavour. From the great pago of Macharnudo Bajo, naked hill in Arabic derivation, there’s some intricate making including a green harvest to produce wine used to acidify the later much riper pick. There’s a brief twelve months under flor in botas filled higher than the normal Fino. The soil is classic Albariza, dazzling in white, and a particular type called Barajuela, layers of chalk stacked like a pack of cards. The grapes are influenced by the inland warmth of the east wind, the Levante, to create richness rather than the fresher nature of those grown closer to Sanlucar and the sea. And in the glass, there’s so much flavour albeit of acrobatic balance. Looks like Fino in its green and gold but tastes so much more…er…fine. All the best possible bits of Sherry but no heat and ungainly breadth. Savoury sweet dried hay, an incredibly difficult to describe unami green pith, sort of yellow peach or perhaps juicy melon, a tonic bitterness from the touch of flor, a pistachio green nuttiness and a final tangy hint. All these flavours and textures carry long and clean to be finally waved bye bye with a puff of fine acidity and a grape skin ruffle. Not finished yet, the second day it was richer and more Sherry like for want of a better word but still so clean and balanced. As close as great craft and intelligence in wine gets to art. Not just a drink.
13.5% alcohol. Another half a degree and it could be labelled Fino thanks to long overdue rule changes. Cork and a too heavy a bottle the only criticism. €22 in Spain, happy as it’s $92 in Australia thanks to a stupid tax law.
96 points. Montrachet watch out, it’s Macharnudo.
Cognitive Bottle Therapy 