Sherry. The mere mention of the word is enough to conjure up images of debauched grandmothers singing from the kitchen, "One for the cook, one for the pot." But as we recently discovered, sherry can be quite a sophisticated drink, with styles ranging from bone-dry aperitif wines to thick, nectar-of-the-gods, dessert specialties.
Sherry is produced in the Jerez region of southwestern Spain. Located just a short distance from the coast of North Africa, this is one of the hottest fine-wine producing regions in the world, and it also features one of the world's most distinctive systems of barrel aging.
In traditional wine cellars, or bodegas, the barrels are placed in tall stacks. When wine is needed for each year's bottling, a small amount (typically 20 percent) is drawn from each barrel in the bottom layer of barrels. These barrels are topped up with wine from the second layer, which are in turn refreshed from the third layer, etc., etc., Finally, new wine from the current harvest is used to replenish the very top layer of barrels.