Osborne 1866 Solera Gran Reserva Brandy, 1 x 700ml

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Top rum: Holyrood Distillery, Elizabeth Yard Diamond Distillery 10 YO Ungrogged American Oak Octave Rum Lepanto is the only brandy distilled entirely in pot stills and the only one actually distilled in Jerez I find it a little strange that a Málaga-based brandy that wasn’t certified to be a Brandy de Jerez can be “transformed” into a premium sherry brandy with certification. Let’s assume they have greatly upgraded the liquid itself too. Mind that this review was written based on the old version (bottled +/- 2016). The production of sherry brandy starts with a young, neutral, white base wine. Well, neutral is already a positive description. They are rather course wines with a high acidity, not exactly enjoyable on their own.

The holandas are matured in wooden casks, botas, that have previously contained sherry. These are not necessarily the same casks that are used in bodegas for the maturation of sherry (which are old, fairly neutral casks). Instead, usually newly made American oak casks are impregnated with sherry for a couple of months until the wood has soaked up the flavours of the wine. When the holandas are matured in these casks, the sherry and oak flavours will slowly be released into the brandy. The older the brandy, the smoother it will become and the more sherry flavours it will take in.

In 2009 the brands Veterano (from Osborne) and Soberano (from González Byass), once market leaders in the category of Brandy de Jerez, decided to lower their alcohol volume below the required minimum of 36% set by the Consejo Regulador. First to 33% and then as low as 30%. This strategic decision placed them outside of the denomination of origin and meant they could no longer use the name. Instead they are now simply spirit drinks which have totally different rules and therefore a much lower production cost. They’re not necessarily pure wine spirits and they’re much younger than the original Brandy de Jerez. Andorra produces it’s own alcohol too – in the country there are 4 wine brands that produce wine from varieties of grapes grown in higher altitudes. The taste of Andorran wines is very different from the neighboring French and Spanish plain wines. Wines from European grapes growing in the mountains above 1,000m are a special category. All 4 Andorran wine brands, which are sold in Andorra from € 30 per bottle in shops, are represented in most of the world markets: in Europe, North America, Latin America, Asia, and Australia. Look here for details

Los servicios de terceros son ajenos al control del editor. Los proveedores pueden modificar en todo momento sus Mouth: medium body, fairly sweet and oaky. There’s a vague fruity note (maybe orange or peach candy), light hints of Oloroso (dried fruits, raisins, light nuts) and plenty of caramel and cocoa. Some mintiness from the wood as well. Holandas have a strength below 70% vol. and contain 200-600 grams of volatile substances per hectolitre of pure alcohol Top single malt scotch 16-25 YO: The GlenDronach Distillery, 16 YO Boynsmill Single Malt Scotch Whisky Top single malt scotch 15 YO and under: Chivas Brothers, Ballantine’s The Glenburgie 12 YO Single Malt Scotch WhiskyAWARD WINNING. World Spirits Awards - Gold Medal 2018. World Brand Awards - Best Brandy Solera 2017 & Gold Medal 2016. International Spirits Challenge - Gold Medal 2016 So a higher alcohol strength means less flavour congeners. To create a Brandy de Jerez you can use all three types of spirits. However the lower strength (less pure) holandas must always represent a minimum of 50% of the final brandy to guarantee enough typical flavours.