Sherry, from Jerez in southwestern Spain, is a fortified wine usually the palomino grape. After fermenting his base wine, the winemaker decides whether it will be a fino or an oloroso sherry. He will then fortify a future fino to a lesser than a future oloroso. A yeast called "flor" grows as a floating scum on fino, changing its flavor as it ages. Flor cannot grow on an oloroso, which ages through exposure to oxygen.
Finos
Fino sherries are known for their light, dry taste and a certain tang from the flor. Manzanilla and Amontillado sherries are finos.
Olorosos
Olorosos are dark and rich and lack the fino tang. They have an alcohol level of about 18 or 20 percent, higher than a fino.
Lightly Sweet
Sherries are dry, but they can be sweetened by the addition of a sweet grape juice. Medium and pale cream sherries are lightly sweetened finos.
Very Sweet
There are a number of heavily sweetened olorosos (called "amorosos"), among them cream, brown, East India sherry and . Pedro Ximenez is made from the grape of that name.
Rare Sherry
A connoisseur most wants Palo cortado, a very rare sherry. It is a fino that mysteriously loses its flor in aging and develops as an oloroso but retains the tang of its fino origins.
No Vintages
Young and old sherry wines are always mixed to age before bottling, so there is no such thing as a vintage sherry from one particular year.
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