Sherry from Jerez with a side of shrimp

The Jerez region of Spain is known for Sherry, good Sherry.  I have never had Sherry, so no better way to start than with the best.

I had purchased a bottle of Hidalgo Cream Alameda last week during my trip to The Spanish Table, so the next step was to figure out what to pair with the wine.

I was in the mood for shrimp, and Jerez is in Southwestern Spain and close to the sea, so I figured shrimp would be a good pairing.  I had been given a tapas cookbook a while back, that had a recipe for spicy shrimp in sherry. Perfect!

I had also read that Sherry and shrimp were a great combination.  Well, it turns out I have a lot to learn about Sherry.

For starters, I poured myself a big old glass – apparently there are Sherry glasses – a little smaller than a wine glass.  Also, shrimp should be paired with dry Sherry, not cream Sherry.

At least I am learning on the job, right?

My shrimp was actually quite tasty (I was a bit too light handed on the cayenne pepper – note to self for next time), and I ate it separately from the Sherry.

The Sherry was beautiful.  It was a garnet color and smelled of caramel, brown sugar and tobacco.  It also tasted sweet, like brown sugar.  But what I found most interesting was the place the Sherry took me when I sipped it.  It was almost like I was transported to a different time, a time of leather, pipe tobacco and old furniture – a different century almost.  I could imagine men in top hats sitting around a fire, sipping Sherry.

I was also happy to learn that Sherry last for quite some time.  The next time I try my cream Sherry, I am going to pair it with a dessert, maybe something creamy and rich.