La Guita Amontillado En Rama
La Guita is a brand founded in Sanlúcar de Barrameda in 1852 by Domingo Pérez Marín. In 2007 it was acquired by the Estévez family to become part of the wider group that also includes Valdespino. For decades the brand consisted of one wine, the classic Manzanilla that is very popular in Spain. Then in 2016 they started expanding the range with La Guita En Rama.
In 2021 there was a new branding and two new wines: a Manzanilla Pasada and an even older La Guita Amontillado. Fans of Equipo Navazos already had a sneak preview of La Guita’s Amontillado a long time ago, and had been asking for an expansion of the range ever since.
The Manzanilla Pasada of 10 years is the starting point. This wine naturally reaches 18% through concentration and evaporation, and undergoes another 5 years of oxidative ageing. The end result is an Amontillado with an average age of 15 years, also bottled with minimal filtering.
All the grapes come from coastal vineyards around Sanlúcar, primarily the historic Pago de Miraflores. Estévez has an agreement with 175 winegrowers around town. This local anchoring is underscored by the fact that they fortify their wines with wine alcohol from the Palomino Fino variety – quite unique for sherry wines.
As an Amontillado this pairs best with roasted poultry, earthy dishes like risotto with wild asparagus, or cured meats and spiced Asian dishes.
La Guita Amontillado En Rama (18%, Hijos de Rainera Pérez Marín, 50 cl)
Nose: lots of toasted hazelnuts and candied walnuts, along with some brioche and candi sugar notes. However the saline Manzanilla underpinnings are also present. Dried chamomile, very light bready touches. Also a subtle herbal note and orange peels. My first pour was rather on the savoury side but some airing brought out very nice polished notes as well.
Mouth: much more direct now, less savoury. The salinity and acidity are pushed forward. Mouthwatering sapidity. This mixes with dried orange peels, a subtle hint of dried apricot. Then some salted caramel, more walnuts and herbs. A persistent finish with an excellent refreshing acidity.
Availability: still quite a new product, but it’s starting to appear in stores. Around € 30-40 depending on your market. Check Bodeboca for instance.
Summary: A lovely voluminous Amontillado with plenty of its Manzanilla origins still showing strong, but also nice oxidative elements and excellent sapidity. Warmly recommended.
4.5
Excellent
About the Author
Ruben is a Certified Sherry Educator who fell in love with sherry some 25 years ago, but switched to a higher gear in 2013 and started writing about it. Lived in Madrid for a couple of years, now back in Belgium. I also run a whisky blog over at www.whiskynotes.be
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