December 25th-Pedro Ximenez (not oxidative)

I have previously discussed the white grape Pedro Ximenex on two occasions. The most traditional version was part of Sherry week back in December 2020, then a dry iteration earlier this year on Feb 28th. I wanted to discuss it again to show the variation between bottles of wine made by the same grape. This is one reason why I recommend always tasting a wine if given the opportunity instead of automatically ruling it out based on past experience. This week, I found a wine made in a similar manner to the syrupy sweet traditional sherry product, but without the oxidation it is exposed to during the extended barrel aging. During harvest, just like the oxidative version, the grapes are laid on mats to dry in the sunlight. This process concentrates the sugars, acids and flavor compounds. This drying process transforms 1000 kg of grapes into a mere 300 kg of raisins. The raisins are then pressed into an extremely concentrated juice. The wine is fermented to a total alcohol content of 13%, when the fermentation is stopped by cooling it down until the environment is too cold for the yeast to continue to ferment. This leaves a substantial amount of residual sugar. The wine is filtered to remove the yeast and bottled, unlike the oxidative version that goes into barrels for extended periods of aging. This version has fresher aromas and flavors (tree and stone fruits) compared to those of the oxidative version, which are usually coffee, chocolate, toffee, and raisins.