Valdespino Pedro Ximénez El Candado
A luscious sweet white fortified wine with complex notes of dried fruit, toffee, and coffee, perfect with desserts
Valdespino Pedro Ximénez `El Candado` from Jerez, Spain, is a superb sweet fortified white wine crafted from Pedro Ximénez grapes. The grapes are sun-raisined on esparto grass mats, concentrating their sugars and flavours before a slow fermentation. This exquisite wine then ages oxidatively for approximately 10 years in old American oak barrels within a traditional solera system. It presents a dark mahogany hue with complex aromas of dried fruits, raisins, toffee, dark chocolate, coffee and spice. The palate is full, luscious and smooth, offering a sumptuous, sweet, and lingering finish. This vegan and vegetarian-friendly wine pairs wonderfully with rich desserts or mature cheeses.
75.0CL , 17.0% ABV , Vintage:
Vinification
After having been raisined in the sun, the Pedro Ximénez grapes are gently pressed and a very concentrated and sugary must is fermented. Given the high sugar content, the yeasts struggle, the ferment is slow and the alcohol content reached is around 4 to 6% before fermentation stops naturally. The PX is then fortified to 17% using grape spirit and is fed into the 'El Candado' solera system in the Valdespino bodega. It ages oxidatively in the old American oak barrels for around 10 years, during which time it is fractionally blended through the four different 'criaderas'.
Flavour profile
This exquisite fortified wine offers a complex bouquet of rich dried fruits, sweet toffee, and roasted coffee. On the palate, it is lusciously sweet and smooth, delivering a sumptuous experience with lingering notes of dark chocolate and spice.
Serving recommendation
Serve slightly chilled at 12-14°C. No decanting required, enjoy immediately.