"Oh, Yes! Very, very nice indeed. Luxurious but not in the least bit cloying; complex but approachable; if (like me) you're not always sure what a "long finish" tastes like, this will show you. My wife & I are sat here trying to think of ways to actually describe it but the best thing we can do is recommend you buy some."

I would recommend this wine

"This dances across my tongue and makes my palatte tingle! Sweet, sour - toffees and cherries and so much more. Just delighful .............. and terribly moorish! ;-o)"

I would recommend this wine

"An absolutely cracking wine. I just opened it at 5 to 5 on a Friday and wrote a review on Facebook that described this as completely 'Crackerjack!' For those of a certain vintage, you'll know exactly what I mean. This fine wine is racy, fun, and full. It is complex, rich, dark and dry. A real classic that puts sherry of this category right up there with other fine wines of the world. Don't hesitate at the price - it's actually a bargain for what it is,"

"Mortal ambrosia.! A wondrous concoction. For a jaded lover of fino who long envied the complexities of amontillado and olorosso but eschewed their cloying sweetness this is the answer. The best of all sherry experience and a truly fine wine for all."

I would recommend this wine

"Very serious meditation wine. Impressive great length and complexity. The almost paradoxical mixture of butter, nuts, roasted spice and sharpness. Faint licorice, cloves and nutmeg. Superb with cheese, chorizo, tomato marinated with sea salt. Would be sensational with sushi, I believe. However, the opened bottle, even closed with a vacuum stop, does not keep well."

I would recommend this wine

"I wanted very much to like this sherry, but I'm not convinced. The nose gives the impression of sweetness, with the promise of something Madeira-like. The flavour has lots of "sweeter" characteristics, burnt sugars, caramels, toffees and nuts, but all wrapped up in an astringent dry wine. I would rate it drier than the 3/9 advertised. Ranjoyable, but I can't get past the sweet flavours/dry wine paradox. Probably done better by the drier Madeira varieties. I think my sherry preferences lie closer to the Society's Olorosos. "

"New discovery: at a winter picnic: Palo Cortado with bangers hot from the fire. Perfection, but then most good sherries match plenty of dishes. Bargain Solear goes with whatever I have for lunch. Every day."

I would recommend this wine

"This is a brilliant Sherry. Served at a 'tasting menu' supper, it went particularly well with cold cured salmon (not smoked) and also with hard cheeses served. To be honest, it went brilliantly with everything else on the table and was favourably received by the guests. As others have remarked, you get lots of long lasting flavour for your money!"

I would recommend this wine

"Absolutely b****y delicious. Came in the October 2019 Sherry Wine Champions case, and it thoroughly deserves to be called a champion. This is a sherry to sip and contemplate."

I would recommend this wine

"Bought this as a treat for me, because I liked the write up it gets in the Members List. That write up is spot on. It's a remarkable sherry. At this point I'm a bit short of words. Read the review and try it anyway - if you like sherry and want to try something a bit different and as 'grown up' as Fino. It's not a fino though and is not trying to be as far as I know."

I would recommend this wine

"Colour: Attractive amber/orange-brown. Aroma: Pungent and saline, brown sugar, walnut, almond, pecan, caramel, toffee, coffee, dates, varnish, rich spiked fruit cake. Taste: Bone-dry, rich yet fresh, abundant acidity, mouth-filling flavours that are nutty, bitter and citrusy with a spicy warming seriously long mellow finish. Overall: Bloody hell, this ticks a lot of boxes i.e. nose, palate, finish, depth, complexity and all at a great price. Small complaint but perhaps the alcohol is a little high but still highly recommend."

I would recommend this wine

"I'm not a jerez expert, but this is a remarkable wine by any other standard. Very powerful on the nose. Needs to sit in the glass for a bit before its most enjoyable. Delicious with cheese. Nuts and burnt caramel. "

I would recommend this wine

"A medium dry sherry of exceptional quality like they used to be made. Don’t chill. For treats or if you can, whenever you can. "

"Worth the price for the complexity "

I would recommend this wine

"An intentionally very tough comparison, I tried this immediately after a glass of Hidalgo VOS Wellington Palo Cortado. This wine is lighter in colour, body and length and noticeably thinner; more astringent, more burny alcohol and with less glycerol but still very good aromas and flavours of burnt orange, barley sugar, toffee, coffee, roast hazelnuts with a touch of walnut and a medium finish. Forget the romanticism about Palo Cortado being a wine destined to be a fino that mysteriously loses its flor and so ages oxidatively, (A MW went to 15 Bodegas and found 14 ways to make Paul Cortado!), this wine is almost certainly a blend of Fino, Amontillado and Oloroso aged in Solera but expertly done. All in all a good Sherry offering good value for the money!"

I would recommend this wine

"Wow, fantastic and great value. Layer upon layer of complexity with marmalade, dried fruits and walnuts. Great with cheese and as aperitif. I dread the day that Jerez runs out of these treasures, only then will we really appreciate what we had."

I would recommend this wine

"This is full of fabulous flavour, it is deep and intense with macadamia nuts , almonds, raisins infused with vanilla. Well worth the price tag, has a lovely long finish and for the price tag offers far more complexity than you would imagine. Well done buyers"

I would recommend this wine

"*sigh* what a wonderful wine. Even if I’m in a quaffing mood this sherry grabs my attention with every sip."

"1 glass in the risotto. 3 glasses for friends. All glasses creators of memories, and still half a bottle left. So intense that the flavour/price ratio is off the scale. A steal at £14.50. Smells sweet, tastes dry. Nuts."

I would recommend this wine

"Truly an extraordinary sherry. What is said about the finish in the blurb and reviews is amply confirmed by experience. Golden, deeper than a Fino, not too sweet, with a superbly rich and nutty flavour and interesting overtones. Well worth the price."

I would recommend this wine

I would recommend this wine

"Hard to add to previous reviews. The superlatives are running out. I agree with them. At the end of a long day, as an aperitif, it is liquid magic."

"my sherry experience up to yesterday was armontillado or fino and what a revelation this wine was to my taste buds. Incredible melange of flavours and I could hardly wait for 5 o-clock tomorrow to further the pleasure this wine gave me -and my wife who has an advanced set of taste buds. You may think I'm mad but I do enjoy a vodka and dry and this evening the 'dry' was palo cortado - just a splash but well worth the experiment. Cocktail hour looks like becoming even more enjoyable."

"The combined first 5 words of the last 3 reviews contain 3 words that are all that really needs to be said about this Sherry - Extraordinary, Stunning and Incredible. I'd add 'Stonking' but that's probably pushing the limits of wine adjectives, but it fits. This is a BIG mouthful that really, really needs to be rewarded with carefully thought out food to accompany it. The freshest oysters, vintage Manchego or a bit pan-fried - but still very rare - Tuna work very well, but the best 'tapa' to go with this sherry is unfortunately something that is difficult to get outside of Spain (without paying more than this bottle cost) and that is really good, oil packed Anchovies (the stuff in the high street supermarkets don't cut it). Salty back olives are a better, cheaper option. This is a sherry to convince more people to drink sherry."

"Extraordinary stuff; a Sherry that leaves the usual wine descriptors behind. Certainly walnut and hazel nutty wood flavours; on the nose a rich Oloroso, yet balanced and absolutely dry. Powerful and long finish which overwhelms any cheese I've tried with it. Bit of a 'marmite' wine - but I think its fabulous and remarkable that TWS have managed to obtain stocks at this price."

"Stunning! Finished over a weekend and was lamenting the fact that I only ordered 1 bottle. At 13.50 yes its not exactly cheap but it really is worth it for the intensely nutty and clean palette."

"This is incredible value and for me represents a further step up from the already brilliant, Fino Perfido. There has been considerable fuss over the recent En Rama releases but for me this puts all of those in the shade. A seriously stylish sherry, balanced and with an incredible finish that will charm aficionados and newcomers alike."

The Spectator 10th Dec 2019

"Those nutty salty cheeses like Manchego or Gruyere call for wines with some heft. Reds can be good but sherry is ideal. I’d recommend ... the slightly fuller [than amontillado] and sweeter-tasting (though still bone dry) Cayetano del Pino Palo Cortado Solera ... which would also go nicely with blue cheeses. Really overdelivers for the money. - Henry Jeffreys"

The Scotsman 4th May 2019

"Lovely combo of vibrant freshness and rich texture.  Our tasters loved the enticing toffee honeyed aromas and rich nutty complexity (and the pretty label).  Bone dry, but not as searingly dry as some we tasted.  Sleek elegant and attractive on the palate.  Selected from a family-owned sherry stockholder (known as an almacenista) in this case Cayetano del Pino and is about 15 years in age. - Rose Murray Brown"

The Daily Telegraph 24th Nov 2018

"If you enjoy the flavours age brings to a wine, oxidised styles of sherry like this are the best value old wines on the planet. This is a bone-dry, elegant palo cortado with walnuts, spiced orange and wood polish. A complex, cerebral wine to sip and contemplate. - Hamish Anderson"

Olive 14th Nov 2018

"With tobacco, toffee, oak and vanilla notes, this sherry is a nice balance between dry and sweet. - Hannah Guinness"

The Observer 8th Jul 2018

"One of [Sherry's alternative styles to Fino] is palo cortado, a style that starts its life in the cellar as a fino, but then at some point loses its layer of flor. In the case of Cayetano del Pino, that makes for a dry, lingering tanginess and nuttiness that is superb with mushrooms or nutty stir fries. - David Williams"

decanter.com 6th Jun 2018

"A 2017 Decanter Platinum winner and it's easy to see why. From one of Jerez's oldest family-owned bodegas, this rare style of Sherry (a fino whose flor dies and so ages oxidatively) is great value for the price, offering incredible complexity, purity and detail. The nose suggests sweetness, with its pecan pie and vanilla notes, but the palate is dry yet rich and umami-laden, boasting smoky walnut skins and Christmas cake spice. Delicious! 94/100 Tina Gellie"

100 AWEsome Wines 1st Mar 2018

"Dry Sherry lovers should not pass up on this lovely example of the rarer Palo Cortado style – a natural taste-cross between Fino and Oloroso. Bone-dry, refined, with toasty nuttiness and exceptional purity… Fino Sherry gone walkabout to the dark side! - John Ducker"

Decanter 28th Jun 2017

"Decanter Platinum Award - Best Mature Sherry 2017:: Rich, complex nose with characterful fruitcake aromas. Pure, concentrated palate of toasted pecans, burnt citrus peel and spice. A touch of sweetness and a slight grip of walnut skins rounds out the palate with a lovely long and complex finish."

Manchester Evening News 5th Nov 2016

"Very pungent and complex. - Andy Cronshaw"

The Wine Gang 5th Oct 2015

"Just the most fantastic value, this dry Almacenista Palo Cortado has a subte tawny colour and is full of salted caramel on the aroma. Dry, fresh and nutty palate with a smooth beurre noisette richness that goes on and on, and on. - The Wine Gang"

Hampstead & Highgate Express 10th Sep 2015

"A truly superb experience… fragrant, intense, exquisite - Liz Sagues"

Sunday Telegraph 7th Jun 2015

"A dry style though a deeper-coloured, richer delight [than manzanilla], intensely nutty in flavour. Wonderful. - Susy Atkins"

Scotland on Sunday 22nd Feb 2015

"Its major components are long, nutty, brown sugar flavours with touches of marmalade to add roundedness and depth, but with balancing citrus acidity. - Brian Elliott"

JancisRobinson.com 27th Nov 2014

"Toasted nuts, acrid smokiness, expansive complexity on the palate and huge persistence. Incredibly savoury, with tons of umami character. Quite incredible length. 17/20 - Richard Hemming"

Scotland on Sunday 7th Sep 2014

"Brilliant… It has all the usual nutty delicacy and dryness, but embellishes it with an orange-centred citrus freshness and complexity. This bottle would convert even the most die-hard sherry sceptic. - Brian Elliott"

The Mail on Sunday 25th May 2014

"A nutty tang with coffee and raisin flavours.- Olly Smith "

JancisRobinson.com 15th May 2014

"Orangey gold ... smoky on the nose ... chamomile aroma. [Powerful] ...smooth and round especially on the finish. Nutty and savoury with a sour note that brings freshness on the finish, like unsweet marmalade. Good value. - Julia Harding"

Decanter 1st May 2014

"Bottled by Sanchez Romate from stock matured by a similar producer (or almacenista) that specialises in the palo cortado style of Sherry, this is an amber-hued beauty, with delicate and delicious nutty tones and added complexity from the 12 years or so it has spent ageing in wood. A great wine. - Weekday Wines"

JancisRobinson.com 17th Dec 2013

" 17/20 Bright pale orange. Gorgeous life and excitement and age. Only just not too old but absolutely fabulous for the money. Bone dry, light and fresh while being deep flavoured and resonant. Very good value. "

Financial Times 21st Dec 2013

"Gorgeous life in this 12-year-old bone dry wine. Wonderfully light and fresh while being deep flavoured and resonant. A great bargain. - Jancis Robinson"

Hampstead & Highgate Express 28th Nov 2013

" Strongly recommended - Liz Sagues  "

winegang.com 4th Nov 2013

"From the stockholdings of a distinguished old name in Sherry, Cayetano del Pino, but chosen and bottled by the discerning bodega/shipper Sánchez Romate, this is a distinguished dry sherry for drinking with jamón or hard cheese, an intensely complex and powerful mix of nuts, sweet oak, and deeper umami-like bass notes, that is still very sprightly across the palate and fresh on the finish. 93/100"

JancisRobinson.com 11th Oct 2013

"This has the most exciting life and freshness while being deep-flavoured and resonant on the palate. Specially selected from a family-owned almacenista (sherry storehouse) that specialises in palo cortado by old sherry hand Peter Dauthieu, it seems a steal at £13.50 - especially when one takes its average age of about 15 years into account. - Jancis Robinson"

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