La Bota de Manzanilla Pasada 100 Botas NO

Equipo Navazos celebrated its 15th birthday on 9 December 2020, and marked the occasion with its 100th bottling. An excuse for a new release, then, but what a release! The wine is a Manzanilla Pasada – like all the releases ending in zero. It’s a larger release than usual, combining three outstanding casks. The wine is some 14 years old. A key feature is that the butts have been kept close to full, well about Sherry’s usual 5/6 level meaning that there’s less flor; what's there is feeble through age. The resulting slow oxidation gives glorious complexity. Enough of the detail: the wine is simply sensational. A fabulous blend of elegance and intensity, with notes from the chalky Sanlucar terroir. If you have never tasted Equipo Navazos before, this is the place to begin. And if you are used to drinking light, pale, faint regular Manzanillas, then snap this up. It’s a revelation. Congratulations and Happy Anniversary Equipo Navazos.