Equipo Navazos 'La Bota 117 Navazos' Amontillado Sherry, Montilla-Moriles, Spain NV

Amontillado constitutes a vital part of Equipo Navazos’ history: the “La Bota” lineage began with an amontillado in 2005, and they have bottled an additional five “Navazos”-designated amontillados since then—including this, the first in the series to hail from Montilla-Moriles. In their words, a “Navazos”-designated amontillado must “represent the ideal balance between complexity and freshness that in our opinion makes amontillado the king of wines.” Variety: Pedro Ximénez Vinification: La Bota #117 comprises casks of Pedro Ximénez from the Altos de Moriles zone which began life at a prestigious bodega in Lucena—first long-aged as a fino then briefly as an amontillado—and which were thereafter refined and finished at the Pérez Barquero estate. Tasting Notes: With an average wine age of over 20 years, #117 is  intense and layered, yet with a sense of brightness and delicacy—partly a result of its modest-for-the-category alcohol level of 18%, derived through the slow oxidation and conce