Alvear 3 Miradas Clásico Cerro Macho 2021 (750ml) *

Pedro Ximénez is best known in Andalucia as the grape behind sweet, syrupy wines, which makes this dry expression a genuine departure. Grown in Montilla-Moriles and made entirely from that variety, Alvear's Cerro Macho 2021 is fermented in butt and then aged 30 months in old American oak casks previously seasoned with fino, drawing character from the flor that develops during that time. The result belongs to the world of biologically aged wines rather than the dessert style the grape usually implies.

The aromatics run savory and layered: green olive, dried fruit, herbs, a note of vermouth, cashew and dry hay. On the palate it is fully dry, with a chalky, mineral texture and the taut intensity that flor-driven wines carry. It reads as something distinctive and a little unexpected within the Spanish canon, a wine for anyone who wants to see what Pedro Ximénez can do when it is taken in a completely different direction.