Toro Albala Don PX 2019

The Don PX wines come from the youngest, sweet vintage wines of Toro Albalá. The carefully selected Pedro Ximénez grapes are hand harvested and then left to dehydrate under the sun on straw mats for up to two weeks, concentrating the grapes sugars. The grapes are then pressed and tipped into fermentation vessels. When the perfect balance between sugar, alcohol and acidity has been reached, the fermenting must is ‘stunned’ with aguardiente (clear local brandy). The fortified wine is then decanted into stainless steel and local cone-shaped Tinajas tanks to naturally settle (due to the richness of the wine it cannot be filtered), before being bottled straight from the holding vessel. As these early release wines are not barrel aged nor blended, they are wonderfully pure, grapey examples of Pedro and capture all the delicious raisin and honey notes and tanginess of the style before rancio sets in. The palate of the glows with concentrated fig, honey and dried fruit notes and finishes with a warm, lingering, sweet finish. This is our kind of amber nectar. It has around 430 grams of sugar and was fortified to 17% alcohol. Despite this natural sugar level it remains remarkably bright and fresh. This can be opened for ever by the way, as can all the PX wines offered here, which makes them perfect for pouring by the glass or keeping open in the fridge.