Six sweet wines to drink with the roscón

Christmas is the perfect time to enjoy sweet wines, ideal companions for the most exquisite pastries, especially the Three Kings roscón, with which to create delicate harmonies. As a general rule, the sweet wines that combine best with roscón de reyes are those made with white grapes, with or without aging, which provide notes of stewed fruits, raisins, flower honey, dates, sweet spices, dried fruits and, above all, all, an incisive citric acidity wrapped in the unctuousness of the glyceric tear.

A good example is muscat, with its aromatic veins, where the good producer can extract flower and musk perfumes. And the sweet malvasías, fruit of the volcanic rage, where the acidity merges with the candied fruit, such as the sweet aged Canarí (120 euros for a 50 cl. bottle), from the El Grifo winery, heir to the famous Canari of the 17th century that Shakespeare praised: “O my lord, what about the sweet Canari wines? “They are the best in the world,” Falstaff exclaims in the work. Henry IV. The Treixadura, Godello, Verdejo and Malvasía varieties also stand out, in which the sweetness of the overripe, sun-dried, or raisined fruit becomes an authentic taste-olfactory filigree. But it is usually in the production process where its greatest attractiveness and suggestive personality is achieved.

As occurs with late harvest wines (late harvest), made from grapes dried on the vine, better if they are touched by the grace of noble rot (botrytis cinerea) as occurs, for example, with the famous tokay Hungarian, wine of kings, king of wines, according to Louis XIV of France, very appropriate for the roscón.

The same thing happens with the traditional Galician toasts, the result of a slow fermentation of raisined grapes in the style of Italian vinsanto. Ice wines are also highly recommended (eiswein), made with grapes that have been frozen on the vine, although some wineries make it in their facilities. Without forgetting that you can also use the great, powerful and deep sweet wines of Pedro Ximénez, especially if the roscón is chocolate. But that is another story. In any case, the choice of one or another wine will depend on personal tastes and the type of Three Kings bun that is chosen. These six sumptuous wines allow you to successfully create different combinations with the first popular sweet of the year.

CASTA DIVA REAL RESERVE 2002

CHIVITE COLLECTION 125 LATE HARVEST 2020

A pioneer in making a late-harvest muscatel, Chivite benefits from a privileged enclave in the Ribera Baja, where the El Candelero vineyard is located, planted in 1969. The harvest is done manually and in stages, cutting only clusters at their optimal point of overripeness. , leaving the rest for the next selection. The must is partially fermented in Allier oak and then rested for about nine months on its own lees. Great aromatic complexity, of candied fruits, sandalwood, dried flowers, honey, toasted almonds and sweet spices with an elegant cedar background. A delicious palate of fresh, silky sweetness and notable persistence.

·Phone: 948 811 000
· IPG: 3 Banks
·Guy: white breeding, 14.5%
·Strains: small grain muscat
·Price: 29 euros (37.5 cl.)
·Punctuation: 9.6/10

SOUL OF REBOREDA 2008

A novelty that rescues the tradition of toasted, sweet aged Galician wines. It is a white handcrafted from bunches of treixadura hanging for slow raisining for three months under cover, in the style of vinsantos and straw wines. After slow fermentation for several months, and subsequent aging in French Allier oak, for at least 10 months, the wine is racked and remains on its fine lees for two years. Attractive bouquet with sweet tones of fruit jam, dried apricots, rose petals, toffee caramel, and spicy notes. Sweet and velvety, with a determined attack and good persistence, where the union between acidity and softness stands out.

·Phone: 988 261 212
· DO: Ribeiro
·Guy: sweet breeding, 15%
·Strains: treixadura
·Price: 75 euros (37.5 cl.)
·Punctuation: 9.5/10

NATURALLY SWEET MALVASIA BERMEJO

The historic Los Ber
mejos Winery, revitalized in 2001, produces this white from the Canarian Malvasia volcanic variety. It is a late harvest, coming from its best ungrafted grapes, from its vineyards cultivated in cones made in the picón and protected by small stone walls that make up the unique volcanic landscape of the Geria valley, at the foot of Timanfaya ( Lanzarote). The wine ages in French Allier oak using the traditional solera system. Exquisite and refined aroma of stewed exotic fruit (papaya, custard apple), with abundant floral notes, in harmony with citrus fruits and memories of pastries. Sweet, full-bodied and with a fresh persistence.

·Phone: 928 522 463
· DO: Lanzarote
·Guy: white breeding, 14%
·Strains: volcanic malvasia
·Price: 30 euros (50 cl.)
·Punctuation: 9.4/10

OREMUS LATE HARVEST 2021

From deep Hungary, and from the hand of Vega Sicilia, owner of the Oremus winery in Tolcsva, comes this excellent late harvest, with at least 50% botrytized grapes, an example of modernity and tradition. It is made with the native 'furmint' variety. The must ferments slowly and stops at around 12% alcohol. Subsequently, it is aged for six months in Hungarian oak barrels. Its aroma is delicate and vibrant counterpoint of ripe fruits, intense floral fragrance, fresh notes of dry skin of critics, honeyed memories, aromatic herbs and spices. Unctuous, concentrated, with sweetness balanced by fine acidity.

·Phone: 983 680 198
· DO: does not have
·Guy: sweet breeding, 11.5%
·Strains: 'furmint' and others
·Price: 25 euros (50 cl.)
·Punctuation: 9.3/10

AMANTIA ICE GRAPE 2016

The origin of Valdesneros dates back to 1997 when a group of friends and wine lovers decided to start the winery. In 2018, Rubén Montero Merino, who had been the winery's winemaker until then, became the owner of the winery and started a new project. Amantia, its most special wine, is a late harvest aged for four months in American oak barrels and then refined in the bottle. Expressive aroma of raisined black and red fruits, with notes of smoke, dried apricots, citrus peel, a slight hint of spices, and a honeyed background. Sweet, but balanced between fruity sweetness and acidity. Soft and persistent finish.

·Phone: 630 879 691
· VT: Castile and León
·Guy: sweet breeding, 12.5%
·Strains: tempranill
·Price: 32 euros (50 cl.)
·Punctuation: 9.2/10

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