Highlights: Tio Pepe Fino En Rama (2024 release)
The new release of the Tio Pepe Fino En Rama is out! And it’s a really good one. This
Gonzalez Byass Tio Pepe Fino en Rama (2024 release)
Full yellow in colour this has amazing aromatics with plenty of flor character: saline almonds, nuts, green apple and lemons with a distinctive tang. In the mouth this is lively and precise with more acidity than normal, it seems, and a bright tangy, salty deliciousness. There’s some complexity here with just a hint of old casks and nuts with brightness and focus, finishing long and tapering. A superb example of Fino en rama. I’ve been trying this for years (since it was first released) and this is one of the very best releases. 95/100
Here are notes on older releases:
Gonzalez Byass Tio Pepe Fino En Rama NV Spain (2021 release)
2021 release. 15% alcohol. Bottled in spring without filtration of clarification when the flor is at its thickest, this is now the 12th release of this wine. It has a really intense nose of spice, straw, cheese, old wood, herbs and tangy lemons. The palate is intense and savoury with bold tangy apple and lemon fruit with some cheese and spice and a pleasant sourness on the finish. It’s saline and nutty. A remarkably intense, complex expression of fino. 94/100
Gonzalez Byass Tio Pepe Fino En Rama NV Spain (2018 release)
15% alcohol. This 2018 is the ninth release of the En Rama from the Tio Pepe solera, and it’s a real cracker. It’s incredibly fresh, aromatic, pretty and detailed with tangy lemony fruit, some rich spiciness, a bit of bite and a lovely salty edge. This has an almost electric feel in the mouth, with brightness and focus. It’s vivid, refreshing and utterly compelling. Perhaps the best yet? 94/100 (£14.95-15.50 Tanners, Direct Wines, Majestic, The Wine Society)
Tio Pepe Fino En Rama NV (2013 release)
Full yellow colour. Intensely aromatic with a tangy, herby citrussy nose, showing some almond, spice and apple notes. The palate is lively and fresh with lively citrussy, herby, appley, nutty characters. Full and rich yet complex and fresh with a lovely rounded mid-palate. 92/100
Tio Pepe Fino En Rama Sherry NV (2012 release)
Unclarified, unfiltered. Bottled 3 May 2012. Full yellow colour; very slightly cloudy. Powerfully aromatic with a hint of citrus and tangerine on the nose as well as tangy, nutty, slightly cheesy Fino intensity. Fresh, tangy, complex palate with lovely freshness as well as good texture. This has a lovely savoury quality to it. 92/100
Gonzalez Byass Tio Pepe Fino en Rama (2010 release)
This is fantastic. It’s a special bottling of Gonzalez Byas’ Tio Pepe Fino Sherry, taken from the cask when the flor (the layer of yeast cells growing on the surface of the liquid) is at its thickest in Spain. It’s a thrillingly complex, slightly hazy Fino (it hasn’t been clarified or filtered) and it has amazing complexity and finesse. Tangy, nutty, mineral and quite spellbinding. You need to drink this ideally on the day of opening, or the day after, because it loses its incredible freshness quite rapidly in contact with air. A total bargain at £11.95 from The Wine Society.
