When wine is fortified with brandy, it is known as Sherry. It can be made dry or very sweet, with various flavors and notes, from nuts and figs to melon or citrus seasoning. 

Sherry originated in the Spanish city of Jerez de la Frontera. Authentic sherries acquire their complex flavor from ageing in a series of partially-filled casks. It allows the wine to make contact with the air. The process is meant to intensify the flavor.

The Solera Process

When winemakers add younger wines and rotate the barrels’ contents from newer to older, it is known as the Solera process. This eventually also determines when the sherry gets bottled. Adding brandy gives the sherry a spicy taste and the higher alcohol content is the final step in the process.

Older and more oxidized sherries include Amontillado and Palo Cortado. They also use more brandy, which gives them an earthy and tawny taste alongside increasing the amount of alcohol they contain.

Cooking Sherry

Sherry, as such, makes a great drink in its own right. Cooking sherry is a versatile ingredient often added to dishes to enhance flavors and add a touch of nuttiness or sweetness. Just like regular sherry, cooking sherry is a grape wine fortified with brandy.

The only difference between sherry and cooking sherry is that the latter has salt, potassium metabisulfite, and potassium sorbate. It is added to sherry for preserving the taste and extending the shelf life.

Characteristics of Cooking Sherry

Cooking Sherry has a sweet aroma and golden color. It tastes close to a dry drinking sherry with a nutty flavor. While most regular wines have closer to 12% alcohol content, cooking sherry brings the alcohol content to 17%. With a total fat content of zero and a total carbohydrate count of only 4 grams, cooking sherry is an ideal and light addition to a meal.

Drinking Sherry & Cooking Sherry

Cooking sherry has long been a popular ingredient in food. The alcohol within sherry evaporates when heated and leaves the flavor to seep into foods like sauces and stews. But cooking sherry only lasts a few days after the bottle is opened. Cooking sherry is therefore preserved with salt to make it last a little longer. Cooking sherry can add a sweeter taste to a dish, but the high sodium content discourages many from using it.

• Drinking Sherry: It was once considered the world’s best wine. And Sherry was William Shakespeare’s drink of choice at one time. Regular drinking sherry is aged, fortified, and supplemented with brandy (white wine). Sherry is primarily produced in Jerez de la Frontera, a city in southwestern Spain. Jerez de la Frontera has been a winemaking region for over 2,000 years. Sherry here is made from a variety of white grapes called Palomino grapes. They make sherry dry, like fino. Pedro Ximenez and Muscat grapes make sweet wines. Another rare variety of sherry is Palo Cortado. It is an accidental strain of sherry that loses oxidation during the fermentation process.
• Cooking Sherry: This type of sherry is strictly meant to be added to food. It is made with sherry wine and is of lower quality. Cooking sherry has salt and preservatives added to make it last several months after the bottle is uncorked. The sodium content of 180 mg per serving due to the addition of preservatives makes it unsuitable for drinking.

Best Cooking Sherries Available Online

Here is a handy Buyer’s Guide that will tell us about some of the best sherries available online.

• Columela Cooking Sherry: It is a premium standard, authentic sherry produced in Jerez, Spain, and has been steadily aged for 30 years in American Oak casks. Columela Sherry Vinegar undergoes a long, slow ageing process that allows the sherry to yield a deep color and a nutty and richly aromatic flavor. We can ideally use it to enhance stews, soups, sauces, casseroles, and dressings. Though it is a little expensive, little will go a very long way with this sherry.
• Napa Valley Sherry Vinegar: This cooking sherry vinegar is produced from Spanish Palomino grapes imparts an authentic taste. Aged to perfection in a series of white oak casks, the Napa Valley Sherry Vinegar is sharp and bright with a subtle hint of sweet fruit. It is perfect when added to pan sauces, as a salad dressing, or drizzled over a piece of flaky fish. It prides itself on quality while using ingredients from the world’s finest orchards and comes in an elegant wine bottle.
• Holland House Cooking Wine: It is excellent for trying new flavors and recipes if you’re new to cooking wines. Holland House is a famous pack of four cooking wines. It includes red, white, sherry, and marsala wines. Holland House cooking sherry has a light golden color and a sweet aroma. It offers hints of nuts and caramel and is excellent for adding depth to a variety of dishes. Holland House pairs perfectly with deserts to balance out the sweetness. And is great sauteed with brussels sprouts or succulent mushrooms.
• Reese Sherry Cooking Wine: This cooking wine is one of the highest-rated cooking sherries online. It is an excellent ingredient for adding a subtle sweetness to a range of dishes. Reese cooking sherry has a smooth texture and is not too overbearing, from stews to casseroles to roast meats. It is a good option if you are looking for versatile sherry that can be used in various dishes. Reese cooking sherry is made in the United States. It is a light, well-balanced sherry well preserved with salt, malic acid, potassium sorbate, and sodium metabisulfite. These preservatives ensure that it has a long shelf-life. And so, it’s great even if you’ll only be using it occasionally.

It is up to you to decide whether you want a mild cooking sherry, a nutty one, or a rich and complex sherry vinegar. Cooking sherries can range from a light golden hue to a dark whiskey color. This typically depends on the ageing process. The darker will be the color depending upon how long the sherry has aged.