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Best sherry for Christmas 2024, from £6.75
Read on for our expert-approved guide to the best sherry
Tested by Callum BlackFood and Drink Testing Manager
Sherry has never quite managed to shake off its reputation as granny’s tipple of choice, and often only makes an appearance at Christmas. Which, frankly, is a crying shame, when you discover just how much it has to offer. Ranging from dry and crisp to super sweet, there’s truly a sherry for every occasion.
The Good Housekeeping Institute has rounded up the best bottles to buy (starting from just £6.75), along with their perfect pairings below. Go on, you may just discover a new favourite!
Best sherry for Christmas 2024
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What is sherry?
Sherry is an aged, fortified wine made from white grapes that are grown near the city of Jerez de la Frontera in Andalusia, Spain. The wine passes through a series of barrels known as the solera system, which are sorted by aged tiers to allow for blending.
Types of sherry explained
Fino
Fresh, aromatic and dry, fino sherry is made from palomino grapes. You can expect bracing salinity, yeasty aromas and notes of salted almonds. Serve it chilled alongside olives or tapas or top it up with tonic for a longer serve. Once opened, it will only last a few days in the fridge with a cork (much like a standard white wine!).
Manzanilla
This is technically identical to a fino sherry, except that it can only be produced in and around the coastal town of Sanlucar de Barrameda. This location gives it a lighter flavour and a delicate, salty note. Serving wise, it works in much the same way as a fino, although you could also try pairing it with seafood. It doesn’t have to be fancy — good ol’ fish and chips would be delicious.
Amontillado
This starts life as a fino sherry, before being aged. The fino freshness remains; however, the additional time in the barrel brings with it a more intense dried fruit and nutty quality which, for many, is the sweet spot of sherry styles. Amontillado sherry is a very food-friendly style, pairing well with earthy mushroom, paella, asparagus, salty cheese and charcuterie.
Palo Cortado
This rare type of sherry occurs when a fine wine, destined to become a fino, is naturally oxidised. These elegant wines are dry, rich and nutty like an amontillado, with the full body of an oloroso.
Oloroso
Full-bodied oloroso ups the ante again, with a nutty aroma and dark, spicy note. It’s been intentionally oxidised from the start and can also be sweetened with a touch of Pedro Ximenez (referred to as cream sherry and richer than pale cream sherry), which will change how you serve it. Drier styles can be served with savoury courses, while the sweeter versions should be treated like a PX (below).
Pedro Ximénez (PX)
The sweetest sherry, PX is a dreamy dessert wine, best paired with decadent puddings. Anything with chocolate or coffee in it is ideal, or just pour over scoops of vanilla ice cream.
What is the best glass for sherry?
You may have noticed sherry is often served in a teeny tiny glass, also known as a copita. This style of glassware works well for port and whisky too, so would be a worthy investment if these wines and spirits are a popular nightcap in your house.
We're fans of these contemporary glasses from John Lewis.
How we test sherry
The GHI tested 28 bottles of sherry, across a variety of styles. The panel — made up of WSET-trained wine and spirits experts and consumers — tasted each one neat and blind to avoid brand bias.
They were looking for well-balanced examples, from bone dry, light finos, to deep dark PX expressions. Read on for the best buys for every occasion.
Score: 85/100
Our panel likened our winning cream sherry to a quality dark caramel. It has a smooth, rounded sweetness, complemented by spicy cinnamon and ginger. Pair with sticky toffee pudding or stilton.
Key specifications
| Type | Cream |
|---|---|
| Volume | 75cl |
| ABV | 18% |
Score: 84/100
Croft Original always proves popular at Christmas. It’s a blend of clean, crisp fino sherry, with the sweetness of a cream, which is full of baked apple, sultanas and marzipan. It’s delicious served chilled as an aperitif or drink it in place of classic dessert wine.
Key specifications
| Type | Pale Cream |
|---|---|
| Volume | 75cl |
| ABV | 17.5% |
Score: 83/100
Although this is made with the same grapes used to create refreshing Tio Pepe, the additional 12 years of ageing creates an entirely different wine. Testers described it as “Christmas in a glass” with notes of almond, vanilla, orange peel and a lightly honeyed sweetness.
The food-friendly nature of nutty amontillado means this would pair beautifully with a range of antipasti, from olives to salty nuts.
Key specifications
| Type | Amontillado |
|---|---|
| Volume | 75cl |
| ABV | 16.5% |
Score: 83/100
With aromatic molasses, Christmas cake spice and dried vine fruit, this syrupy sweet sherry is the epitome of the Pedro Ximenez style.
Testers couldn’t get enough of the toffee pudding-like sweetness, and the half-bottle size means it shouldn’t go to waste. The thick texture makes it delicious drizzled over ice cream – give it a go and see for yourself!
Key specifications
| Type | Pedro Ximenez |
|---|---|
| Volume | 37.5cl |
| ABV | 17% |
Score: 82/100
Age a full-bodied oloroso sherry for 30 years, add a touch of Pedro Ximinez to sweeten the deal, and this is the result!
Beautifully complex, look out for jammy fruit, dates, figs and festive spice, with an outstanding finish that just keeps on building. One to sip and savour, alongside salty, mature cheeses or fruity puddings.
Key specifications
| Type | Oloroso |
|---|---|
| Volume | 37.5cl |
| ABV | 20.5% |
Score: 82/100
Dried fruit bursts out of the glass here, with nuts, spice and citrus following on the palate. There’s also a touch of caramel sweetness, so we’d pair it with ham, nuts and mature cheeses — making it perfect for entertaining.
Key specifications
| Type | Amontillado |
|---|---|
| Volume | 75cl |
| ABV | 17.5% |
Score: 81/100
Dip your toe into the wonderful world of sherry this Christmas, without committing to an expensive bottle. Sweet and spicy, with juicy raisins, cherry and cinnamon, alongside a touch of citrus acidity for balance — we think it’s an impressive combination from our best value buy.
Key specifications
| Type | Cream sherry |
|---|---|
| Volume | 75cl |
| ABV | 17% |
Score: 80/100
This premium oloroso has been oak-aged for 10-years, in which time it’s developed notes of Christmas cake – think tangerine, warming spice and toasted nuts – with bold complexity.
Wonderfully rounded on the palate, the dried fruit flavour is sweet, without being syrupy. A very elegant sherry for Christmas and beyond.
Key specifications
| Type | Oloroso |
|---|---|
| Volume | 50cl |
| ABV | 18% |
Score: 79/100
You know you’re in safe hands with Gonzalez Byass (there’s a reason the brand appears repeatedly in this round-up!), so if you’re already a PX convert, this is the bottle to splurge on.
It’s jam-packed with syrupy sweetness — think caramel and cinnamon-spiked dulce de leche — with hints of cocoa beans and woody raisins. Utterly delicious!
Key specifications
| Type | Pedro Ximenez |
|---|---|
| Volume | 75cl |
| ABV | 15% |
Score: 78/100
Harveys Bristol Cream is a unique blend of four types of sherry – delicate fino, aged amontillado, fragrant oloroso and the sweet Pedro Ximenez. The result is a super sweet sherry that would be delicious served alongside fruity trifle or mince pies.
It’s not the most complex, but you can expect notes of caramel, jammy fig and a tickle of pepper.
Key specifications
| Type | Cream |
|---|---|
| Volume | 1L |
| ABV | 17.5% |
Score: 78/100
This is part of Waitrose’s “Blueprint” range — which aims to highlight the world’s best grapes at a great price — and we think it does just that.
It’s a real flavour bomb, which elegantly combines sweet and savoury qualities in one delicious sip. Our panel enjoyed notes of apricot and prunes, alongside bitter dark chocolate and rich toffee. Try pairing it with charcuterie and manchego.
Key specifications
| Type | Amontillado |
|---|---|
| Volume | 75cl |
| ABV | 18.5% |
These also passed...
- Aldi Specially Selected PX Sherry, £6.69 for 37.5cl, Score: 75/100
- Bodegas Hidalgo Pasada Pastrana Manzanilla, £18.32 for 75cl, Score: 75/100
- Bodegas Hidalgo La Gitana Triana Pedro Ximénez, Score: 74/100
- Bodegas Hidalgo La Gitana Manzanilla Sherry, £14.91 for 75cl, Score: 72/100
- Sainsburys Taste the Difference 12 Year Old Sweet Pedro Ximenez, £10 for 50cl, Score: 72/100
- Gonzalez Byass Leonor 12 Year Old Palo Cortado Sherry, £19.94 for 75cl, Score: 71/100
Callum is our Food and Drink Testing Manager and has been part of the world of professional catering for 10 years, from cheffing to food manufacturing. While working in manufacturing he specialised in bespoke product and menu development for several start-ups and well-known brands such as Wrap It Up! and HOP Vietnamese. He holds the WSET Level 2 in wine, a Level 3 in spirits and has a particular interest in agave spirits.
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