Looking for a Sherry or Port suggestion

[bjorn]

I love sherry and port finished whiskies and I'm very interested in going straight to the source and trying a little more dessert wine. But I'm painfully uninformed and would like a few suggestions in the $10-20 American range.
Thanks,
Bjorn

[Mr Fjeld]

A few suggestions based on my own experiences would be:
Port: Smith Woodhouse Late Bottled Vintage - very good - but Niepoort 10 years Old Tawny is even better!

Sherry: I'd go for the dry ones although they're not as oxidised as the old sweetened sherries. You'll easily recognise the sherry character imparted in whisky anyway. If you go for the Fino-style sherries such as .....fino and manzanilla (almost salty with a taste of the ocean) you also have a thirst quelcher bar none. Chill it in the fridge and serve ice cold! This style is also perfect with seafood but you'll find it's perhaps even better than your average white wine or beer on the balcony those hot summer evenings.
If you wish to stay with the dry (and you do trust me) sherries but want something slightly more oxidised to go with tapas and lighter smoked meats then an amontillado is perfect. Expect notes of dried fruit and a stronger nutty character. A sherry style like this would be closer to what you find in a whisky which is matured or finished in a sherry barrel.

[killerwhale]

Jelly is much more experienced than I though I tend to prefer less-dry sherry..... anyway, I recently has some white port that was very good.... depends on your tastes but for the price range you mentioned I'd jump in and sample a few....you can get some decent port/sherry for the price you quoted..... then if you find something you enjoy, go with a more expensive version as they just get better and better.....

[Mr Fjeld]

Jelly is much more experienced than I though I tend to prefer less-dry sherry.....

Well to be honest Willy, I haven't had that many sweet sherries but the ones I've tried have failed to make a big impression. I guess I just prefer the drier stuff - which deserves more attention IMHO. I think Admiral and Tattieheid also shares your preference for sweet sherry and I've heard Lustau being mentioned as a good producer (try their Manzanilla, simply fantastic! )
But Port is lovely - never had a white though. How does it compare to the red?

[killerwhale]

unfortunately I didn't take notes as it was a staff tasting and very quick, though try the white for sure, I recall sampling 2 reds and a white and prefered the white (one of the reds was a bit expensive and it had the 'biggest' flavour profile though I did enjoy the white which was not as much $)..... next time I'll get more detailed notes.