Spectacular Sherries from Equipo Navazos!

“If you are embarking upon a journey into the wonderful world of sherry, then I cannot think of a better springboard than Equipo Navazos.”

-Neal Martin

Spectacular Sherries from Equipo Navazos!


Equipo Navazos #59 Manzanilla Capataz....$46.99 750ml

We are the lowest price on Wine-SearcherSame as with the editions 39 and 40, 59 and 60 are also devoted to Manzanilla Pasada, both originating from an old solera belonging to La Guita, starting with The NV La Bota de Manzanilla Pasada 59 Capataz Rivas. As number 30, it has been named after Rafael Rivas, capataz for several decades at La Guita's cellars at Sanlúcar’s Calle Misericordia until his recent retirement, who in 1986 started a small 15 cask solera with old Manzanilla. Both this 59 and 60 are taken from this solera, and while 60 is from a single cask, this 59 blends wines from the other 14. The average age of the wine is estimated to be around 15 years.
Rated 96/100 The Wine Advocate


Equipo Navazos #60 Manzanilla Pasada Bota Punta...$89.99 / 500ml
Next lowest price on Wine-Searcher is $96

This is the most special -and scarce and expensive - of all the manzanillas pasadas from Navazos. Really world class. This is the one with depth and sharpness beyond belief, a step up in complexity, elegance and balance. It's funny how the wine seems to overcome oxidation and starts getting sharper and sharper again. This is truly outstanding.
Rated 97/100 The Wine Advocate


Equipo Navazos #68 Fino Macharnudo...$44.99 / 750ml
We are the lowest price on Wine-Searcher

This is a classic already, and they are bottling more or less the same botas as in previous editions. Here, the soil is as strong (or more) than the long aging, and has lots of things in common, the chalkiness, with their other wines (think Navazos Niepoort for example), which provide a special sapidity. Some 6,000 bottles produced; they are producing a little bit more, so the wine is bottled every two years, as the wine ages nicely in bottle.Rated 94/100 The Wine Advocate

From their Website- more info on #59
Rafael Rivas, capataz for several decades at La Guita cellars at Sanlúcar’s Calle Misericordia until his retirement in 2011, started in 1986 this 15-butt solera with a well-aged manzanilla. The plan was to produce an old manzanilla of exceptional quality, should one be required to add some extra kick to the commercial releases of the house.

But no such kick was ever required, and so, in order to preserve its character and prevent its turning into an amontillado, capataz Rivas pampered these 15 butts and ‘touching’ them only sparsely, sometimes as little as only every two years, with testimonial sacas of only four or five arrobas (roughly 5×16=80 liters) and refilling them with wines sourced from the best solera of La Guita. The result is a true manzanilla pasada, extremely singular in style. Like the good old ones.

Another feature that contributes to this wine’s singularity and unmatched biological character (intense and steely notes of salinity on the palate) is the way the butts are filled almost up to a tocadedos (within finger reach from the top)—well above the customary 5/6 in the Sherry region. This way, the yeast layer or “flor” (truly weakened now by the wine’s age and lack of nutrients) in these butts is more reduced and can be maintained with those scarce refills. It still performs its function as physical barrier against the wine’s oxidation, but in its diminished state it cannot be fully effective and so this manzanilla offers elegant oxidation notes and a budding rise in its alcohol level, at about 16%.

This prodigious wine was never bottled until Equipo Navazos selected it in 2008 for its 10th release of ‘La Bota de…’, followed two years later by edition number 20 “Bota Punta”, and then a few more that have been celebrated by many wine lovers who are absolutely crazy for this superb manzanilla pasada.

The real average age of La Bota de Manzanilla Pasada 59 must be around 15 years. It is a complex and powerful wine, of balanced freshness and elegant oxidation notes that make it truly unique. Stunningly versatile on the dinner table, it matches a wide variety of dishes, from the most easygoing (rich fish dishes, fish-based rice recipes, charcuterie) to the most difficult (scrambled eggs with boletus edulis, runny sheep cheeses, asian spicy food). Best served around 12º C, in moderately large stemware.

From their Website- more info on #60
This prodigious wine was never bottled until Equipo Navazos selected it in 2008 for its 10th release of ‘La Bota de…’, followed two years later by edition number 20 “Bota Punta”, and then for a few others in different years. Then there have been a few very limited releases until in August 2015 we have launched La Bota de Manzanilla Pasada 60 “Bota Punta”, again from a single cask of very peculiar character, located at the extreme of the solera. This is a very special wine that takes the astonishing quality of the previous releases of this wine (editions 20, 40 and 50) to an amazing level of finesse and chalky minerality.

What makes this wine truly unique and gifted with unmatched biological character (intense and steely salty notes on the palate) is that the butts are filled up to “a tocadedos” level—well above the 5/6 mark that is common in the Sherry district. In this fashion, the layer of yeast/flor inside these butts (much weakened by the age and lack of nutrients of the wine) is significantly smaller and thinner and can be kept alive on the sole basis of scarce periodic refreshments—acting as barely sufficient barrier between the wine and the intensely oxidizing effect of air. On the other hand, its very weakness implies that this protective effect is only a mild one, which is evidenced in the elegant oxidative notes of this manzanilla as well as the rising level of alcohol, climbing above 16%.

The real average age of this wine must be around 14/15 years. It is a complex and powerful wine, of balanced freshness and elegant oxidation notes that make it truly unique. Stunningly versatile on the dinner table, it matches a wide variety of dishes, from the most easygoing (rich fish dishes, fish-based rice recipes, charcuterie) to the most difficult (scrambled eggs with boletus edulis, runny sheep cheeses). Best served around 12º C, in moderately large stemware.

From their Website- more info on #68
This new release, of an estimated average age between ten and eleven years, comes now from a selection of casks of the solera, the first and the second criaderas. The nose shows very complex and intense aromas, and a remarkable roundness in the palate (the traditional buttery touch of old finos) as a result of the autolysis of dead “flor” yeasts resting on the bottom of the vessel. This is particularly true of the solera, where the flor is almost exhausted, while in the second criadera the yeast is still very lively and active, which provides the spiciness and pungency that are also notable features of this extraordinary wine. Of course, the first criadera has an intermediate profile between the solera and the second.

This is a wine for connoisseurs, bottled almost unfiltered in order to preserve its golden color and racy character. It can be decidedly enjoyed upon release, but its evolution in bottle will continue to delight consumers for many years, provided it is stored with the same care as any other fine white wine.

It performs best at temperatures ranging from 9-10º C, where it shows a lighter and fresher profile, to 13º C, where it fully displays its rich and complex aromatic range. On the table it is a most versatile wine, successfully matching a wide array of diverse foods: of course Ibérico ham, but also seafood dishes, shepherd’s pie, “a feira” octopus, grilled vegetables, not too mature farm cheeses…