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Pronunciation guide

How to pronounce Sherry and Port styles

Fortified wines have the longest menus of style names, and the Spanish ones are the ones people avoid saying out loud. This page covers the Sherry styles from driest to sweetest and the main Port categories.

14 terms. Each has native audio, IPA, an easy respelling and the meaning on its own page.

Fino is FEE-noh, Amontillado is ah-mon-tee-YAH-doh (the “ll” is a y sound), Oloroso is oh-loh-ROH-soh. Pedro Ximénez is PEH-droh hee-MEH-neth in Castilian Spanish, with the x pronounced like a Spanish j; an s instead of th is equally correct in Andalusia, where the wine is made.

The Port terms are English and straightforward: Ruby, Tawny, Vintage, Late Bottled Vintage (usually shortened to LBV). Port itself in Portuguese is “Porto”, but the English form is standard on labels and in the trade.

  1. Sherry SHERR-ee English · A fortified wine produced in the Jerez region of southwestern Spain, made primarily from the Palomino grape and aged through the unique solera system. Sherry encompasses a wide spectrum of styles from bone-dry, pale Fino to unctuous, dark Pedro Ximénez, with aging methods including biological and oxidative processes.
  2. Fino FEE-noh Spanish · The lightest and driest style of Sherry, aged biologically under a layer of flor yeast in the solera system of Jerez, Spain. The flor protects the wine from oxidation, producing a pale, straw-colored wine with sharp acidity, delicate yeasty-bread aromas, and saline, almond character.
  3. Amontillado ah-mon-tee-YAH-doh Spanish · A style of Sherry that begins as a Fino under biological aging (flor) and then undergoes oxidative aging after the flor dies. This dual aging process creates a unique amber-colored wine with the nuttiness and complexity of oxidative aging combined with the delicacy of its Fino origins.
  4. Oloroso oh-loh-ROH-soh Spanish · A full-bodied, dark style of Sherry aged exclusively through oxidative aging without flor yeast protection. The name means fragrant in Spanish, and these wines develop rich, complex aromas of walnut, dried fruit, coffee, and caramel. Dry Oloroso is naturally unsweet, though sweetened versions also exist.
  5. Pedro Ximénez PX PEH-droh hee-MEH-neth Spanish · Both a white grape variety and the intensely sweet, dark Sherry style made from it. PX grapes are sun-dried into raisins before pressing, then aged in the solera system to produce an unctuous, syrupy wine with flavors of raisins, fig, molasses, coffee, and dark chocolate. It is one of the sweetest wines in the world.
  6. Pale Cream Sherry PAYL KREEM SHERR-ee English · A sweetened style of Sherry based on Fino or Manzanilla rather than the Oloroso used in traditional Cream Sherry. It retains the pale color of its base wine while offering light sweetness, appealing to those who prefer Sherry with residual sugar but without the heavy oxidative character.
  7. Medium Sherry MEE-dee-um SHERR-ee English · A style of Sherry that falls between the dry Amontillado and sweet Cream categories, created by blending dry and sweet Sherry wines. It offers a balanced profile with moderate sweetness, nutty character, and amber color, traditionally popular in the UK market.
  8. Cream Sherry KREEM SHERR-ee English · A sweetened style of Sherry made by blending Oloroso with sweet Pedro Ximénez or Moscatel wine. It has a dark mahogany color and rich, sweet flavor profile with notes of dried fruit, caramel, toffee, and nuts, making it a popular after-dinner wine.
  9. Port PORT /pɔrt/ English · A fortified wine from the Douro Valley in Portugal ranging from ruby to tawny styles.
  10. Ruby Port ROO-bee PORT English · The most widely produced and affordable style of Port wine, aged for a short period in large vessels to preserve its youthful, fruity character. Ruby Port displays a deep ruby-red color with vibrant flavors of ripe red and black berries, chocolate, and sweet spice, intended for immediate enjoyment.
  11. Reserve ruby port ree-ZURV ROO-bee PORT English · A premium category of Ruby Port aged longer in barrel than standard Ruby, typically three to five years, producing a wine with more depth, complexity, and concentration while retaining youthful, fruit-forward character. It represents an intermediate step between basic Ruby and Late Bottled Vintage Port.
  12. Tawny port TAW-nee PORT English · A style of Port wine aged in small oak barrels for extended periods, allowing gradual oxidation that transforms the color from ruby to tawny amber and develops complex flavors of caramel, nuts, dried fruit, and butterscotch. Premium Tawny Port carries age designations of 10, 20, 30, or 40 years indicating the average age of the blend.
  13. Late bottled vintage LAYT BOT-uld VIN-tij English · A style of Port wine from a single vintage, aged in barrel for four to six years before bottling. LBV was created to provide a ready-to-drink alternative to vintage Port, offering ripe, fruity character with moderate complexity. Filtered LBV is the most common; unfiltered versions offer more depth.
  14. Vintage Port VIN-tij PORT English · The pinnacle of Port wine, declared only in exceptional years and produced from the finest grapes of a single harvest. Vintage Port is aged for two to three years in barrel before bottling, then requires decades of bottle aging to reach its full potential of concentrated fruit, complex spice, and silky tannins.

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