From the same cask number 8 of Pérez Barquero’s bodega Los Amigos, together with its sister the tonel number 3, in order to complete the contents of a whole bota without emptying either of them. Its average age is difficult to establish, but certainly older than 50 years. From some of the oldest casks of this producer, belonging to the set of primitive soleras of the house. Bottled April 2017. Deep glowing orangey gold. Intense bitter-orange and roasted-apricot aromas, non-sweet dark toffee, together with more volatile notes of wood polish and something sour that I cannot quite put my finger on. And there’s a touch of dried grasses and wild flowers, long ago pressed into a sort of dustiness. The concentration here is almost too much – but I say almost. You have to take this in very tiny sips to appreciate that salty bitter-orange flavour tied up with a more savoury umami mushroom quality. It is almost impossible to spit – not simply because it is captivating but it just adheres to your all sides of your mouth because of its concentration. Bone dry and goes on for ever. (JH)