We earn a commission for products purchased through some links in this article.
The best sherry for Christmas 2025, from £7.69
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.
So, the Good Housekeeping Institute has rounded up the best bottles to buy (starting from just £7.69), along with their perfect pairings below. Go on, you may just discover a new favourite!
Best sherry for Christmas 2025
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
The best Christmas food and drink for 2025, revealed
How we test sherry
The Good Housekeeping Institute tested 40 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 served blind to avoid brand bias.
They were looking for well-balanced examples, from bone dry, light finos, to deep dark PX expressions. These are the best buys for every occasion and keep scrolling for our expert guide to all the different types of sherry to try.
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 a classic dessert wine.
Key specifications
| Type | Pale Cream |
|---|---|
| Volume | 75cl |
| ABV | 17.5% |
Score: 84/100
With marzipan, honeyed fig and vanilla on the nose, our testers felt this crowd-pleasing supermarket sherry would be excellent with a mince pie. Expect more almond and coffee notes on the palate, and the one litre bottle size means it should last throughout the festive period.
Key specifications
| Type | Cream |
|---|---|
| Volume | 1L |
| ABV | 17.5% |
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: 80/100
Jam-packed with treacle sweetness — think caramelised sugar, dried figs, cinnamon and vanilla – this is dessert in a glass. But due to the extended ageing, there’s also a complex nutty bitterness that adds balance and intensity. Utterly delicious!
Key specifications
| Type | Pedro Ximenez |
|---|---|
| Volume | 37.5cl |
| ABV | 16% |
Score: 79/100
Dip your toe into the wonderful world of sherry this Christmas without committing to an expensive bottle. Sweet and nutty, with hints of stone fruit, marzipan and vanilla, we think it’s an impressive combination from our best value buy.
Key specifications
| Type | Cream |
|---|---|
| Volume | 75cl |
| ABV | 17.5% |
Score: 78/100
If you're new to PX sherry, this supermarket steal is just £10 and offers excellent value for money. Lightly spiced, thick and syrupy, our panel loved the balance of orange peel, against sweeter figs and raisins. Pour over ice cream, to level up your next affogato.
Key specifications
| Type | Pedro Ximenez |
|---|---|
| Volume | 37.5cl |
| ABV | 17% |
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: 76/100
Made for Tesco by sherry supremos Gonzalez Byass, this half bottle should definitely be on standby over the Christmas period. Sweet and rich with a golden hue, it displays a classic Christmas cake profile. Serve chilled and enjoy with dessert and cheese.
Key specifications
| Type | Cream |
|---|---|
| Volume | 37.5cl |
| ABV | 18% |
Score: 76/100
At this price, you can feel confident experimenting with finding your favourite serve – whether that’s over ice cream or in a cocktail. Rich and syrupy with notes of raisins, dates and orange peel, it's dangerously easy drinking.
Key specifications
| Type | Pedro Ximenez |
|---|---|
| Volume | 37.5cl |
| ABV | 17% |
Score: 75/100
Looking for a bone-dry manzanilla? Look no further because this one ticked plenty of boxes. It’s slightly lighter and more delicate than your typical fino (see below), so expect lemon, blossom, almonds, and an altogether refreshingly smooth sip.
Key specifications
| Type | Manzanilla |
|---|---|
| Volume | 75cl |
| ABV | 15% |
Score: 70/100
Tio Pepe’s Fino en Rama is a very special type of sherry. Crisp, complex, nutty and saline – it’s absolute heaven served early in the evening alongside charcuterie and salty snacks. The ultimate aperitif.
Key specifications
| Type | Fino |
|---|---|
| Volume | 75cl |
| ABV | 15% |
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.
Stacey looks after all food and drink reviews — from coffee pods and veg boxes, to natural wine and tequila. Stacey is also founder of Crummbs, where she’s written nearly 2,000 restaurant and hotel reviews since 2013. Prior to this, Stacey wrote hundreds of in-depth buying guides for the Independent, i newspaper and BBC Good Food, as well as reviewing restaurants and interviewing celebrities in her column at Balance Magazine. Stacey has also appeared in BAFTA-nominated BBC documentary Blood, Sweat & Takeaways, where she investigated South East Asia's food production industry, appearing on both Newsnight and BBC World Service to share her findings. Regularly checking out the latest restaurants, bars and product launches, Stacey also loves experimenting with recipes at home, and is a WSET-certified wine and spirits expert, with over 10 years of experience in the business. You can follow Stacey on Instagram @crummbs_uk
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.
Best supermarket wines for hosting this Christmas
Best pigs in blankets for Christmas 2025
The best mulled wine to buy this Christmas
Best Christmas pudding for 2025
