What does amontillado mean?
Amontillado is a style of Spanish sherry — a fortified wine from the Jerez region that occupies a middle ground between the pale, bone-dry fino and the dark, rich oloroso. Its name comes from the town of Montilla in Andalusia, whose wines were historically similar in character. An amontillado begins life like a fino, ageing under a veil of yeast called flor, but is then matured further without full flor protection, allowing gentle oxidation that gives it a deeper amber colour and distinctive notes of hazelnut, tobacco, and dried fruit. Served slightly chilled, it pairs well with soups, cured meats, mushrooms, and mature cheeses. Beyond the glass, the word carries literary fame through Edgar Allan Poe's story 'The Cask of Amontillado', which has fixed it in the English imagination as a symbol of rare, tempting luxury.
nounA medium-dry Spanish sherry, amber to deep brown in colour, made by first maturing the wine under flor and then oxidatively in barrel. It sits between fino and oloroso on the spectrum of dryness and body.
- A medium-dry Spanish fortified wine of the sherry family, amber-brown in colour, combining initial biological ageing under flor with subsequent oxidative maturation.
"She poured a chilled glass of amontillado to accompany the salted almonds."
"The waiter recommended an amontillado to pair with the mushroom risotto."
"In Poe's tale, the narrator uses the promise of a rare cask of amontillado to lure Fortunato into the catacombs."
Rarely pluralised; when it occurs, the plural typically refers to multiple bottles or glasses of the wine.
"The cellar stocked several fine amontillados from different bodegas."
Edgar Allan Poe never named the wine in 'The Cask of Amontillado' by accident — its rarity made it the perfect bait for luring a proud connoisseur into his trap.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of amontillado
The word comes from Spanish amontillado, literally 'in the style of Montilla', referring to the Andalusian town of Montilla whose wines resembled this sherry style. The Spanish place name Montilla ultimately derives from Latin mons, montis, meaning 'mountain', the same root that gives English words such as mount, mountain, and paramount. The term entered English usage in the early nineteenth century as British interest in sherry wines grew.
How amontillado is actually used
Amontillado is a fairly formal, connoisseurial term, encountered mainly in discussions of wine, food pairing, and literature. It is always used attributively as a mass noun ('an amontillado', 'two glasses of amontillado') rather than countably.
Easily confused with amontillado
Fino is a much paler, lighter, bone-dry sherry aged entirely under flor, whereas amontillado is darker, nuttier, and only medium-dry after a period of oxidative ageing.