Sherry, or Jérez (if we want to better assure that it's not one of the lesser types that imitates) is probably the greatest apéritif in the world. If there is a better one I haven't had it yet. A fine Jérez deserves contemplation; there's no other beverage like it, and there is a broad range of styles within the family. Like a fine cheese, a sherry can certainly add an accent to a recipe. I admit that I've added either a cheese or a sherry, sometimes both, to add depth to an otherwise incomplete dish. Naturally we want to use the finest ingredients when cooking, but when it is one of those superior Jérez we may choose to put a little less in the cooking, and a little more in our glass.

During the course of producing my second book – Cheese, a Connoisseur's Guide to the World's Best – for which I wanted to provide several wine pairings for each cheese, I struggled a bit to find suitable matches when I got to that venerable Asturian blue – Cabrales. Other lesser blues may have tolerated the occasional ordinary table wine but when it came to this magnificent cheese, the Cabrales demanded much more than mere fruit from its wine partner. Those "marriages–made–in–heaven" proved to be particularly elusive. It was no wonder that in Asturias itself, one of the only parts of Spain without much of a wine tradition, a preferred beverage partner would be cider. Cabrales being Cabrales, it might take several copas of sidra to make much of an impact however.

Since nearly every other great Spanish cheese had shown affection for so many wines I thought I'd keep trying until I found an ideal match for Cabrales. There were just a few weak matches with other "dessert wines" but none quite matched what a grand old Pedro Ximénez (PX) was able to provide – the viscous texture and dark–roasted nectar – all from a wine from the near–opposite side of mainland Spain. If the PX was able to balance a Cabrales it seemed that it could handle just about any cheese we threw its way. Sure enough, this has been the case: not only with the big blue cheeses, but with other foods too.

On a sunny afternoon, I might instead choose to have a lightly chilled Fino, a Manzanilla or possibly an Amontillado, or even a Palo Cortado, with a range of my favorite cheeses. As it turned out, the Fino was amazingly brilliant with a wide spectrum of cheeses: from Garrotxa all the way through to La Peral. Except for the especially demanding Cabrales, the Fino played well with just about everything. A surprisingly weak cheese partner (though not a bad one) was a Manchego.

The Sandeman Don Fino Superior paired well with all of the following cheeses: Majorero Pimentón, Garrotxa, Serena, Torta del Casar, Mahón, Idiazábal, Gamonedo, Monte Enebro, and La Peral.

The Manzanilla, while perfectly delightful on its own, can be enjoyed even more with some fried Marcona almonds, yes fried! Or if you don't mind going to a little extra trouble, you can try a little Atún de Ijar, the fillets of tuna belly marinated and preserved in olive oil.

With its almost salty quality, the Manzanilla, so similar in its composition to the Fino though quite a bit drier, skipped over the lighter cheeses. Yet it was not bad with the Idiazábal as well as the La Peral. Could it have been the hint of apple in the aroma that gave it success with the Valdeón – a cheese that was beyond the range of the Fino?

The Manzanilla from Domecq married well with Idiazábal, La Peral, and Valdeón.

In contrast, the Amontillado, beautiful as always, a fine old Jérez, dry but not bone dry like the Fino or the Manzanilla, had acquired the body to handle practically the entire range of cheeses, until it reached the Valdeón and the Cabrales. It wasn't bad with the two big blues; it just didn't quite hold up. I thought that the Amontillado elevated the Majorero Pimentón, a raw milk cheese (not that it needed elevating), and I look forward to trying this combination again soon. Back in 2003, it was a well–aged Majorero Pimentón that I introduced to one of my friends, a French cheese expert, and it raised his eyebrows. And to think: if I had only known then what an Amontillado could have done with it.

The Amontillado from Domecq balanced well with: Garrotxa, Majorero Pimentón (which it elevated), Manchego (I fell in love with Manchego all over again), Serena, Torta del Casar, Mahón, Idiazábal, Gamonedo, Monte Enebro, and La Peral.

The Palo Cortado from Domecq, the Capuchino, exquisite on its own, had a slightly rounded, nutty toffee flavor, backed up with a bit of citrus. The Palo Cortado paired well with the Majorero Pimentón, less well with the creamy Garrotxa and the buttery Manchego, Serena, and Torta del Casar. I thought that it would have shown better with these cheeses, since it's made with 100% Palomino – the same as the Amontillado. Despite its long finish, the Capuchino fell short with the more assertive blues.

The Capuchino matched well with: Majorero Pimentón, Mahón, Idiazábal, Monte Enebro, and La Peral.

Next I tried a "rich old" Oloroso, the Royal Corregidor, aged over 20 years, from Sandeman. With this sherry there were no disappointments whatsoever, not with any one of the 12 cheeses I tried, from the mildest to the strongest: Garrotxa, Majorero Pimentón, Manchego, Serena, Torta del Casar, Mahón, Idiazábal, Gamonedo, Monte Enebro, Peral, Valdeón, and Cabrales.

With an aged Oloroso, dated over 30 years old, V.O.R.S., the Sibarita (with the addition of 2% Pedro Ximénez) from Domecq we found several nice pairings: Majorero Pimentón, Garrotxa, Manchego, Serena, Mahón, Idiazábal, Monte Enebro, Peral, and Valdeón.

The Pedro Ximénez, Viña 25 from Domecq, was a little more successful with the twelve cheeses.

For the grand finale, I worked with a Royal Ambrosante, V.O.R.S. "Very Old and Rare" sherry, Pedro Ximénez from Sandeman. With this one I experienced some of the greatest matches ever with the same twelve cheeses.

This seemed to be precisely what it was all about, why all the work had gone into the production of these exceptional cheeses, each and every one of them: from the island of Fuerteventura to Menorca, from La Mancha to Navarra, from Extremadura to Asturias; and why those berries of Pedro Ximénez had been raisined in the sun of Andalucía a long time ago, their concentrated juice had been aged in American oak casks for many decades, all for this simple but profound pleasure today.

One of the remarkable things about Jérez is that you can enjoy a little bit of history in each sip. The solera system employed in the making of genuine Jérez, wherein one vintage is added on top of another, gives these wines a certain timeless quality.

There was no denying it, the very special old Pedro Ximénez married splendidly with each of these cheeses. Fortunately I have a container of several more of my favorite cheeses on the way over: Roncal, Zamorano, Aracena, Ibores, and Afuegal'Pitu. I can hardly wait to try them with all of these divine Jeréz wines. It is thrilling to see how each of these different styles of Jérez interact, even the ones that start out with basically the same Palomino juice. It's worth the wait, both for the flor to perform its magic and for the cheeses to cure.

Some of the especially delightful matches I found with the entire range of Jérez though, were with the Idiázabal cheese, whose smokiness can be a deal-breaker with many ordinary wines.

A Fino can certainly be enjoyed on its own, being the best of aperitifs, possibly with a handful of Marcona almonds. One of its best food friends in Andalucía is pescaito frito, but if we can't get these excellent little fresh caught fish prepared quite the same way they are in Cádiz, it is good to know that many of Spain's great cheeses make it over just fine. This is one of the many great things about cheeses – if you can’t be in Spain itself, you can at least bring home a little bit of it in the form of her cheeses.

Max McCalman is the author of The Cheese Plate and Cheese, a Connoisseur's Guide to the World’s Best (Clarkson Potter, publisher). Max is the Maître Fromager for the Artisanal Group: Picholine Restaurant, Artisanal Brasserie & Fromagerie, and www.artisanalcheese.com. He is also Dean of Curriculum at the Artisanal Cheese Center.