Chilled sherry is so cool! Liquid News Lucy Corry raises her glass to the week's best buys.

SHERRY has always suffered from a desperately unsexy reputation, partly because it's viewed as a drink for elderly women.

Think Coronation Street's Emily Bishop ordering a sweet sherry in the Rovers' Return and you get the picture.

Yet in Spain - particularly in Andalucia - sherry is as hip and cool as can be. Tell the people partying at the annual Feria de Caballo in Jerez, sherry's home, that their tipple of choice is for grannies and you'll be laughed out of town.

But now chefs such as Heston Blumenthal, Angela Hartnett and SkyeGyngell are spearheading the sherry renaissance here.

They - along with a generous serving of other chefs - have contributed to The Perfect Marriage (Simon and Schuster, pounds 12.99), a cookbook that celebrates sherry's ability to partner with an incredible range of dishes.

It turns out that sherry genuinely whets the appetite because it works on the mid-range of the tongue (where the tastebuds are); it really does make your mouth water.

To understand how versatile these fortified wines can be it's best to think of sherry as a spectrum that ranges from bone dry, crisp fino through to treacly richness.

Dry sherry (fino, manzanilla) works well with almonds, olives, asparagus, anchovies, smoked fish, shellfish, white fish, dried ham, salami and Parmesan.

Sample these with the delicateHidalgo La Gitana Manzanilla (Sainsbury's, Threshers, Majestic and Waitrose, pounds 7.49) or La Guita Manzanilla (pounds 8.99, www.everywine.co.uk).

Serve them in generous measures (this is no time for heirloom sherry glasses) and make sure they're well chilled. Once open, fino and manzanilla sherries should be stored in the fridge and drunk within three days.

Amontillado, which is an aged fino, should also be served lightly chilled.