Hidden Trackers and WTFs (Wine Tasting Friends) –
Bienvenidos Novembre! Inspired by a quick trip to Spain in October, we knew we needed to share some of our adventures with our wine club members – via Spanish wines, of course. And what a deal we got on these amazing selections. If you were to purchase these two selections at regular retail, you’d pay nearly $60!
But before we share the details on that, we have an important policy update to share with you regarding club pickup. Check it our here, then let’s get back to Spain…
So what do we know about Spanish wines? Well let’s begin with the culture. That culture includes wine drinking. We won’t throw stats at you that show how many liters on average a person living in Spain consumes, but we will tell you that anywhere you go in Spain (restaurant, tapas joint, pinchos cafe, coffee shop, church, etc.), there’s likely to be at least two red options and one white option available for purchase by the glass. Red wines are consistently a Rioja or a Ribera del Duero. The white wine option lends a bit more variety, but more often than not you are offered an Albariño.
Wine Fact Break: Spain (much like the rest of Europe) is broken into geographical areas of control/quality. These areas are called Denominacion de Origen, or D.O. for the wine geeks. In order for a winery to put a specific D.O. (aka regional marketing stamp) on its label, it has to produce specific varietals grown within the designated region.
Wine Tip Break: If you are unsure of the red varietal you are drinking from Spain, just guess Tempranillo!
OK, back to the “wine culture” of Spain, or just straight up life. So a priest and a rabbi walk into a tapas bar in Spain… And that literally happens every day, no joke! People of all cultures congregate into tapas or pinchos bars every day in Spain. This is where you meet for a late lunch or early dinner and have a conversation with someone while standing up, drinking a glass of wine and sharing a tapa. Each location specializes in a certain tapa – one might focus on making the most delicious mushrooms in garlic sauce, while another offers the best prawns, and another is killing it with their amazing potatoes. After you engage your palate at one location, you walk for a couple of minutes to anther location and repeat. Pretty amazing, right?
And with that, we bring you this month’s incredible Spanish selections:
Adegas Galegas D. Pedro Soutomaior Albariño
From an area in Spain that boasts one of the richest cultures of Carnival comes an Albariño that is perfect for any festive occasion. This Albariño comes from the Rías Baixas area in what is known as Galicia, Spain. This region is directly north of Portugal and hugs the NW coast of Spain. The grape is said to have taken up residence in Spain sometime around the 12th century. The wine is named after the feudal knight Don Pedro, who had a hand in establishing the Galicia area in NW Spain and Northern Portugal. There remains debate over whether or not Don Pedro was actually Christopher Columbus. Could the folklore be true?!
Bodegas Care XCLNT
WHOA…score! This selection offers a perfect blend of Garnacha, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Syrah. Bodegas Care comes from the Spanish D.O. of Cariñena. This region was referred to as “Care” by the Romans, thus the inspiration for the name Bodegas Care. The philosophy of the winery is to mold ancient culture and wine practice with modern responsibility. Some of the vineyard sourcing utilizes vines that were planted before the Spanish Civil War (1936-39). All estate grown, with the label representing the history of the region through a modern face of wine making. Hang on to your hats with this wine. We cleared out ALL the remaining inventory in the US and had to wait for shipments to arrive from both the East and West Coasts – but we got it! This wine may never be available stateside again due to lower yields from its vineyard’s older vines and smaller bottle production.
Salud y amor y tiempo para disfrutarlo,
Craig & Danielle