Agreeing to disagree - A Spanish red wine from Bierzo DO

Emilio had pointed to a car which he later told me was a Maserati

It's not often that Emilio and I disagree: On wine that is. For the most part, I tend to like the wines that Emilio favours. He takes it as given thus that I will be delighted with the wine he is extremely partial to and bombards me with lots of 'QUE DICES?!' when I disagree and proclaim something as 'ordinary'. On certain days, this is accompanied with some Spanish expletives. As was the case last Valentine's Day. I really wanted to tell him that I found the wine fantastisch but…

The controversial wine in question was a Paixar 2009 (32 Euros) that incidentally received 92 Parker points. Emilio found it ‘deliciously spicy, nicely tannin with a round body and a long finish’. Also a ‘sophisticated nose and may even be a very good fit to the often difficult to pair Asian food’. I only remember it as providing a nice medium length finish. The wine, made from Mencia grapes in Bierzo DO, had been left to age in oak barrels for 16 months.

Obscure Mencia from remote Bierzo: Bierzo DO is a rustic area in the northwest of Spain, in the corner of Castilla y Leon that is near to Galicia. As for the grape, I didn't come across a lot of remarkable factoids except that firstly, it is native to Iberia (its Portuguese alias is “Jaen”) and secondly, it was only in 2003 that the varietal was determined to be unrelated to the well-travelled Cabernet Franc. It has received a few glowing reviews ("hidden gems" and "quality, potential-laden" for instance). Snooth lists it as typically tasting of 'red and dark berry fruit, occasionally vegetal, can be savory with good acidity and tannin'. Elsewhere on the web, it is also portrayed as having spicy and mineral like features. 

Paixar, the winery: I've also not had much luck in finding a dedicated home page but from here, I see that it started of as a dream which was materialised by four thirty-somethings after discovering small blocks of 80 year old, low yielding vineyards in a tiny village (with only 60 inhabitants) high up in the mountains. The four are Gregory Perez, Alejandro Luna, Eduardo and Alberto Garcia. Stop Press: A stunning discovery! The latter two are sons of the Spanish super star wine maker Mariano Garcia who was/is responsible for creating great tasting Spanish wines like Alion, Aalto, Mauro etc. Alejandro Luna meanwhile owns another Bierzo winery. (Emilio, maybe I need to taste this wine again?) 

Blind tasting - Barbaresco 2008

Surprise blind tasting: Emilio disoriented me the other day, pulling out a bottle from the basement, heavily disguised with kitchen foil, asking me to taste and guess its country of origin, age and type of grape. Que? It's an almost impossible task under normal circumstances, an outright unmanageable feat with a nose and taste bud that had not entirely recovered from the flu. The best I could do was to offer a kind of description. It looked old-ish (the wine was a shade of red closer to amber than dark ruby at the rim), smelled of fruits and flowers (even with a semi-blocked nose) and tasted moderate on many levels: acidity, level of tannin and body. A nice medium length finish. An 'OK' taste which improved after some rest. (edit: I thought it was Spanish). It turned out to be a 6 year old Barbaresco. One of the many bottles that Emilio had ordered online last July to diversify a little bit away from Spain and expand our Italian collection. 

Barbaresco DOCG (Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita, the best classification for Italian wine), is exclusively made from the Nebbiolo grape harvested not only from the village of Barberesco, but also in the neighbouring ones of Treiso, Neive and Alba. Located in the north west of Italy, in the wine region of Piedmont (also home to my favourite Barolo and the sparkling white wines of Astic), it is about 2 hours drive from Milan and an hour and a half from the French border. Nebbiolo grapes, also used to create Barolo, are finicky to grow and very sensitive to frosts and soil. For this reason, they do not thrive outside their hometown. 

The bottle Emilio wrapped up was named "Riserva Ovella 2008". It is produced by Produttori del Barbaresco.  Riservas from Barberesco DOCG are required to age for 4 years, one of which has to be in an oak barrel (Note: a Barolo Riserva has to age for a minimum of 5 years). Barbaresco typically ages well and needs at least 10 years to flourish and showcase its complex flavour, so in all likelihood we had opened the bottle 4 years too soon. Produttori del Barbaresco was founded in 1958 by the priest of the Barbaresco village, who pooled together 19 small growers to survive economically. The first three vintages were made in the church basement. It has grown since then - they have moved out from the basement and there are now 56 Nebbiolo vineyards in the group, accounting for 1/6 of the vineyards in the Barbaresco wine region.

Links on wine related stuff

* Comprehensive articles on how wine and cork are made - with lots of pictures too.

* Can someone please, please, please buy me this print for Christmas? There a few others I like too. They are all from this cool wine site.

* An easy to read and fun book on wine written by ex-colleagues that I used to love hanging out with. Miss them loads. 

* A useful list of describing wine by Robert Parker. 

HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!

Guest post: Emilio writes for the first time

The dreaded flu: First, it hit Emilio over the weekend. He stayed in his pjs all day Sunday and appeared miserable, staying awake only to self-medicate and watch an episode or 2 (or 6 or 10 or 20) of Game of Thrones on his computer (I continue not to understand how someone can be so sick and still be able to watch television series!). I was confident that I was made of sterner stuff and would escape the dreaded lurgy but was shown to be wrong when I collapsed into bed on Tuesday afternoon, in my day clothes, after putting Baby Koala to bed.  I am feeling tones better today but have a lot to catch up on. In the meantime, here is Emilio's notes on a wine he drank recently which I'm only allowed to cut and paste and not edit. 

With this entry we start something that our blog lady leader would like to continue with some more of you guys… The guest posts…

Basically these posts can contain anything regarding eating or drinking or any combination including party!

As a first guest “poster” I will introduce myself as Emilio… Yes, the Emilio Azura cannot stop talking about. She is so cute… In this entrance I want to draw your attention to a region in Spain that is starting to gain momentum , although Azura does not particularly like it, and to a wine of that region, that surely not many of you know (I did not know it until I bought it).

The region is called Toro, and is situated a little bit west, not far away from Ribera del Duero. The traditional grape of this region is called tinta de toro, and as tinto fino (or tinta fina) is the variety of the tempranillo that is cultivated there. The wines of this region are very characteristic of strong bodies, although not extremely high in tannins.  It is becoming a very famous region as several actors, including Gerard Depardieu, invested in bodegas and wines from Toro.

The wine that I am going to talk now is called Juan Rojo, from 2006, manufactured with grapes from the area called “Pago de Matarredonda”. This was the second time I tried the wine, being the first one like a year ago, and it greatly surprised me, as I did not remember it being that complex.

It took the wine around 45 minutes to open, and when it did, I could perceive delicious aromas to butter, toffee and a touch of leather. I thought to myself… Surely it is because it is a reserve, which tends to fit better this description, but when I read the label I saw that it had only been 8 months in a French wooden barrel. And then I remembered the first time that I tried it and did not recall it smelling like this. The bigger surprise came when I tried it, as I was already expecting it to be aged and buttery, but to my surprise, it was very fruity. Primarily red berries, not much black fruits. 

It was a very nice tasting, and surely I will buy another bottle, even more considering that the price is quite doable (slightly over 14 euro transport included), but surely I will let it rest at least six months, before I give it another go.

Châteauneuf-du-Pape with friends

We had not seen Vicenzo and Valerie since last year, before we moved to Sao Paulo, so there was a lot to catch up on when we finally met them last week. Dinner at their home is always an agreeable affair - not only for the great company and marvellous food and wine but also the array of languages being spoken: They speak to each other and to their kids in Italian and French, to Baby Koala's older brother in German and English, to Emilio in Spanish, Italian and Portuguese (smatterings of which I'm proud to say I can now understand), to Baby Koala in baby Italian and to me in English. I love it.

We drank Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Domaine Mas Saint-Louis (2010). A blend of predominantly Grenache grape mixed with Syrah, Cinsault and Mourvedre/Picpoul, it paired really well with our main course of sautéed beef served on a delightful bed of rocket dressed with vinaigrette, mixed with Parmesan shavings. Emilio is not a big fan of french wine, believing that they are more often than not, too acidic and overpriced, especially when compared to spanish wines. This wine which tasted fruity, balanced and soft and retailing at c.Euro18 thus proved to be an exception with him. 

Wiki tells me that "Châteauneuf-du-Pape" in English means "new castle of the pope" and came to be when the papacy relocated to the South East of France to Avignon, near the River Rhône in the 14th century (here is a simplified wine map for France). It is also the first Appellation Contrôlée established in France, in 1932. Under the current rules of the appellate, the medieval village is allowed to use 18 types of grapes however the most popular grape is Grenache. It is uncommon though to find Châteauneuf-du-Pape made from 100% Grenache because it has high alcohol content and lacks complexity. For this reason, producers tend to blend them with other grapes such as Syrah, Clairette and Mourvedre.

Interestingly, the wine produced from this region (predominantly red), is said to taste less acidic because of the presence of 'galets' or stones in the terrain which releases the Mediterranean heat stored during the day into the vines at night, thus hastening the ripening process. This is in contrast to grapes from cool climates which tend to ripen slower and are typically harvested with higher acid content and lower sugar level. 

I could not find much information in English about the bodega or domain of Mas Saint Louis (owned  by the Geniest Family since 1909). There are some nuggets from this site which is dedicated to all things related to Châteauneuf-du-Pape. 

A Crianza from DO Ribera Del Duero

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!

Alor, so we move on to another one of our favourite Spanish wines, this time with a DO Ribera Del Duero label (Olé!). The name of the wine is Pago De Carraovejas Crianza. Crianza means that the wine must be left to age in a barrel for a minimum of 12 months and another year in the bottle.

It is rumoured that this wine (retailing at c.25 Euros transport included) is popular with the Spanish royalty. How true this is I don't know as the gossip rags I read only tend to focus on Brangelina (will they break up before getting married?) and Mariah Carey (Mimi loves Dem Babies but will fire nannies who are threateningly too good). I do know however, that it was Emilio's brother who introduced this particular wine to him years ago and that Emilio most likely had stashed a bottle or two of this in his suitcase when traveling to Hong Kong, believing that the price/quality ratio is reasonable and quality consistently good. We sampled a 2010 bottle a few days ago (We meaning just Emilio and I, as a reward for sticking to our diet you understand) and found this to remain true.

The 2010 Crianza is a blend of 95% Tinto Fino (Ribera del Duero's fancy name for Tempranillo) and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon (2011 contains 2% less Tinto Fino -  replaced by Merlot). As suggested by the label, we tasted wild berries and agreed it was smooth but could not conclude on its intensity or more to the point, how tannic it was. A discussion of what "tannin" really meant led us to take swig after swig to compare how dry the wine made our mouth feel. Emilio rated it as very high; I found it moderately so. Emilio thinks an apt description of tannin is 'earthy' akin to "dusty" while I identified most with the explanation I heard somewhere of "the bitter taste of drinking cold strong black tea".

The bodega which produces this wine (Pago de Carraovejas) was established in 1988 by a Segovian  chef named Jose Maria Ruiz apparently with the intent of creating Ribera Del Duero wine which would perfectly match his star dish of "Cochinillo". Aside from the Crianza, the bodega also produces Reserva (left to age for 36 months),  El Anejon and Cuesta de Las Liebres. I will talk about these wines in time to come. In the meantime, have a GREAT weekend!

A family favourite from Castilla y Leon

A man with a suitcase after my heart

I have to admit here that I paid little attention to the Spanish reds before I dated Emilio (otherwise also known as the Great Champion of wines from the Denominacion de Origen (DO) of Ribera del Duero). Sure, I enjoyed a glass of chilled white Spanish wine from the DO of Rias Baixas (which uses mostly Albarino grape) but typically preferred a Bordeaux or Barolo when it came to reds, thinking that most Spanish wines were lacking body and balance. How wrong I was! Emilio kept showing up in Hong Kong (where I was then living) with a suitcase full of remarkable treasures and I soon realised that there were numerous full bodied, well rounded, deliciously fruity and earthy vino tinto waiting to be indulged!

On that note (and fast forward by a few years), let me share with you, one of our family's trusted go-to blended red wine: Abadia Retuerta Seleccion Especial. It is full bodied, rounded and has a yummy taste of plums and berries.  The 2010 bottle, which we enjoyed just last week with Emilio's parents in Zaragoza contained the best of Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot (some other years include Syrah).

The bodega that makes the wine, Abadia Retuerta, is located in the North-ish of Spain, in a village called Sardon de Duero, which is about 185km from Madrid, to the west of Ribera del Duero and in the region of Castilla y Leon. The bottles are not labelled 'DO of Ribera del Duero' despite being also situated by the River Duero but they really do not need to nor is at a disadvantage given their already strong brand.

Do all the roads lead to Basel? Curiously, Novartis, the Swiss company which is headquartered here in Basel, owns the bodega and we have found out that it is almost more cost effective to buy the wine from their supermarket here than in Spain (the 2010 bottle is currently retailing at about 18 Euros, transport included). Having said that, this does not mean that we would not be paying a visit to the bodega - indeed it seems like a must do (after the kids have been handed over to the doting grampies and Emilio persuaded to get out of his pajamas/parent's home). We need to sample all their other selections and at the same time check out their historical grounds and the restoration of their 12th century monastery into a lush 5 star hotel and restaurant.

Bonarda from Argentina

Las Moras Black Label Bonarda is one of our favourite Argentinian wines. I first encountered it last year, at the supermarket down the street, where we used to live in Sao Paulo. It was selling at a small discount to its original price of 54 BRL (16 Euros at today's exchange rate) and the lady in charge of the wine section had insisted I snap it to take advantage of the 'too good an offer' when I enquired about buying good South American wines.

It was our first Bonarda. Neither Emilio nor I were familiar with the varietal and it was only recently that I researched and discovered that there are in fact many grapes called Bonardas and that the Argentine Bonarda originated from the Savoie Region in Eastern France (incidentally only about 415km away from Basel, where we are living now). The Argentine version is widely stated as being similar to the Chabono in California but different to the three types of Italian Bonardas grown in North Central and North West Italy. It was apparently, the most planted grape in Argentina until this decade when it was overtaken by Malbec.

The Malbec is pretty good too

The Bonarda we like tasted like a fruity Malbec that was a little bit lighter bodied. It was easy to pair with dinner or snacks so naturally, I continued to buy it whenever I went back to the supermarket until the day arrived that I could no longer find it on the shelves (!) - not unlike my experience of bulk-buying lactose free milk for Baby Koala. The lady promoting the wine had disappeared and I could not ask her whether we had consumed all their available stocks so I tweaked our consumption pattern and started bulk-buying the Las Moras Black Label Malbec instead  (illustrated above) - which we also liked and subsequently brought back with us to Spain and Switzerland.

The bodega which produces the Las Moras Black Label range is called Finca Las Moras and is situated in the high altitude region of San Juan, in the Northwest of Argentina. The region is the second largest wine producer after Mendoza and is irrigated by the water coming down from the Andes Mountains. It was a shame that we did not have the opportunity to explore any of the bodegas in Latin America. Oh well, here's hoping we will be able to remedy this when we return for a holiday!