A Little Spanish

Every now and then all is right with the world. It might be for only a moment – but such moments will always stay with you. Lets say you chance on a tiny little restaurant called “Dos Hermanos” baking in the Andalucian sun. You settle yourself in the shade of the vines, and one of the brothers (both in their sixties) limps out to tell you what’s available on the menu (most of it isn’t). So you agree to his choice, and he limps off into the kitchen to shout at his sibling. After dozing for a while with a half-hearted cicada for company, he reappears carrying a large platter of the most supremely fresh sole “a la plancha”, potatoes in olive oil, salad, and a bottle of crisp, chilled, aromatic Albarino (again his choice). It’s all so simple and delicious there’s only one option – you order more, plumply content and at peace with the world.

Mention Spain in a wine context, and a lot of people will think ‘Rioja’. Fair enough, there are some excellent Riojas with distinctive characteristics stemming from their strict rules of maturation, as in Crianza (nursery), Reserva, and Gran Reserva which all refer to age. But there are other fantastic wines and regions in Spain worth exploring – Priorato, Navarra, Penedes, Bierzo, Costers del Segre, and Ribera del Duero to name but a few. Or how about a Gewurztraminer from Somontano?

Albarino is produced in Rias Baixas, in Galicia, the green and fertile north west of Spain, where Atlantic breezes temper the climate, there’s plenty of rain to water the land, and the sea provides riches for the table. Raise a glass and aromas of peach, apricot, pear and citrus suggest something exotic, whilst the crisp, dry finish surprises with its freshness. It's the perfect partner to seafood, and is meant to be drunk young – as are most white wines by the way, so as to fully enjoy their zest and fruitiness.

Plus there’s cava and sherry. The former largely made in exactly the same way as champagne, but most often with Spanish grapes, can be a cracking little celebratory tipple, at a celebratory price too if you choose wisely - though quality does vary. The latter a very special, often underrated drink, made in it’s own unique way - see post on fortified wines.

From as elegant and light-footed as a matador, to as beefy and potent as the bull itself, the wines of Spain can offer it all.