Travels with Tempranillo. Not just a Rioja resident

Travels with Tempranillo

Not just a Rioja resident

In La Rioja

For a long while, I associated Tempranillo primarily with La Rioja in Spain. But is also huge in neighbouring Ribero del Duero, a region that has come to prominence over the last 35 years or so. Indeed, Tempranillo (often blended) is grown across the north of Spain (with the exception of the Atlantic region of Riax Baixas). You’ll find it in Cigales, Navarra, Cariñena, and in Catalunya generally (including Penedes).

In some places in Spain, it is called Tinto Fino or Tinto del Pais. It has at least two names in Portugal. Tinta Roriz is probably the most common and this is used as one of the grapes for Port in the Douro and in Alentejo it is called Aragonês (also its name in Brazil). Tinto Roriz crops up in a big way in Argentina where more than 15,000 acres are planted. By contrast, it has a miniscule presence in Chile.

No Rioja wines in the three below. The first is from Ribero, the second from Navarra and the third, a blend, from Valencia. An interesting trio!

Bodegas Felix Callejo Vina Pilar Crianza 2010, Ribero del Duero (DO), 14%, €19.75 Karwig Wines

Ribera del Duero has been called “the modern red wine miracle of northern Spain” by the World Atlas of Wine and it is very well represented here by this Very Highly Recommended wine.

Colour is an intense ruby, with long legs on the glass. Leather and pretty intense dark fruits on the nose. It is full bodied with flavours of fruit, spice, vanilla, with fairly fine tannins, excellent acidity and a long finish.

Pleno Tempranillo 2014, Navarra (DO), 13.5%, €8.99 O’Donovan’s Off Licence

This comes with quite a name already, having been voted the Gold Star Winner for Old World Red (Under €10.00) in the 2013/14 Irish Wine Show run annually by NOFFLA. Colour is purple tinged, and bright. Aromas bring a rush of red fruits, promising much. And that promise is delivered in the mouth with delicious flavours and some spice; it is a smooth medium bodied wine, tannins are fine and it is fresh with good acidity and decent length. A splendid introduction to Tempranillo, easy-drinking and very good value indeed. Highly Recommended.

Aculius Reserva 2006, Valencia, 13.5%, €18.55 Karwig Wines

A replica Roman coin hangs around the neck of this blend of Tempranillo, Merlot and Syrah. It is fermented in new French oak and, in the same wood, aged for 12 months on its lees. 

Produced by La Casa de les Vides, it is rather intense, both on the nose and on the palate. It is rich, with an excellent mouthfeel, some spice and a persistent satisfying finish. Highly Recommended.

A Good Wine Mix. Your Thursday Tips.

A Good Wine Mix.

Your Thursday Tips

The grapes are dried by the Ammasso method,
explained on a peel-off back label.

Barone Montalto Ammasso 2013 Rosso Siciliane (IGT), 14.5%, SuperValu €18.99

This may well be Sicily’s answer to Amarone as the islanders have used the traditional Ammasso (known as Appassimento in the north of the mainland). The varieties blended in this gorgeous and complex wine are the locals Nero d’Avola and Nerello Mascalese and the internationals Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. A serious work of wine is the result and it is Very Highly Recommended.

Medium red is the colour and the aromas, of dark fruit, are pretty intense. There is a luscious concentrated fruit, hints of sweetness, spice too; overall, a rather plush wine, tannins just about in play, and the finish is long.

Albet i Noya, Petit Albet 2010, Penedes (DO), 12%, 12.49 O’Donovan’s

This organic wine from Catalunya is a blend of Chardonnay and the local grape Xarel-lo (60%). The Xarel-lo will be familiar to you as one of the grapes used traditionally in Cava. Albet i Noya started their move towards organic in the mid 70s. They also buy in grapes and these too are organic and, besides, the wine is certified vegan friendly.

Aromas are of white fruit, including melon. It is light and fresh and those scented fruits continue strongly on the palate. It boasts a bright acidity and a good dry finish. Enjoy it young, as the name implies. Highly Recommended.

Marques de Riscal Sauvignon 2013, Rueda (DO), 12.5%, €12.99 Bradley’s Off Licence

This bottle had just been opened and was on a table about two feet away. Yet, with the tail-end of a cold, I still got the very inviting aromas. Inviting too was the colour: light gold, fresh and clean.

And the wine continued to surprise on the palate. The feel, the flavour, the finish complete a hat trick of delights. Go try it now and then maybe move up the Riscal scale and see what their other Sauvignons have in store. This though is great value and Very Highly Recommended.

The World Atlas of Wine credits Riscal with a key role in the revival of Rueda’s Verdejo. On this evidence, they are doing well also with the Sauvignon, a more recent arrival.

Spanish Organic Duo

Spanish Organic Duo

Bodegas del Rosario Monastrell 2012 (Bullas DO), 14%, €12.90 Karwig Wines

Red fruits prominent in the pretty intense aromas here. Fresh and light on the palate, with excellent fruit flavours, tannins yes but very close to smooth. This medium bodied red has a good share of acidity, some spice too, with a pleasant finish. More for summer recreation than winter contemplation and Highly Recommended.

Monastrell is the Spanish equivalent of Mourvedre and it is unusual to see this grape out on its own in Ireland as it is much better known as a part of many French blends. Also unusual to see anything from this appellation of Bullas which is in Murcia in South East Spain and about 75 minutes inland from Alicante. Just goes to show the work that Karwig puts in in sourcing their wines.

Hacienda Grimon Crianza 2012 (Rioja DOC), 13.5%, €15.70 Le Caveau

Colour is a medium to dark red and it gives up dark fruit aromas. On the palate you have rounded fruit flavours, tannins are pretty well integrated and there is a long dry finish. Overall you get the impression that this is a more mature wine than the age indicates.

Perhaps the rigorous fruit selection plus the 16 months in oak (6 months is minimum for Crianza) has combined to good effect to give more than a hint of almost old fashioned Rioja elegance, a rather serious one at that, and the wine is Highly Recommended.

The blend is 85% Tempranillo, 10% Garnacha and 5% Graciano. Viticulture is organic, no herbicides, no pesticides; the sheep provide the fertiliser and harvest is by hand.

Miguel Torres: Message in a Bottle

Miguel Torres: Message in a Bottle

The more we care about the earth, the better our wine.

Climate change pops up in conversation and some people switch off - nothing to do with me. That’s not the way the Torres wine family see it. With the opening sentence above as motto, they are doing something about it with a programme called Torres and Earth.

Miguel Torres, one of the family’s fifth generation, was in Dublin's Westbury Hotel last week for a tasting but first he spoke of the family and the threats from climate change that it is seeing “more and more”. “Vineyards are very much at risk. Hailstorms are an example.”

Torres are well known for their concern for “the earth and its resources, not only for this generation, but also for future generations”. Climate change has heightened their concern and led to a continuing drive for improved sustainability. For instance they have devised a method of turning vine cuttings into a source of energy, are using solar panels for much the same purpose and have a 2020 target of reducing CO2 emission per bottle by 30% by comparison with 2008.

The Torres family

Fair Trade has long been a Torres concern, beginning soon after their 1979 start in Chile. Miguel explained that Fair Trade was good for their growers there and also for the company itself. If they hadn’t paid a fair price for the grapes, the children of their growers would have left for the cities as has happened elsewhere. Now, seeing their parents fairly paid for their work, enough children stay behind to ensure the future. Torres was the first private company in Chile to be designated Fair Trade.

Back to their base in Catalonia and here they have “recuperated ancient Catalan varieties, 38 in all. Not all are good but six are top quality, very well adapted to a hot and dry climate”. Torres are also experimenting with growing vines at higher levels.

And then there is the never ending problem of disease. Indeed some diseases, particularly fungal, may be due to modern machinery which are rough on the vines. I think we in Ireland have seen that in the way modern machines “batter” the roadside hedges in the process of trimming them. Miguel detailed some trunk diseases, possibly facilitated by the rough "handling" by machines, and said they were working towards a cure. Obviously others are too and he said “one treatment to cure all would be in great demand!”.

Miguel said that while Torres “have lots of vineyards, it is the people that are important. We have 1300 people, a team". The family are of course part of that team. He also said that people buying wine should rely more than the winemaker rather than the appellation. “An appellation can produce some great wines but also some terrible ones’.

Torres in Chile

 “We are very much into organic viticulture, being so aware of global warming. Today's decisions will have to be dealt with down the line.”

Torres are not interested in expanding beyond what the family can handle. “We want to continue as a family, pass it on to the next generation”. One of the benefits of this, at least in the Torres case, is that no less than 95% of profit is re-invested, much of it in research.

They are of course a Spanish family. “Penedes is our hometown and by the way, watch out for a new wine from here next year. It will be called Purgatory, not because we are sinners!”

Torres in California

He called his aunt Marimar an inspiration. She helped boost sales in the US from 1975 and now runs the 57 hectare Marimar Estate in California's Russian River valley, producing mainly Pinot Noir and Chardonnay wines, all organic with a focus now on biodynamic.

“Chile is an ideal country for wine,” said Miguel. “All our vineyards, total 400 hectares, are organic.” They began here in 1979. His father and grandfather brought in the first stainless steel tanks, along with the first new oak casks in over forty years, to revolutionise the industry there. In recognition of that and their long-term commitment, the Chilean government presented Miguel A Torres with the Order of Bernardo O’Higgins in 1996.

There have also been major honours for the family in Catalonia. It seems they contribute wherever they are. The earth could do with more companies like this.

The Bottles

Frustration ran high in the Torres stronghold of Penedes in the late 70s. They were producing what they thought were great wines but where was the recognition?

Then  came the breakthrough, in Paris of all places. Torres entered their Gran Coronas Mas la Plana into the 1979 Gault-Millau blind tasting Wine Olympiad and it won, leaving wines like Chateau Latour and Chateau Haut-Brion behind. The win gave Torres the recognition it craved and the confidence to take on the world.

And from that same 29 hectares vineyard, we had the Mas la Plana 2010, a 100 per cent Cabernet Sauvignon, full of freshness, fruit and spice. Miguel said this was a great wine to celebrate its 40th anniversary - the wine that won in Paris was from 1970.

You could taste why Miguel would be proud of this one but perhaps he was just that little bit prouder of the next, the final red of the tasting. This was the Grans Muralles 2004 and the extra pride was because this was composed of Spanish varieties, including two of those “recuperated”. The two are Garró and Samsó and the other varieties are Monastrell, Garnacha Tinta and Carińena, all of them planted within the walls of this single vineyard, dating from the Middle Ages. The wine is full of character and complex. “Still young with a long life ahead”.

Before these two, I had more or less settled on the Salmos 2012, from their Priorat vineyards, as my favorite. Priorat is one of the smallest appellations and the wine is named after the psalms the original monks sang (they weren’t allowed to talk).

It is a blend from two vineyards, one at 200 metres, the other at 500 (for the Carińena). The other varieties are Garnacha Tinta and Syrah.

Carińena is becoming increasingly important and, for its contribution to colour and acidity, is being used in this particular wine in “increasing proportion and could be a key variety in the future of Priorat.” Just loved its fruit, spice and acidity, suited me very well indeed.

We had started the reds with quite a lovely Tempranillo, the Celeste 2012 from Ribera del Duero. It is made in a Rioja style but is less acidic. It is a light red yet quite complex and “delivers the fruit very well, tannins yes, but quite elegant”.

Miquel in the cellar

Then we went down to Chile for the next red, the Cordillera Carignan 2009 from the Maule Valley. By the way, Miguel advised going to the south of Chile if you do get a chance to visit. The original Carignan vineyards had been abandoned but Torres pruned them and started producing again. This is a very good example, fresh fruit and acidity, tannins, a little spice with a good finish. “Not heavy, but fresh!”

While we sampled the final white, the Jean Leon Vinya Gigi Chardonnay 2013 (Penedes), Miguel revealed that the first Chardonnay vines were “smuggled” into Penedes and, after a struggle, were eventually recognized for appellation purposes. Aromas of tropical fruit with an unctuous creamy palate and a long finish makes this a little bit special.

Another Chardonnay, from the Limari Valley in Chile, had preceded this one. It has been aged for 7 months in French oak (30% new, 70% second year). They are decreasing the oak though. “In Chile, the nicest thing you have is the fruit - no need for make-up!”, said Miguel. “We are trying to keep the acidity and freshness”. And it is fresh with good acidity, great flavor and a little spice. I think I may have a slight preference for this over the Jean Leon.

Priorat

We had started with two grapes that I enjoy: Verdejo and Albarino. First up was the Verdeo 2014 from Rueda. No wood used here at all. The vintage had been “cool”. This was very aromatic and beautifully fresh.

The 2013 Albarino came from Pazo das Bruxas (bruxas means witches!) in Rias Baixas where the grape “is a key variety”. Some grapes for this come from close to the coast (for better acidity), some from a little bit inland (for the body). “You can get red apple here; it has good density and finish”. He told us that Albarino can age well, 7 or 8 years, and can get more complex. This is excellent as it is, with great freshness and flavour.

I know I've picked Salmos as a favourite but to be honest I wouldn't like to leave any of these behind me. It was a great set from Torres. So muchas gracias to Miguel for the talk and the wines and to Findlaters for bringing it all together.

Whites:

Verdeo 2014 (Rueda)

Pazo das Bruxas 2013 (Rias Baixas)

Cordillera Chardonnay 2012 (Limari Valley)

Jean Leon Vinya Gigi Chardonnay 2013 (Penedes)

Reds:

Celeste 2012 (Ribera del Duero)

Cordillera Carignan 2009 (Maule Valley)

Salmos 2012 (Priorat)

Mas la Plana 2010 (Penedes)

Grans Muralles 2004 (Conca de Barbera)

Taste of the Week

Taste of the Week
Fig Cake with Almonds

Taste of the Week comes from Spain, via the shop at the Ballymaloe Cookery School. Just two ingredients make up this beauty: dried figs (90%) and Valencia almonds (10%). Simple but simply delicious!

Three Excellent Whites. Fifteen Euro Each.

Three Excellent Whites

Fifteen Euro Each.

Masi Masianco 2013 (Venezie IGT), 13%, €14.99 Bradley’s

This is a blend of Pinot Grigio and Verduzzo (grown mainly in NE Italy). It is also a blend of freshly picked and semi-dried grapes. Masi say they are experts in “enhancing aromas and tastes using lightly semi dried grapes”. This appassimento leads to a higher concentration of fruit and it seems to work well here.

There are excellent white fruit and blossom aromas and the colour is light gold with a green hue. This is Pinot Grigio plus, with character and concentration, a lip drying acidity and an impressive finalé. Well worth a try and Very Highly Recommended.

Pedra da Agua Albarino 2013 (Rias Baixas DO), 12.5%, €15.20 Karwig Wines

From the green corner of Spain, facing the wet Atlantic and with Portugal to the south, this wine is Very Highly Recommended. It is sharp and tingly with beautiful white fruit flavours, brilliant acidity and a refreshing fresh and clean finish.

I don't take much notice of back labels that talk about local legends rather than the wine. This one though may be different. It mentions a rock in the depths of Galicia and

“......a trail of saline minerals

Arriving fresh and pure.”

May be something in that yarn.

May well be some of those minerals in this wine.

Cuatro Rayas Viñedos Centenarios Verdejo 2012 (Ruedo DO), 12.5%, €14.99, Bubble Bros.

Colour is a medium gold with greenish hue, many microbubbles. It is fresh and powerful on the nose, “a varietal characteristic” I’m told! Quite a mouthful of flavour - melon, citrus, herb (fennel). No shortage of acidity either. It is well balanced, with a little spirtz (those little bubbles earning their keep) and the citrus notes continue right through the long finalé. Refreshing and Very Highly Recommended.

Verdejo is the historic grape of Rueda and the fruit for this was picked from vines with an average age of 80 years, some of them over 100 years. This wine is found in top restaurants in the Basque area and the producers are sponsors of Real Valladolid soccer club. Valladolid are second division, the wine is first!

For your Weekend: One White, One Red

For your Weekend: One White, One Red

Vina del Sopie Verdejo DO Rueda 2013, 13.5% abv, €13.95 Karwig Wines

Venture away from the usual white grapes and you'll be richly rewarded. Especially if you try this one which is one hundred per cent Verdejo (pronounced Ver-deko) and all the grapes are from fifty year old vines.

It is yellow in colour with green tones and looks clean and bright. The nose is rather expressive, white fruits combine with floral aromas, for me it was love at first sniff. And the affair intensified when it hit the palate, smooth and round and again those fruits and indeed floral characters, ending in a long and fruity finish.

The Spanish vineyard recommend pairing it with Mediterranean dishes, vegetables, rice and seafood and flavourful fish and I can agree when they say it is exceptional as an aperitif. Quite delicious all round and very highly recommended.

If you’d like to pick up a red while you’re in Karwigs, check out the Caldora Montepulciano and the Caldora Sangiovese. I’ve had these recently and they are two really lovely reds and each is well priced.

Chateau Lezin, Bordeaux Superieur 2011, 13%, €10.00 (down from 19.99), SuperValu.

Merlot (69%) certainly dominates the blend here. Soft and lush on the palate, the fruit flavours and hints of spice are well balanced, tannins are just about noticeable and it all ends with a persistent finalé.

The renovated winery are very happy with this one, describing it as powerful and complex. Not sure I'd go that far but I'd have no hesitation in recommending it as an excellent example of Bordeaux red.

With the French wine sale still on in SuperValu, you might be tempted to get your white here as well and the one I’d recommend is the Michel Lynch Barrel Select Sauvignon blanc 2012 .

Organic Wines at Karwig

Organic at Karwig Wines

On a recent visit to the Carrigaline HQ of Karwig Wines I was surprised by the amount of organic wines they had on sale. Here are a few that I enjoyed.

At Karwig in Carrigaline

Latué Clearly Organic Tempranillio 2011, vdt Castilla Spain, 13%, €11.75, Karwig Wines

Apparently, this wine is also sold under the Latué label but this Clearly Organic label, reinforced by a Bio collar, is selling better than its unadorned stablemate. It has a bright ruby red colour and has aromas of fruits, including blackberries. This 100 percent Tempranillo is quite pleasant, slightly spicy, with a good finish. A really decent organic wine at a good price and Highly Recommended.

Bourdic

Domaine Bourdic, Octandre 2009, Cotes de Thongue IGT, 13.5%, €13.42 Karwig Wines  

This very likeable red from the Languedoc (near Pezenas) is made from the eight red vines of the domaine. Each variety is vinified separately and blended after 12 months. Cabernet Sauvignon (39%), Cinsault (24) and Tempranillo (15) are the main contributors. The fruit is picked from vines “in the course of conversion to biologique”.

Colour is medium red and the soft subtle aromas are of red fruits. On the palate it is juicy and fruity, easy drinking, well balanced and with a good finish. Highly recommended.

Domaine Bourdic, Density 2010, Cotes de Thongue IGT, 12.5%, €15.29, Karwig Wines

No major complications with this white as just two varieties are used: Vermentino and Roussanne. Colour is a sandy gold (micro bubbles cling to the glass) and the aromas are also rich. The initial contact on the palate is fairly complex, even hints of sweetness, followed by a long and dry finish. Takes a bit of getting used to but Highly Recommended. Maybe I'm a bit biased as I do like these two grape varieties.

Muc Turns Up for Book Launch in Ballymaloe

Muc Turns Up for Book Launch in Ballymaloe

Jamón Ibérico

Muc*, the pig from Buenvino, was in Ballymaloe Cookery School at the weekend. Or at least one of his back legs was. You see, four years back Muc was killed and the long air-drying period began. Before that, he had happily wandered the woods around the big house in the south west of Spain, snouting out the best of nuts, especially those gorgeous acorns, qualifying him for the coveted Ibérico status.

Muc, now a tasty hunk of Jamón Ibérico**, was in Ballymaloe as Buenvino owners, Sam and Jeannie Chesterton, came to have their cookbook, simply named the Buenvino Cookbook, launched by Darina Allen. All the recipes have a Spanish flavour but you can get most if not all the ingredients here.

Quail's eggs

Rory O’Connell certainly did and he and his team cooked up many of the recipes from the book and we were able to enjoy: quails eggs with a pinch of cumin, fresh pickled anchovies, toasted almonds, Almond soup with PX soaked raisins, manchego, spinach with chickpeas, tortillas,  and more, before finishing off with a plate of Paella! All accompanied by Lustau sherry (manzanilla for me) and Vina Herminia wines (a Rueda verdejo and a Rioja red).

Finca Buenvino, a pink washed farm and guesthouse, is in the middle of the Sierra de Aracena nature reserve in Andalusia and the book tells how Jeannie and Sam ended up there and are now regarded as true locals.

Paella

Darina, who has visited the Finca, says Jeannie is a wonderful cook (and she does cookery courses there). Jeannie herself emphasizes that while her cooking is influenced by Spanish methods and ingredients, that this is not a “thoroughbred” Spanish cookbook, rather her take on their way of life and the food they share with their guests.

It was Irish "hatched" Sam who persuaded Jeannie to join him in Buenvino about thirty years ago. It is something of a cook's paradise. “We kill and cure our own Jamón Ibérico and bake wholemeal loaves and Moroccan flatbreads from organic flour...Honey comes from the hives above the orchards, organic vegetables and herbs from the garden. In autumn, wild mushrooms spring up in the woods…”

Darina introduces Sam and Jeannie

The book, published by BFP , runs to over two hundred pages and there are all kinds of tantalising recipes from Tapas to full meals, from  Baked Octopus and potatoes to a Lamb with aubergine tagine, from various treatments of anchovies to a Citrus and Honey Cake, from a Stew of Mixed Fish to the Pear and Almond Tart, from Tortillas to Iberian Pork Fillets with red peppers. There are even some pronunciation tips, for Chorizo for example.

Such variety! And all beautifully illustrated. “Have a great time cooking these recipes” wrote Sam as he and his wife signed the book for us. A great time, maybe even a long time. But it is looking very good indeed.

Jeannie gives her seal of approval to Rory O'Connell's paella

Just two recommendations to end with, there are many.

1 I can't wait to buy this book and be transported back to their little corner of paradise. (Thomasina Miers, founder of Wahaca restaurants).

2 A creative and dedicated cook who understands food with plenty of taste, colour and flair. (Maria Jose Sevilla, Foods and Wines from Spain, Spanish Trade Commission, London).

* Name has been changed!

** Jamón Ibérico puro de bellota is a rare and exclusive air-cured ham. The Ibérico pig is a pure bred, free-ranging animal that feeds mainly on acorns from Holm Oak trees. It is these acorns that give Jamón Ibérico it’s unique smell, taste and feel. The meat is delicate, with a sweet flavour and less salty than Jamón Serrano.