Three Highly Recommended European Whites

Three Highly Recommended European Whites

Catarratto. Vintage 2019

Baglio Bianco Catarratto Terre Siciliane (IGP) 2018, 11%, €19.55 64 Wine Dublin, Bradley’s of Cork, Greenman Dublin, Le Caveau Kilkenny

A few days of skin maceration gives this its amber colour. Colour is not the only result from the three or four days of skin contact, as you’ll note. The nose is rich too, apple and cinnamon in the mix. The palate also is rich and textured. It’s full of flavour and a bit spicy too and it’s dry all the way to the long finish. Highly Recommended.

Bianco is certainly a bit of a misnomer here as this is most definitely an orange wine, a cloudy deep amber in colour, unfined and unfiltered. And Le Caveau say it is a “fantastic introduction” to orange, “both from a flavour and price point of view”.

Orange wines also have a higher level of tannins, more like red wines, and indeed can match foods where previously red would have been the only choice. Some orange wines can be tough going if you’re not used to them but this one is quite easy-drinking. 

Pairings suggested by the importers are free range pork with apple sauce; a herby roast chicken; and cheeses such as Durrus. Catarratto, by the way, is Sicily’s, and Italy’s, most popular white wine grape. Baglio also produce a red from the Nero D’Avola grape. Their organic Rosso is fresh and fruity and also a delicious easy drinker.

Millet Sauvignon Blanc Côtes de Gascogne (IGP) 2019, 11.5%, €12.95, Wines Direct

Colour is a very pale straw.  The fresh vibrancy of the aromas (floral notes, pear) make an immediate impression, a good one, and that follows through onto the lively palate where citrus fruits and an invigorating acidity go all the way through to the decent finish. 

Quite a lovely wine from Armagnac country where much of the grape harvest goes to the distilleries to make the local brandy (don’t ever ever call for a Cognac around here!). Millet themselves say they are devoted to “the production of Armagnac”. A very enjoyable wine and Highly Recommended. Must try and remember this for Sauvignon Blanc Day next year.

Millet recommend serving at 9 ° C, alone as an aperitif, or with a meal. “It harmoniously accompanies starters, goat cheese, Landes asparagus, fish and shellfish.” Importers Wines Direct point in the direction of Rich Fish, Light Fish and Shellfish, Hard Cheese, Fresh Greens

Esteban Martin “Viña Canal” blanco Cariñena (DOP) 2018, 12.5%, €* Wines Direct

This blend of Chardonnay and Macabeo has a light straw colour. Pleasant, if delicate, aromas with both floral and fruity notes. Lively and fruity (tropical hints), good acidity as well and a decent finish. Excellent aperitif and should go well with fish and shellfish. Versatile and Highly Recommended.

Cariñena is a Spanish Denominación de Origen Protegida (DOP) for wines produced in the area of the same name which is in the province of Zaragoza (Aragón, Spain). It was awarded DO status in 1932. 

€* Bought in mixed case.

Cheers. Latest Episode #4 . Keeping You Up To Date With Wine, Beers, and Spirits

Cheers. Latest Edition: #4 Keeping You Up To Date With Wine, Beers, and Spirit

Kylie's Rosé Passion

To coincide with her birthday on May 28th, pop icon Kylie Minogue launches her signature French rosé in collaboration with Benchmark Drinks.

Kylie Minogue Rosé is an elegant, bespoke blend made from Carignan and Cabernet Sauvignon grapes sourced from the sun-drenched southern French Coast, a region known for its innovative viticulture. With a deliciously juicy and fresh first impression, the elegant blend features a beautifully pale pink shade with delicate, alluring aromas of fresh summer berries and white blossom, refined and refreshing on the palate with a fruity, crisp finish.

The wine is beautifully presented in a long-neck curved bottle with an engraved label featuring Kylie’s signature, finished off with a bespoke pearlescent capsule.

Kylie Minogue’s debut Rosé Vin de France will be launching in Ireland on www.WinesofTheWorld.ie and Carry Out Off Licences at an RRP of €12.99. 

Bank Holiday Offers from O'Briens

See more here

Bangin' Biodynamics - Mixed Case From Wines Direct

It is no secret we are unabashedly boastful about Biodynamic wine and their brilliant winemakers. You can always pick out the Biodynamic vineyard over their neighbours. The Biodynamic vineyard is alive with bees and wildflowers. As you walk the rows, one experiences a real joy of the senses visually and aromatically. Details on case here. 

Bank Holiday Sunshine From Red Nose Wine

What a week. The sunshine is definitely helping. And it’s a Bank Holiday even if there is nowhere to go. With that in mind, why not treat yourself this weekend. More and more local businesses are doing takeaway so support one of them, give yourself a break and treat yourself to some sun worshipping wines on this strangest of June Bank Holiday weekends.

We have a big delivery due in for the weekend and some of the highlights include. There are loads of Red coming too, but it is too hot to think about them as I type. More here.

Chateau Feely's Aroma Brain Tasting Experience 12 June

Join us live for a one hour tasting experience- introduction to wine tasting and developing your ‘Aroma Brain’. A journey into wine tasting with a side of aromatherapy. This is complementary to the 2nd event but can be taken separately. More info here.

Wine from a can? Could you? Can You?

Craft beer drinkers have had it their own way for too long. That’s the view of drinks industry veteran Karen Hardwick who believes that the moment in time for quality wine in a can has finally arrived. Zeitgeist Ünion – or ZÜ for short – is her company and its debut wine is Grüner Veltliner, a wine that is loved by Anne Krebiehl MW, who caught up with Hardwick to find out more about ZÜ and how the project came about and why we will all be drinking wine from a can in the not too distant future. Read more. Via The Buyer

Time for US Wine to Follow the EU

The one grocery store item that gets away with revealing nothing about its contents is wine. Food products are required by law in most countries to reveal everything in them. But wine has always gotten a pass.

The EU is moving to change that. Read more here via Wine-Searcher

Friday evening at Greene's. Almost like old times. Almost!

Friday evening at Greene's.

Almost like old times. Almost! 

In the car of a Friday evening and heading downtown. Park up and walking over to Greene’s Restaurant in MacCurtain Street. It’s almost like old times. 

Almost. We have clicked and are on the way to collect, all comfortably within the 5km limit. It is our first venture into the city since the lockdown began and, as it turned out, quite a worthwhile one.

You know there’s been some dispute among the restaurant fraternity about the value of click and collect or simply takeaway. But it keeps open the links with both suppliers and customers and also keeps some staff involved. And it also makes the possibility of slippage to processed food a little more remote, the processed food that ace American chef Dan Barber called “the lowest bar”, “It’s an insult.” (New Yorker May 24th, 2020)

Greene’s is one of the restaurants nearest to us and you just knew, takeout or not, there’d be no slippage in standards - just because there is a crisis doesn't mean you can't cook creatively - and so it proved as the quality of food they provided was so much better than regular takeaway. 

We stepped under the arch and entered to a big smiling welcome and were presented with our dinner in a long sleek box, packed full of good things to eat, each section neatly stored separately within. 

And inside also was one other very important item: a typed sheet with details of each element along with detailed instructions on how to finish the cooking! And, if you needed more help, you could look up Chef Bryan McCarthy’s video instructions available on both their Instagram and Facebook. 

Would you like a wine to go with that? No bother. Have a look at somm Frank’s suggestions videos on Facebook and make your choice. And of course the crew in Cask will sort out a cocktail for you.

At present, they are doing "Greene’s and Cask @ Home" three days a week: Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The menu has variations each day and vegetarians are also catered for. 

Black Pudding and Pork Belly Beignets was our chosen starter and that came with an apple and celeriac salad with a superb dressing. Eight minutes later (that’s how long it took to heat up the beignets) we were tucking into it.  No bother admitting this was different class, even the salad came totally alive with that dressing and the beignets, with an aioli mayo, were also superb. A very satisfactory beginning indeed!

The other starter available was a Ballyhoura Mountain Mushroom Risotto (with pickled mushroom, Cep powder, and Coolea Cheese). Next time!

A break of ten minutes or so then as we “worked” on the main course: the Venison Pie. Would probably have been a few minutes less had we chosen the Pan Seared Hake (with Dashi cream and pea risotto). The third choice was the Vegetarian Jackfruit and Chickpea Stew (also about 10 minutes).

Anyhow, back to the very satisfying pie! Terrific chunks of meat with jus, big cubes of root vegetables and broccoli, not forgetting the spuds and extra mash. Superb. And a nicely judged quantity also.

The offer is two courses for two people for forty euro. You may also add sides or extras, maybe a meal for a 3rd person. Friday’s dessert offers were a Summer Berry Cheesecake, Sweet Woodruff Panna Cotta and Chocolate Brownie.

Didn’t get to study the wine list but one that I can recommend is the unoaked Flor de Crasto, a young, fruit driven easy-drinking Portuguese red wine produced from local grapes (Tinta Roriz, Touriga Franca, Touriga Nacional, Vinhas Velhas).

Our first experience of Click & Collect turned out to be a winner. We’ll be back to MacCurtain Street!

* Click and Collect at Greene’s and quite a few other restaurants use software provided by TablePath. I had some info up on that recently and you may check it out here. 

Greene's Restaurant

A Couple Of Superb Reds from Argentina and Austria

A Couple Of Superb Reds from Argentina and Austria

Susana Balbo Crios Malbec Mendoza 2018, 14%, €16.75 Wines Direct

The aromas, warm, moderately spicy and massively welcoming, are the stand-out feature of this dark-red/purple Malbec from Mendoza, crafted by Susana Balbo, one of the best known wine people in Argentina. It is warm too on the palate, full of sweet red fruit flavours (plum and blackcurrant), again that spice, dark and delicious, and a terrific harmonious finish as well. Very Highly Recommended. 

Importers Wines Direct recommend pairing it with Pasta and Pizza, Game, Beef and Lamb. The vineyard tell us that it has spent 9 months in 100 % French oak, and they put Tuna steak, lamb, hamburgers on their matching shortlist. 

The Crios series of wines is aimed at connecting with “young, adventurous wine drinkers looking for unique varietals and regions, as well as with those seeking reliable, quality wines that fit their budget”. Reckon a lot of the recent “cocooners” would have a keen interest here as well.

Susana Balbo, the first female enologist in Argentina after graduating with honours from Don Bosco University in Mendoza in 1981, is an Argentinean game changer “of incredible skill and experience” according to Wines of South America. She is regularly hired as a consultant abroad and has made wine in Australia, California, Chile, France, Italy, South Africa and Spain. Dominio del Plata, her own label, is among the country’s most successful, with her Malbec and Crios Torrontes its signature wines.

Wellanschitz Neckenmarkt Zweigelt Klassik (Burgenland, Austria) 2016, 13%, €17.75 Wines Direct

The Zweigelt grape is a brilliantly hardy grape that is well suited to the Austrian climate and it is the most widely planted red grape there. It was created in 1922 from a crossing between Saint-Laurent and Blaufrankisch. According to Hugh Johnson and Jancis Robinson, the terroir here is ideal for the red grape: In this landscape, which is not unlike the Médoc, red grapes ripen reliably every year.

Colour is a dark ruby. Attractive bouquet of ripe dark berries. Medium bodied, it is juicy, fruity (blackberries, cherries, raspberries) and nicely spicy on the palate, very fresh too with engaging medium acidity and a long dry finish, tannins integrated. Highly Recommended.

Should be perfect with the foods suggested by importers Wines Direct: spicy food, soft cheese, pork and poultry, beef and lamb. Serve at 14-16 degrees. Note also that it is vegan friendly.

This classic Zweigelt was fermented spontaneously in stainless steel and then traditionally matured in large wooden barrels. “The work of the winemaker is full of humility and awe. Any manipulation, falsification or acquisition, which would alter the cultural asset of the wine are prohibited at Wellanschitz vineyards.” This is the real thing from the Austrian wine-maker.

Cheers. Latest Episode.

Cheers. Latest Episode #1
Keeping You Up To Date With Wine, Beers, and Spirits

Rioja and Haro's Old Railway Station. New Wines and Old 

Spanish winemakers have often been criticized for failing to join forces to promote their regions, but perhaps last week’s tasting at Haro’s Barrio de la Estación, an event abut which Yolanda Ortiz de Arri has reported extensively in SWL, may serve to change a few things. Beyond the uniqueness of this hundred-year-old distinguished neighbourhood founded around a railway station, we saw strength through unity in the tastings we attended. The diversity of styles ranged form unique, long-aged reds to modern and even exotic wines. Read more from this excellent article here.

The Buyer
Now New Yorkers are hardly renowned for their quiet and unassuming manner. You can normally hear one coming from a block or two away. But its winemakers, up until very recently, have been particularly shy compared to their counterparts on the West Coast. At least when it comes to exports and finding their way on to premium restaurant wine lists in key cities around the world.  That’s all about to change as New York State has become one of the most coveted regions in the US for aspiring winemakers who are in search of unique soils and a cool climate to make wine.The next step is telling buyers outside the US about the wines they are missing out on, which is what the latest The Buyer’s debate with key importers was all about. Here is the first part of a two part report on a tasting and debate held with leading distributors and merchants just prior to the lockdown.

Wines Direct Ireland have an organic case to make!

White wine from Priorat is not the norm but Mas d'en Gil vineyard Grenache and Viognier are grown at one of the highest points with a constant regulating breeze from the Mediterranean. The result is a beautiful mineral palate with a Mediterranean herb finish. See more here


Wine Australia

Vintage wrapping up in Australia

It has been a cool summer and autumn by Australian standards and that combined with the dry weather is leading to reports of an extraordinary season in terms of quality.

Although not yet complete, it is clear that vintage 2020 is delivering exceptional quality fruit although yields are down. Some regions have finished vintage, whilst others are still wrapping up. You can read more in these reports for Margaret River, McLaren Vale and Coonawarra.

We will be collating information from the regions and we hope to publish our 2020 vintage report online in July. 

Wine Searcher

Clean Power of Pisa Trumps Chianti

But where/what is Terre di Pisa?

"As you can tell from the name, it's near the town of Pisa, which is famous for its leaning tower, in Tuscany. It's just north of the Bolgheri appellation, which is known for its Bordeaux grape varieties, and in fact there is plenty of Cabernet and Merlot in Terre di Pisa, along with plenty of Sangiovese, because it's Tuscany. The Chianti Classico DOC is not far away, just on the other side of Florence."

Read more here.

Chateau Feely Virtual Wine Experience

Are you wondering how to celebrate a key event with family and friends? Let us organise a Virtual Wine Experience Celebration for you and your guests. We ship small wine packs to all members of your party and organise a celebratory virtual wine tasting event together. More details on this and other wine experiences here.

The Buyer

Why regionality is next step for New Zealand’s Sauvignon Blanc 

Last week, in the first in a series of webinars, New Zealand Winegrowers asked if consumers and the trade can ‘get past the gooseberry’ to talk about Sauvignon Blanc as a wine in its own right. Jane Skilton MW joined three master sommeliers John Szabo, David Keck and Ronan Sayburn, to debate the issue in a debate that was attended by 500 participants worldwide, including Peter Ranscombe...Read More

Waterford Whisky

The old proverb of “March, in like a lion, out like a lamb” is fitting to describe the weather conditions during the sowing window for spring malting barley in 2020. Wet and cold weather in the first fifteen days of March prevented any ploughing, cultivation or sowing from taking place in the fields. However, no rainfall events in Leinster after St. Patricks Day, combined with higher than average levels sunshine and cold winds, enabled sowing to commence from March 22nd. First out of the blocks to sow this spring for Waterford were growers Barry Ashmore and John Tynan. No rainfall for the remaining nine days in March enabled tremendous progress to be made and all the conventional barley fields for the distillery to be sown by April 1st. This is, by far, the most condensed sowing period relative to the five previous seasons. 

Read more here 

Muscato the link in these distinctive whites from Spain and Italy.

Muscato the link in these distinctive whites

 from Spain and Italy.

There is no one "true" Muscat, but rather a great many incarnations, each with its own regional nuance and character, according to Wine-Searcher.com. Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains is known as Moscato (bianco) in Italy. Moscato d'Asti is a well-known Italian example, Muscat de Beaumes de Venise in Provence is a French one, both sweet. Muscat also features in Las Cuadras (you'll note its exotic aromas) but Viognier is the main grape here and the wine is dry.

Las Cuadras “Viognier and Muscat A Petits Grains” Costers Del Segre (DO) 2018, 12%, €14.95 Wines Direct 

Valva Martínez de Toda is a young and innovative winemaker responsible for this distinctive and impressive Catalan white wine Las Cuadras, a blend of Viognier and Muscat.

Light straw is the colour, with a tint of green. Fresh and pleasant aromas of exotic fruit, touch of citrus. A little tingle on the introduction and then that juicy fruit sweeps across, distinctive, delicate and delicious, some sweet notes too, but there’s a notable acidity there also, right the way through to the moderately lengthy finish. Highly Recommended. Nice to have a few of these handy for summer days in the back-garden.

The vineyards that produce Las Cuadras are located in the Costers del Segre area of Catalonia in north eastern Spain. The name means 'Banks of the Segre' – a river which originates in the Pyrenees and is a tributary of the Ebro. The large Raimat estate is the best known in the DO which shares some of its vineyard with the Cava region.

Importers Wines Direct recommend pairing it with: Spicy Food, Pork and Poultry, Light Fish and Shellfish and Hard Cheese

Bera Moscato d'Asti DOCG 2018, 5% abv, €17.95 Wines Direct.

Rich aromas, mainly floral, (and a bubble or two as well hits the nostrils) in this light gold low alcohol wine from Italy. The aromas persist as you sip. Bubbles galore but nothing too sparkly (Frizzante rather than Spumante) and not overly sweet either because there is a balancing acidity. A really lovely light tasting wine made with the Moscato grape. Recommended.

Versatile too. Jancis Robinson says it reminds her that wine can bring you joy without having to be serious. And recommends it for Breakfast (even the Full English) and Brunch. 

Importers Wine Direct propose pairing it with Soft cheese, game and dessert while the producers suggest matching it with desserts and in particular with creams, fruit tarts, and pastries. Serving temperature - 6 to 10 degrees.

Just to give you a rough guide to the degree of sweetness, the Asti residual sugar is 130 g/l while in Sauternes is can be anywhere from 120 to 220 g/l;  Beaumes de Venise is 110 g/l; Coke, by the way, is 113.

Outstanding Dinner in Celtic Ross Kingfisher Restaurant

Outstanding Dinner in Celtic Ross Kingfisher Restaurant

Dome of delight. Irish Coffee Mousse.

There are some very accomplished chefs working in hotels and quite a few of them, Kevin O'Sullivan at the Garryvoe, Gemma Murphy at The Maryborough, Ciaran Scully at The Bayview and Stuart Bowes at Barnabrow are local examples that spring to mind, seem to fall under the radar, especially by comparison with their counterparts in standalone restaurants. I am thinking of this the other night in the Kingfisher Restaurant an the Celtic Ross where Executive Head Chef Alex Petit and Head Chef Shane Deane are offering their amazing West Cork Spring Menu.

It is short and tight, packed with local produce, and executed with top notch skill. The result is a meal that you’d be lucky to find in well-known standalone restaurants around the country. And not just one meal. Because, while the menu is short, there are enough combinations to enticingly engage you and your palate over multiple visits!

Monkfish

There are two evening menus in the hotel, one for the restaurant, one for the bar. We were heading for the restaurant and so picked from the West Cork Spring Menu 2020, which offers two courses for €31.00, three for €36.00.

Water, breads and the menu are quickly on the table and are soon followed by a pork based Amuse Bouche. They have a well balanced wine list but we hold off until we’ve chosen the food and we do that reasonably quickly. CL picks a red wine, a velvety soft and flavoursome Ciu Ciu Bacchus, Montepulciano, from the Marche in Italy. I’m on fish with different sauces for the night so take a punt on the rich Little Rascal Chardonnay from Victoria in Australia, a little cold at the start but soon warms up and blossoms into a little beauty as they might say down under.

Egg

This menu is available from Thursday to Saturday evenings and has four choices for each course. My starter is a good as anything I’ve eaten anywhere on the island in recent years. Poached monkfish in saffron with Beluga lentil caviar, fermented lemon aioli, charred Waterfall Farms broccoli, and radish. An amazing combination, pleasing to the eye, the palate and further down!

And CL feels much the same about her Sally’s smoked haddock Scotch egg - I reckon you’ll know Sally the smoker! It comes in a leek soup, curry oil, pickled golden raisins, and crispy leeks. Another imaginative combination! Other starters on the menu were Skeaghanore Goose Liver Parfait and The Waterfall Farm Carrot Dip.

Lamb

We’re on a roll now. And the high standard continues. My mains pick is Pan Roasted Cod (bouillabaisse, local wild garlic gnocchi, cavolo nero, saffron rouille). All the elements are spot on, each playing a part. Put them all together and you have a symphony of flavour sensations in the dish and it also looks well. Probably dish of the year so far!

Our other main course was Confit Drimoleague Lamb shoulder with puffed barley, carrot purée, charred pointed cabbage, reduced braising jus. The kitchen is playing a blinder here, scoring every time with delicious well-presented dishes. Other mains courses are Salt Baked Celeriac and Duo of Rosscarbery Sirloin of Beef and Featherblade.

Cod

Warm Orange marmalade pudding 

Time now for the boys to step back and allow Pastry Chef Alicja Samulik take the spotlight. Her new Irish Coffee Mousse is amazing, the perfect amalgam of white chocolate and Irish coffee, dark chocolate and hazelnut biscuit, honey and oat tuille and so much more.

We share that gem and also the equally delicious, if in a  different way, Warm Orange Marmalade Pudding with five spice créme Anglaise and rhum raisin ice cream, all excellent ingredients but superb in ensemble. Thumbs up all around for these two. Also available are Baked Lemon Tart and a West Cork cheeseboard that features Vintage Carbery Cheddar, Gubbeen, and Milleens.

As you can see, they’ve got quite a team assembled in that kitchen, and the results on the plate are up there with the best of them.

Two Superb Reds in my Mystery Case from Wines Direct

The Mystery Case

I've often seen Wines Direct advertise their Mystery Case, six reds and six wines, quality guaranteed with twenty five per cent off and free delivery. Sounds good and this time I ordered one. No regrets so far! Au contraire. The first two opened turned out to be two gems, one from Italy, the other from Spain.

Nicodemi “Le Murate” Colline Teramane Montepulciano D’Abruzzo (DOCG) 2017, 13.5%, €15.60 Wines Direct

Abruzzo is a DOC zone in the east of Italy. It borders the Adriatic and has the Apennines to the west, Puglia to the south. In and near the mountains, wild horses and bears may be seen here, and certainly saffron. Our producers, Nicodemi, are an hour away from the mountains, twenty minutes from the coast. And this wine is made from the Montepulciano grape. By the way, just to confuse things, there is a town called Montepulciano in Tuscany, also well known for its wines!

The Colline Teramane is a sub zone of the general Montepulciano zone and has that extra letter (G) at the end indicating its superiority. This particular wine is smooth and medium-bodied with a dark ruby colour. Black berry fruit and ripe plum feature in the attractive aromas, cracked black pepper notes there too. No shortage of rounded flavours on the warm and enticing palate, and it’s round and smooth right to the very satisfactory finish, soft tannins and a soft mouthfeel also. Soft and generous as I’ve come to expect from these wines in general and this is one of the better examples. VHR

Foods pairings recommended by Wines Direct include: Spicy Food, Pasta and Pizza, Hard Cheese, Game. Speciality foods of the region include lamb (they have one called Abbachio al Diavolo, hot suff!), Scamorza (check out the Toons Bridge Dairy version of this cheese), mortadella (spicy, garlicky), pork liver sausage, dried pasta and saffron. Serve at 16 to 18 degrees.

The Nicodemi estate abides by all the rules that organic farming demands, leaving wild grasses to grow around the rows, oxygenating and enriching the soil. “We believe in biodiversity and even our new vines are selected from our heirloom cultivars, because something that was good in the past can play a role in the future…. With careful actions, respectful of the grapes, our experience helps us turn them into wine without pushing too hard”. Nicodemi are also well-known for their Trebbiano.

Bodegas Maximo Abete ‘Guerinda El Maximo’ Tinto Crianza Navarra DO 2016, 14.5%, €18.55 Wines Direct.

This red blend, of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Garnacha, is named in honour of the family’s father and was indeed the first wine Maximo made here in Vallervitos, “an incredible place” in the middle of the Sierra de Guerinda. His moustache was also of the large variety and an illustration dominates the label of the tallish bottle with a plastic disc over the top of its cork rather than foil or similar. 

The wine is dark, close to purple, with a  crimson rim. Nose of dark fruit, some herbal notes also. Complex and smooth, blackberry fruit and peppery on the palate, it has a lively acidity and ripe tannins, all echoed in a persistent finish. Very Highly Recommended.

The fruit is grown at altitude (700m) and the importers say that El Maximo showcases Navarra’s strengths as a DO. It certainly does. Recommended pairings are soft cheese, game, beef and lamb. Open 30 minutes before serving at the recommended temperature is 16 to 18 degrees.