Good Morning!

This week has turned into a week of Spanish wines. I have no idea why or how, but I am immersed in the wines and have 3 books open on my desk right now about Spain. What I think caused this whole Spanish wine thing was the buying of a case of Albarino. While I was picking up my case I was standing the wine store and a dude mistakenly thought I worked there and started peppering me with questions. I wanted to help the guy, but my knowledge was lacking, so I have been reading like a crazy woman ever since.

I think I would like to work in a high end wine shop but without the snobbery. I think it would be great fun to work there and when someone said what’s this taste like, we could just open a bottle and do a little “research”. Anyway, the man ask me what does Ribera del Duero mean and what kinda taste was that grape.

I said Ribera del Duero was a place, not a grape and it’s in Spain and it’s known for it’s rugged landscape and red wines. That was the extent of my knowledge. He said thanks and waited for the real clerk to come back and help him. I came home and hit a few websites and books and of course went and bought some Ribera del Duero so I had a taste history and some notes from the wine.

The first thing I learned about wines from Ribera del Duero is no white wines of any real importance are produced there. It is located north of Madrid by about 80 miles and many castles are located there and it is super rocky dramatic land. (I kinda knew this stuff already). Next, I found out these grapes are grown on really old vines and produce 3 major red grapes; Cabernet Sauvignon, Garnacha, and Tinto Fino (a generic version of Tempranillo). And most wines are aged in oak for extended periods.There are about 100 wine estates in the Ribera del Duero. These are known to be some of the most expensive Spanish wines produced.

This region has really cold winters and brutally hot summers. If you want to try a white from this area, the neighbor to Ribera del Duero is Rueda and they have had some nice success with the Verdejo grape. It is a crisp, fresh and fruity white wine. I was reading that there are sheep all over Ribera del Duero and one of the best pairings ever is roasted lamb and a beautiful glass of their red. I will have to try this for myself and report back.

So, I am ready to start my tasting research…I will let you know what my mouth thinks!

Much LOVE and wine,

Tammi