Spain: Sherry and Montilla; Fino, Manzanilla, Amontillado

I'll spare you the full-on editorial rant about how underrated proper dry Sherry is, and what a memorable wine and food moment it can be sitting outside a tapas bar in the southern Spanish evening sunshine sipping chilled Fino and nibbling on roast almonds and plump olives; as it's been said a thousand times before (1001 now - Ed.). So I'll cut to the chase with a dozen recommended Fino and Manzanilla (always dry) and dry Amontillado (comes in different guises but starts off dry) sherries, from mega brands to obscure special bottlings that make you go “wow” (flavour- and price-wise). Plus an aged dry style from the lesser-known Montilla region located 200+ km to the north-east of Jerez country not far from the beautiful city of Córdoba. All these wines are made from the Palomino grape variety except the latter made from Pedro Ximénez (used for rich sweet Sherries although the mainstay in Montilla for all styles).

"What is Palo Cortado?" video from www.bodegastradicion.es

Bodegas Barón Manzanilla Pasada Barón – Lively toasted almond notes, yeasty and intense vs rich and nutty vs dry and steely, delicious crisp finish. Yum. €20 Wines on the Green / Celtic Whiskey Shop Dublin, UK importer: Morgenrot Manchester.

Emilio Hidalgo El Tresillo 1874 Amontillado Viejo – Amazing aromas, pecan and caramel yet it's pretty dry and intense, concentrated 'extract' vs mouth-puckering 'salty' tang, very long finish. Superb. €70 as above, £70 Wine Bear, US c. $60 + tax.
Hidalgo La Gitana Manzanilla – Lighter than I remembered, delicate salty almond flavours and subtle tangy finish. Widely available.

Equipo Navazos La Bota de Fino Amontillado No. 45 Montilla (Pedro Ximénez) – Quite golden yet intense nutty straw profile, huge flavour vs crisp elegant and long. Wow. €47 as above; US: $66-$70 K&L Wines CA, the Spanish Table WA & CA; £38 Swig London.
Bodegas Tradición Palo Cortado 30 years old - More 'cooked' nose with walnut, intense mix of sweet 'n' sour, caramel vs salty, very long. Serious stuff. €85 as above, US c. $100 importer Valkyrie Selections, UK c. £70 Farr Vintners.

Gonzales Byass Tio Pepe Fino – Nice tangy yeasty almond notes, intense and nutty with crisp 'salty' finish. Widely available.

Alvaro Domecq La Janda Fino – Aromatic smoked almond flavours with almost sea salt edges, fresh light and dry with yeasty nutty finish. About €7-€10 in Europe.

Lustau La Ina Fino – Smoked almond tones, very intense and tasty with nice tangy length; very good for a huge brand. Widely available.

Fernando de Castilla Fino – Restrained nose, oilier style palate with smoked almond flavours, softer and less intense perhaps but still very tasty. £10.99 Virgin Wines.

Fernando de Castilla Fino En Rama - Aged 4-5 years and not fined or filtered. Quite elegant and more rounded, nuttier hazelnut notes, subtle intensity on the finish. UK £10+, US $22.

Delgado Zuleta Goya XL Manzanilla En Rama – Toasted almond, tangy and 'salty' with softer finish than some of the others, good though. UK £18-£19 UltraComida, Quintessentially Wine.

Other resources: WineSearcher.com, SherryNotes.com, jerez-xeres-sherry.blogspot.co.uk

Wine tastings & workshops Belfast update: Oct 2015 to Feb 2016

I've changed one date - the first autumn workshop has been put back a couple of weeks into October - on the forthcoming WES NI wine tasting and workshop programme, and added some new dates for your diary in the New Year 2016! Booking options are found at the bottom:

Saturday 10 October: Spain and Portugal one-day workshop £90

"We'll taste and talk about a dozen or so red, white, rosé and fortified wines selected to highlight the very different regions, grape varieties and wine styles found across the 'Iberian peninsular'. This will include well-known 'classics' such as Rioja, Port​/Douro Valley and (real) Sherry​; but throwing in a few surprises too like Galici​a and Vinho Verde for dry whites, serious reds from Dao or the Alentejo and not forgetting the wine 'super-state' of Catalonia, home to some great reds, whites and Cava..." Includes two-course lunch at the hotel.

​​Thursday 29 October​ 7-9 pm​: ​​France vs ​​the 'New World' classic grape varieties tutored tasting £28.95

​"​We'll compare three or four pairs of well-known grape varieties from different regions of France ​with​ certain Southern Hemisphere countries, 'classic' styles of say Chardonnay, Riesling, Syrah/Shiraz, Malbec... (two of each). Which is 'better', or are they just different?!"​

​​Saturday 14 November ​11 am-​2 pm​: "off the beaten track" ​wine tasting and ​lunch £49

"Come and explore the lesser-known, although certainly not less exciting, wine world with this morning tasting of about eight diverse high-quality wines from countries such as Lebanon, Austria, Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia, Greece and fine English sparkling wine too. Includes a two-course lunch at the hotel afterwards."

​​Thursday 26 November 7-9 pm: Italian wines​ £28.95

​"​At​ ​this wines of Italy ​evening tasting​, we'll take you on a guided tour around several of this very​ varied country's wine producing regions ​by​ tasting and talking about ​a carefully selected range of​ tasty red and white​ wines. These will probably include classics from northern Italy, such as Piemonte and Veneto, central Italy such as Tuscany and Umbria, and the deep south e.g. Sicily, ​Campania,​ Puglia..."

Saturday 30 January 2016 one-day workshop (topic to be confirmed) - £90 including at least a dozen wines tasted with your tutor, two-course lunch at the hotel and course manual.

"Essential Wine Tasting" five-week course 2016 - £125

Thursday evenings (7-9pm approx) February 4, 11, 18, 25 and March 3. Full details are on our website:

wine-education-service.co.uk/introductory

The venue for all these events is the Ramada Encore Hotel in Belfast's Cathedral Quarter. More info and online booking on our site:

Wine-education-service.co.uk/wine-tasting-belfast

Facebook.com/WineEducationServiceNI (you have to sign in to FB). Or you can pay by card or your own Paypal account using the PP button below (you don't need an account to do this though). You can change the quantity of tickets on the secure web form:

Select event:

Spain Portugal workshop 10 Oct £90.00 GBP France vs New World 29 Oct £28.95 GBP Off the beaten track 14 Nov £49.00 GBP Italian Wines £28.95 GBP Sat. workshop 30/01/16 £90.00 GBP

Spain: Monastrell - Alicante, Castilla La Mancha

Here's a swift trio of Spanish reds celebrating the moody Monastrell variety, aka Mourvedre or Mataro, which is grown substantially along and inland from Spain's Mediterranean coast, especially further south. The first one comes from near Albacete just inside the Castilla-La Mancha region on the border with Murcia, the grape's spiritual home perhaps, directly inland from Alicante where the other two are from.

Pago de Montal 2010 Monastrell - Smoky liquorice and peppery wild bramble fruits, firm solid and powerful with nice lingering dark vs savoury fruit. €10.99 ? Mitchell & Son, Dublin; £9.75 Martinez Wines, England.

Bodega Vinessens Sein 2011 Monastrell-Syrah - Enticing dark berry / cherry and black olive, concentrated with lightly firm tannins still, attractive savoury vs dark fruit finish. Good. €17.99 Wines on the Green/Celtic Whiskey Shop, Dublin.

Bodegas Artadi Laderas el Sequé 2012 Monastrell - Quite juicy fruity for Monastrell, more 'serious' on the palate with savoury black olive vs dark fruit and a touch of grip. Nice Med red. c. €15/£10 ? James Nicholson, Northern Ireland.

Spain, Catalonia: Priorat, Montsant, Terra Alta, Penedès, Empordà

Hot on the heels of the last post about my updated Cava guide (click there), here are fifteen more tasty Catalan recommendations sourced from fashionable (and dear) Priorat and the (better-value) neighbouring wine areas of Montsant and Terra Alta (inland and west of Tarragona), Penedès (west/north-west of Barcelona) and the perhaps lesser-known (name- and wine-wise at least as it's very touristy) Empordà region (Catalunya's north-eastern corner bordering France Med-side). Some of the prices indicated below were taken from Wine Searcher.

From facebook.com/lafouceller

Priorat
Clos Mogador 2010 (Garnacha, Carinena, Cabernet, Syrah) - a "famous" vineyard I believe, owned by René Barbier. Dense rich red, fair amount of coconut oak but it's intense concentrated and extracted, firm and fresh mouth-feel layered with dark cherry/berry fruit and savoury flavours, powerful and still young on the finish. Expensive naturally: about €70 in Ireland, at least £50 in the UK and $75-$100 in USA.
Álvaro Palacios 2012 Camins del Priorat (Garnacha, Carinena) - Delicious wild berry and herb fruit, pure and tasty, concentrated too with nice grip and lively finish. €27, £17.50, $21-$23
Cartoixa de Montsalvat 2009 Mont Classic (Garnacha, Carinena) - Baked maturing liquorice and tobacco aromas, extracted and concentrated, big vs softening, power and length; quite a mouthful! €22, $32-$34
Bernard Magrez 2010 Herencia del Padri (Carinena, Garnacha, Merlot, Cabernet, Syrah) - Light coconut tones and fairly perfumed ripe berry and cassis, beginning to mature turning savoury and tobacco, powerful vs soft tannins, quite elegant actually. €21.25, $20
Bernard Magrez 2005 Alegría (Garnacha, Carinena, Merlot, Cabernet) - Fairly oaky still actually vs smoky maturing dark fruit, quite concentrated, some grip still although nice texture and balance, coconut hints merge with lush spicy fruit. €49.50

Montsant

Cellers Baronia del Montsant 2010 Cims del Montsant (Garnacha, Carinena) - maturing smoky tobacco nose, sweet liquorice fruit vs a touch of grip, attractive savoury finish, drinking well now. €16.99, $15-$20

Catalunya

Ramón Roqueta 2012 Vinya Nostra Nit de Tardor (Garnacha, Samsó) - Dark berries with liquorice and spice, nice fruity mouthful, fairly soft yet quite concentrated with lingering dark fruit and wild herb flavours. €17

Ramón Roqueta 2013 Vinya Nostra Xarel.lo (100% Xarel.lo) - Aromatic green fruit with yeast-lees edges, crisp and zesty mouth-feel vs fuller oilier side, fair weight and flavour in the end. Nice white. €17

Catalunya/Penedès
Torres 2013 Vina Esmeralda (Moscatel, Gewurztraminer) - Aromatic Muscat nose with a touch of lychee, light and off-dry with zesty finish. €13.99, £7.50-£8.50
Torres 2011 Coronas Crianza (Tempranillo, Cabernet) - Vibrant berry fruit and subtle oak notes, tasty fruity vs savoury palate, lovely balance and style. £8-£9, €13.99
Torres 2010 Gran Sangre de Toro (Garnacha, Carinena, Syrah) - Smoky with a touch of oak and nice lively spicy ripe black fruits, quite concentrated with smooth tannins plus an elegant touch despite the Grenache oomph. €13.99, £8-£9.50
Torres 2009 Gran Coronas (Tempranillo, Cabernet) - Concentrated and stylish, savoury tobacco notes vs chunky and dark-fruity, drinking well now but will last a bit longer, very tasty red. €19.99, £11.50-£12.50

Terra Alta

Lafou Celler 2012 Els Amelers (Garnacha blanca) - Juicy and honeyed, zesty and lees-y vs quite rich, pretty intense with steely vs weighty finish. Very good white. €22, $20

Lafou Celler 2012 El Sender (Garnacha, Syrah, Morenillo) - Perfumed wild herb/violet aromas, lovely blackberry/cherry, soft tannins, lush vs powerful. Delicious red. €22, $18-$20

Empordà

Clos d'Agon 2010 Amic (Garnacha) - Maturing wild dark fruit nose, big mouthful with chunky vs maturing finish, quite good although not exactly a bargain. €23.75, £15.95

Spain: Cava guide updated

From www.crcava.es

I've updated and tidied up my now 15-page mini-guide to 'Creative Catalan Bubbly' country featuring new 'entries' from these wineries, big and small: Vallformosa, Chozas Carrascal, Segura Viudas, Freixenet, Marqués de Monistrol, Campo Viejo, Jaume Serra, Castellblanch, Marqués de la Concordia/The Haciendas Company, Castillo Perelada and Juvé y Camps. Also includes some latest thoughts and figures on Cava export markets and updated profiles on a couple of stand-out cellars.

This Cava mini-guide isn't viewable on WW.com, so you can buy the full PDF report for just £1.99 emailed to you once I get confirmation of payment. Hit the PayPal button below (select it in drop-down menu first) to pay by card or with your own PP account, although you don't need one to do so! More about card payments and general T&C by clicking HERE.

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French wine e-magazine English wine guide Cava guide Slovenia & Croatia Portugal special

Austria: Jurtschitsch, Grüner Veltliner & Riesling 'Erste Lage'

In the racy footsteps of my recent post below on 2013 Grosses Gewächs Rieslings (links to it) from some of Germany's leading producers, Austria has introduced a similar vineyard ranking called Erste Lage (meaning something like Premier Cru) for the country's best-rated Riesling and Grüner Veltliner (mostly) wines.

The Jurtschitsch family wine estate, now run by Alwin and Stefanie (above), is located in the Kamptal region (found not far to the northwest of Vienna) and is made up of nearly 70 hectares (173 acres) of vines in several different undulating sites around the pretty town of Langenlois (there are a few top winery names based here so obviously well-situated for making very good white wines). The vineyards have been managed organically since 2006.
They appear to have good distribution around the world including ABS Wine Agencies in the UK (approx £ prices indicated), Quintessential Wines in Dublin (€ prices) and David Bowler Wine in NY USA - see www.jurtschitsch.com for more info about where you can find them (where the photo was downloaded from).

2012 Grüner Veltliner Loiserberg Erste Lage (13% abv) - Yeast-lees and maturing aromas with spicy floral edges, getting fuller and mellowing on the palate yet still pretty intense and fresh, subtle concentration. Less buzz than the 2013s though. £20 / €26.
2013 Grüner Veltliner Dechant 'Alte Reben' Erste Lage (13.5% abv) - Old vines. 'Gummy' zesty and 'chalky', steely vs oily mouth-feel showing good 'extract' and some roundness vs lively acidity and long finish. £23
2013 Grüner Veltliner Lamm Erste Lage (13.5% abv) - Pretty intense acidity and flavours, long linear palate showing fair weight too vs that crisp bite. Needs more time. £35
2013 Grüner Veltliner Schenkenbichel Erste Lage (13.5% abv) - More honeyed and richer with towards exotic fruit characters, a hint of sweetness adds roundness and weight vs steely acidity underneath and spicy tones as well. £35
2013 Riesling Loiserberg Erste Lage (13.5% abv) - Zippy lemon and lime aromas/flavours and 'chalky' texture, a light touch of sweetness and quite full-bodied on the final palate with intense and refreshing / 'mineral' and oily mix, tight long finish yet drinking fairly well now. £21 / €26
2013 Riesling Zöbinger Heiligenstein Erste Lage (13% abv) - Racy and classy Riesling with zippy 'chalky' mouth-feel vs aromatic lime fruit, tight and steely finish, more elegant and delicate. £21

Germany: Grosses Gewächs Riesling 2013

This dozen-strong Riesling-tastic selection (and one Pinot Noir) comes from a slightly esoteric tasting of some intense 2013 vintage wines, even if my notes did get over-eagerly filed away for a little ageing before seeing the light of day again...

Recapping on 2013 conditions in Germany then, budding was “very late” thanks to a cool spring followed by challenging weather during flowering, then a “mild summer” finally set in although picking was also delayed due to tiresome rain in September.