Author: Colin

MINE’S A NOT SO SWIFT HALF, PLEASE

 

Recent dreadful events here on the Costa Blanca have reminded us once again about the possible consequences of drinking and driving. There is no doubt, alcohol impairs one’s ability to drive. So, when we go out to dinner, we make sure that the designated driver stays below the legal limit. I’m sure we all do.

 

When it’s my turn – it’s tough, I admit it, because I like wine, claro! But, it could be a little more pleasant, if only the one glass of wine I allow myself over the length of a restaurant dinner, is a good one! Now, bearing in mind that it is almost always just the one house wine that is served by the glass, how often do you think I drive home happy and satisfied! Yep, very rarely!

 

I’ve banged on about the paucity of decent house wines in restaurants several times, so this isn’t going to be a case of ‘same old, same old’ – I promise! However, this week’s article could be construed as another restaurant moan – though I would rather it was considered as it actually is, a piece of constructive advice, a suggestion to please all.

 

If restaurants here in Spain were to include a good selection of half bottles in their wine lists, I’m certain they’d sell well, and keep their clients happier!

 

Now, a half bottle, even if consumed over the course of a restaurant meal, may put you over the limit, even if drinking lots of water too – so, if driving, we probably shouldn’t drink all of it, but you can certainly take what’s left with you when you leave for the car! And of course, in this way you would avoid having to drink just a poor house wine, and  you wouldn’t have to pay for a whole bottle. This, of course is another reason why half bottles should be on restaurant wine lists.

 

There are others too – perhaps, the lady wants a bottle of red, the man, white? Compromise is required, so one has a less than perfect experience. Well, why not order a half bottle of each? Great – if there are any! Or another scenario – perhaps, for example, the lady is pregnant and doesn’t want any alcohol, but the man does? A whole bottle is too much  . . . .

 

I’ve been in the restaurant trade, so I know that it’s not easy having half bottles on the list. There aren’t too many producers that bottle in halves, so this restricts choice. Also, as half bottles age more quickly than full bottles, there has to be a good turnover, or some wines may be wasted. This applies more so to rosados and to many whites as well. Plus, restaurants are probably right in thinking that there isn’t a huge demand for half bottles (until now?!).

 

However, all of these ‘problems’ (or just excuses?) are easily managed, the half bottles can be promoted, and restaurants worth their salt should be doing just exactly this!

50 GREAT CAVAS

 

Essentially, the eponymous ’50 Great Cavas’ publication does what is says on the can, to put it in modern advertising parlance – it gives readers the whole low-down on those Cavas that can be called ‘Great’. So, readers can imagine my delight when I was asked if I would be able to join the judging panel for the 2018 version of this now 7 years old annual Cava Competition. I accepted with alacrity, of course.

 

Throughout the seven years of its existence the ’50 Great Cavas’ competition has continued with fortitude, refusing to become embroiled in the, at times heated, discussion about where Cava should be headed. It has striven to maintain clarity amidst the clouds of confusion and criticism in which Cava has been shrouded during recent years.

 

Why? Well, because, whilst some of the criticism regarding quality control (or the lack of) has been correct and fair, there has never been any doubt about there being lots of outstanding quality Cava. Therefore the ’50 Great Cavas’ publication has become something of a reference point for those who seek top quality Cava – the name gives it away!

 

On one bend in the beautiful Villafranca del Penedès to La Llacuna road there are gates that lead to the house, the lodge (where I stayed), and the tasting rooms of 50 Great Cavas’ founder Anthony Swift (www.winepleasures.com), a Cornish-man, resettled in Cataluña, who loves Cava and decided to help raise its profile. I’d been before, helping to judge another sister competition, ’50 Great Sparkling Wines of the World’,  also one of Anthony’s bright ideas, which gives us another clue as to his favourite tipple!

 

Also present the night before the event and arriving by car like myself, though from La Rioja, was Jenny Siddall, founder of the very impressive wine tourism company, Taste Rioja (www.tasterioja.com). Jenny is soon, no doubt, to be holder of the Wines and Spirits Education Trust (WSET) Diploma, which is just one step away from achieving the much coveted Master of Wine (MW) title. It was clear that I was going to be in highly qualified and experienced company when judging was to begin the following morning.

 

After breakfast our two remaining judging colleagues arrived – Juan Manuel Gonzalvo and Albert López Gálvez (both of www.uvinum.es). It was clear to me from our early discussions that the former, Juan Manuel, would be our point of reference should we have any questions about Cava during the judging. Juan Manuel’s knowledge of all things Cava is phenomenal – and no wonder, he makes Cava, and is regularly employed as a consultant by various different producers! It was comforting to have him on the team and I learned a lot from him during the course of the day.

 

Albert is Co-founder of Uvinum.com – the outstanding on-line wine merchants, which in 2016 won the International Wine Challenge (IWC) ‘On-Line Retailer of the Year Award’. A finely developed palate and technological expertise are the tools of his trade and I found his comments also invaluable!

 

As Cork Talk readers know, there are several different styles of Cava as well as categories. Anthony had been at pains to categorize the many different entries so that each was being judges like for like. For white Cavas there were three different categories, termed for this competition only as: Reserva, meaning Cavas that have had 9 – 29 months of aging on lees before release onto the market; Gran Reserva, meaning Cavas that have had 30 – 60 months on lees; and Larga Crianza, those cavas that have had 60+ months aging on lees.

 

Cavas were also bracketed as Brut Nature or Brut – so, for example, the first Cavas we tasted were Brut Nature Reserva (BNR) meaning the driest style of Cava which has had between 9 months [the minimum amount of time on lees for a Cava to be called cava] and 29 months [which actually exceeds by 14 months, the minimum amount of time required for a DO Cava to be termed Reserva].

 

At 09:30 hours we began; and at 18:30 hrs we finished! True, we’d had a few breaks, one of an hour for lunch, but nevertheless that’s a hard slog – event though we all love Cava!

 

I’m not sure how many Cavas we tasted in the course of the day, though clearly, in order to find the 50(!) best, one has to taste a lot more! Plus, sworn to secrecy, I can’t reveal which have made it into the publication, let alone which have won Gold and which have won Silver! But, I can tell readers that the standard was outstanding!

 

In case you were wondering? Of all the styles and ages on lees my particular favourites came from the BNGR (Brut Nature Gran Reserva – 30-60 months on lees). For me, these wines embody all that is truly great about Cava. They retain the sparkling wine raison d’etre, the essential clean, refreshing vibrancy, the crucial joie de vivre; whilst assimilating also a wonderful depth of flavour, a fullness, so much extra character and complexity. Such wines can be enjoyed at wedding toasts and the like, as well as being thrilling partners throughout each course of a fine dinner!

 

Those who consider Cava to simply be a wannabe Champagne, need to think again. Those who will go for Prosecco before Cava, well, please don’t – there is a Universe of difference! And those who, like myself, have always believed in the quality of Cava, will be reassured – Cava Rocks, and you can find the best in ’50 Great Cavas 2018′, when it becomes available. Watch this space!

 

Contact Colin: colin@colinharknessonwine.com  Twitter @colinonwine  Facebook Colin Harkness  www.colinharknessonwine.com and don’t forget The Fine Wine & Gourmet Dine Programme www.totalfm.es

D.O. DEMISE IN SPAIN?

 

In January 2016 a group of 150 of the leading winemakers, writers and retailers of Spain met, following a smaller and earlier inaugural meeting convened by Telmo Rodriguez, of Bodegas Remelluri fame (along with several others), a wine-maker who has achieved almost god-like status in Spain where he is responsible for some of the finest wines on the Iberian Peninsular.

 

The assembled group gathered in order to write and sign the ‘Manifesto in Defence of Spanish Terroir.’ This document pulled no punches, with an opening line that stated, ‘    . . . . . the Spanish appellation system has been oblivious to soil differentiation and quality levels and that entrenched systems such as Rioja’s Consejo Regulador organising its wines by length of barrel and bottle ageing rather than geographic location was no longer working for many producers.’

 

They shared a common goal – in order to affect positive change and place Spanish wines in a position where they can rub shoulders with the best wines on the world, there has to be an overhaul of the Spanish Agriculture Ministry backed system of classifying wines. The system we know as firstly the Denominaciónes de Origen (the DOs) and then the Vinos de la Tierra (VdlT) and so on.

 

Typically, the DOs and, of course, the Ministry, have been slow (some would argue sloth-like) in even listening to the debate, let alone doing anything about placating the growing body if discontent. Blind eyes and deaf ears turned, seem to have been de rigeur!

 

I’m sure that several of the winemakers at the meeting referred to above had spent a lot of time damaging their wine-making hands’ knuckles knocking on the close doors of the Consejos Regulador (regulating councils) of many DOs asking for something to be done. Nil progress resulted, as we know from last week’s article, in one of the most famous Rioja producers opting to abandon the DOCa and make wine classified now as simply Vino de La Mesa, of just Spanish Wine. A wine incidentally that still sells for around 400€ per bottle!

 

Regular, long time readers will know of Pepe Raventos pulling out of DO Cava, for the same reasons. In fact about a dozen cava wineries did similarly and are now making sparkling wine referred to as Clàssic Penedés, sparklers made in exactly the same was as they were when their bodegas were part of the Cava family.

 

However, it would appear to the objective observer – that’s me, by the way – that there are several who have done the same, and yet not so drastically. In 2003 the Spanish Government agreed that bodegas which, satisfied new rules, would be able to apply for, and ultimately attain the new (at the time) Vino de Pago status. A status given to a winery on the grounds of unique micro-climate features and proven evidence of consistent high quality of many years. A loop hole for dissatisfied bodega owners?

 

Seventeen bodegas throughout Spain have successfully applied for this status – in La Mancha, in Utiel Requena, Toledo, Zaragoza, Cuenca, Cuidad Real and many other zones. Interestingly, some sit on the fence – making wines labeled under their new status, but also continuing to make wines under the auspices of their DOs. Friendly relations are maintained, and if the new idea goes all wrong, then no bridges have been burnt!

 

It would be wrong to suggest that there are justifiably unhappy bodegas in all the DOs of Spain. Readers will know that I spend quite a lot of time in DO Yecla for example, where the Consejo Regulador has to be one of the most dynamic in Spain. And there are others which perhaps didn’t need to respond to grievances aired publicly elsewhere, as in fact they were doing a good job anyway.

 

However the #DiaMovimientoVinoDO movement, referred to last week and indeed, ongoing, as I understand other such days are planned, is a response to the wake-up calls to which some, under-achieving DOs, have been subjected over recent years. As we know there has been dissatisfaction in some quarters which has resulted in defections from DOs and it’s only natural that the DOs should feel a need to band together to defend and indeed, celebrate, wines made under DO status.

 

Having the #DiaMovimientoVinoDO  has been useful I’m sure, and I applaud it – as long as the grievances that bodegas have aired are being addressed by the DOs concerned!

I often state that, in my view, Spain is a really happening place in wine terms. I still believe this, but it’s clear that in some areas they do need to be more dynamic, proactive and forward thinking, otherwise the DO system as we know it, may fall by the wayside and become part of the history of Spanish Wine production, confined just to the pages of history books – or, of course, the digital, on-line versions of such!

Wine making is an evolutionary process, let’s hope its organization is too!

 

My thanks to Jane Anson and to Decanter Magazine whose articles I researched before writing the above; also, of course, to Tim Atkin MW and Sarah Jane Evans MW who are always generous with their time when I ask for their advice and comments.

X CERTAMEN DE VINOS YECLA SAN ISIDRO 2017

 

I’m neither surprised nor disappointed that I can no longer lay claim to being the only foreigner to be invited to help judge the annual Denominación de Origen Yecla! When, as a British wine critic living in Spain, I was asked for the first time, several years ago now, I felt extremely honoured to be included in such a very parochial affair. I was flattered that my Spanish peers viewed my opinions on their wines to be valid and of some note.

 

Two years ago I was joined by another foreigner, Peer, Vice President of the Sommelier Association of Germany – an impressive title, and certainly a knowledgeable and experienced judge. Unfortunately, when he received his invitation this year, he’d already committed to another event and so wasn’t able to attend. However, when introduced/reintroduced to several of the judges the night before the competition in May this year, the name Martin, like my own, didn’t sound so Spanish!

 

Martin has worked all his life in the retail and wholesale wine business, originally in his family’s wine shop in Holland, and then, when he married the boss’ daughter, in another business, this time a wine distributorship, also in Holland. Martin is one of the buyers and as such travels a lot around Europe, often in the East, but also in Spain. Again, a knowledgeable and experienced judge and commentator.

 

The Consejo Regulador always spoils the judges during the two days of this event. When Arriving the night before we are given time to rest in our rooms or walk around Yecla until we all meet to go for dinner. This year the hotel (they rotate the hotels so that not just one has the business, which is typically caring – it’s a local community after all!) was a mere 30 metres from the restaurant, where we enjoyed several courses, accompanied by, of course, some fine Yecla wines.

 

The following morning we were collected by cars and taken for an 09:30 hrs start at the  Consejo Regulador’s HQ, their purpose built premises in the nearby industrial estate. Rectptions rooms sit atop the tasting cellar below, which was perfectly professionally laid out for a quite heavy (50+ wines) judging session, to last until about 13:30 hrs.

 

Then, and I have to admit, this is the part that I really love, we are taken to another restaurant to enjoy and excellent lunch, with wines that have won prizes, though we are not told which medals! Therefore lunch is accompanied by a host of top wines! It’s a lengthy affair and there is always lots of chat with fellow judges, but also with many of the bodega owners and winemakers.

 

 

This year, for example, I sat next to a charming ‘new’ winemaker, Ángela Castaño Lorenzo – yep, you spotted it, daughter of one of the three incumbents of the Bodegas Castaño family, who is now making wines along with Head  Winemaker, Mariano. It was also a pleasure to meet again winemakers, growers, bodega owners and Consejo Regulador officials whom I’ve come to know over the years.

 

Unfortunately, for me, I had to decline the annual invitation to attend the gala night (knee problems!), where one of the excellent Yecla restaurants is selected to put on a truly superb dinner, with Yecla wine (claro!), before the winners are announced and the prizes presented. I know from lots of such dinners before that there is always a palpable air of both excitement, and tension, at these affairs – for all in attendance, except for we judges, who are now entrenched in relax mode, having done our job!

 

The wines were judges in six different categories: White Wines 2015 & 2016; Rosado Wines 2015 & 2016; Unoaked Reds 2015 & 2016; Oaked Reds 2015 & 2016; Oakewd Reds 2014 and Earlier; Dessert Wines.

 

In the first category Bodegas Castaño won Gold and Silver, with Bodegas La Purísima taking the Bronze. For me, in this predominately red wine area, the whites of DOP Yecla increase in quality each year  – without exception they are fresh, clean and refreshing with fine aromas and good fruit.

 

In the rosado category the medalists were: Bodegas Evine and Bodegas Castaño, both receiving Gold; Bodegas Purísima took Silver; and Bodegas Castaño figured again, this time with Bronze.

 

The young unoaked reds had a lot of the judges lip-smacking and talking about the high quality this year when we’d stopped for a break during judging and medalled thus: Gold & Bronze – Bodegas La Casa de Las Especias (a new bodega in the area, and one, clearly, worthy of further investigation – watch this space!); Silver – both Bodegas La Purísima and Bodegas Castaño.

 

The oaked 2015 & 2016 category had a straight Gold for Bodegas Evine, Silver for Bodegas Castaño with their evocatively named ‘Nymphina’; and at last making their mark, Bodegas Barahonda with Bronze.

 

Many commentators consider Yecla to be all about aged red wines and it’s true that the medal winners here are outstanding wines that can hold their own against many of the best in Spain on quality alone, then, when you consider pricing and therefore value for money – well go buy ’em willya! However, it’s clear from the above categories that Yecla has many strings to its bow!

 

The oaked reds leading up to the 2014 vintage were all fantastic wines to my taste – Gold went to Bodegas Barahonda with their lovely Lualma; Silver and Bronze were won by Bodegas Castaño with their Santa and Casa Cisca, respectively.

 

The red dessert wine category astounds me each year – these wines are so good, not just with postres but also with cheeses. Gold: Bodegas Barahonda and Bodegas Castaño; Silver: La Purísima: This year, to  my surprise at least, the Bronze Medal was not awarded.

 

So, it’s clear wines from DOP Yecla are to be sought out!