Last night, Jean and I set out to investigate a recently opened wine bar
in our little town. Since the demise of the late, lamented Windows on
the Wabash [sic] we haven't really had anything like a wine/tapas bar in
this area. This new place is an outgrowth of a wine/cheese shop
downtown that featured very pedestrian offerings, so I went with no
great sense of anticipation. Fortunately, the new venture has hired a
very talented cook to make their various small plate offerings. This
month they offer a series of specials from Mexico and South America, so
we got a very tasty ceviche, smoked duck tamales, and a fantastic
stuffed poblano pepper, all of which were very well conceived and
prepared. After ordering our food, we were told to go to the bar, where
we were offered our choice of 3 different wines to taste. In keeping
with the theme of the month, the wines were mostly from S. America (not
my favorite region) but they had a few off-theme wines. I chose for my
3 tastes a 2007 Kunde Sauvignon Blanc (boring) and a Malbec/Syrah blend
from Argentina that was utterly international and bland. The third wine
was the winner of the lot:

2010 White Spanish Guerrilla Albariño (Castillo de Maetierra)
nose: ripe melon, minerals
palate: firm acidity, medium body, dry

Despite my aversion to cutesy names, especially when they are export
labels, this was the most appealing wine I tried and the wine that both
Jean and I got by the glass to go with our food. It was certainly a
riper rendition of Albariño than most other examples I've had, but by
the same token it had plenty of character and didn't seem hot or
overextracted. I suspect that this wine would not pass muster as a
"natural" wine or anything close to it. It was probably manufactured
somewehere, but still had enough character for me to like it.

For my bully pulpit, I'll note that this operation had better get a clue
about wine if they hope to match the excellence of the food they're
offering. Their selection of wines is small and focused on low price
point wines from obscure producers. With time, perhaps, I'll be able to
talk to them about upgrading their wine selections, but they may not
have the cash to invest in more ambitious wine offerings. We'll see...

Mark Lipton

Mark Lipton > wrote in news:jpcdua$ab4$1
@speranza.aioe.org:
>
> 2010 White Spanish Guerrilla Albariño (Castillo de Maetierra)
> nose: ripe melon, minerals
> palate: firm acidity, medium body, dry
>
> Despite my aversion to cutesy names, especially when they are export
> labels, this was the most appealing wine I tried and the wine that both
> Jean and I got by the glass to go with our food. It was certainly a
> riper rendition of Albariño than most other examples I've had, but by
> the same token it had plenty of character and didn't seem hot or
> overextracted. I suspect that this wine would not pass muster as a
> "natural" wine or anything close to it. It was probably manufactured
> somewehere, but still had enough character for me to like it.


Interesting!

This is an Albariño wine that comes from... La Rioja (the province, as
opposed to Rioja as a D.O.). Actually, it belongs to D.O. Valles del
Sadacia.

Winery is Castillo de Maetierra, and they are making this line of "Spanish
Guerrilla" with several grapes.

http://vintae.com/sala-de-prensa/mat...o/castillo-de-
maetierra/spanish-white-guerrilla/

or

http://bit.ly/MAi26K

Glad you liked it, we need the Spanish Balance of Payments to improve!!!

s.

On May 20, 9:48*pm, Mark Lipton > wrote:
> Last night, Jean and I set out to investigate a recently opened wine bar
> in our little town. *Since the demise of the late, lamented Windows on
> the Wabash [sic] we haven't really had anything like a wine/tapas bar in
> this area. *This new place is an outgrowth of a wine/cheese shop
> downtown that featured very pedestrian offerings, so I went with no
> great sense of anticipation. *Fortunately, the new venture has hired a
> very talented cook to make their various small plate offerings. *This
> month they offer a series of specials from Mexico and South America, so
> we got a very tasty ceviche, smoked duck tamales, and a fantastic
> stuffed poblano pepper, all of which were very well conceived and
> prepared. *After ordering our food, we were told to go to the bar, where
> * we were offered our choice of 3 different wines to taste. *In keeping
> with the theme of the month, the wines were mostly from S. America (not
> my favorite region) but they had a few off-theme wines. *I chose for my
> 3 tastes a 2007 Kunde Sauvignon Blanc (boring) and a Malbec/Syrah blend
> from Argentina that was utterly international and bland. *The third wine
> was the winner of the lot:
>
> 2010 White Spanish Guerrilla Albariño (Castillo de Maetierra)
> nose: ripe melon, minerals
> palate: firm acidity, medium body, dry
>
> Despite my aversion to cutesy names, especially when they are export
> labels, this was the most appealing wine I tried and the wine that both
> Jean and I got by the glass to go with our food. *It was certainly a
> riper rendition of Albariño than most other examples I've had, but by
> the same token it had plenty of character and didn't seem hot or
> overextracted. *I suspect that this wine would not pass muster as a
> "natural" wine or anything close to it. *It was probably manufactured
> somewehere, but still had enough character for me to like it.
>
> For my bully pulpit, I'll note that this operation had better get a clue
> about wine if they hope to match the excellence of the food they're
> offering. *Their selection of wines is small and focused on low price
> point wines from obscure producers. *With time, perhaps, I'll be able to
> talk to them about upgrading their wine selections, but they may not
> have the cash to invest in more ambitious wine offerings. *We'll see...
>
> Mark Lipton

I'm with you here Mark. I keep trying to like South American wines but
other than a few odd lots from Mendoza have found them lacking.

On 5/21/12 10:56 AM, santiago wrote:

> Interesting!
>
> This is an Albariño wine that comes from... La Rioja (the province, as
> opposed to Rioja as a D.O.). Actually, it belongs to D.O. Valles del
> Sadacia.
>
> Winery is Castillo de Maetierra, and they are making this line of "Spanish
> Guerrilla" with several grapes.

Curioser and curioser, Santiago. I saw that the winery was in La Rioja,
but are the grapes? Valles del Sadacia (VdlT, isn't it? not D.O.?)
rules call for 85% Moscatel de Grano Menudo or Moscatel de Alejandría if
I read the rules correctly, so I suppose that's why the wine isn't
labeled as VdlT Valles del Sadacia. It would make some sense that the
grapes do come from there given their ripeness, though.

Mark Lipton

--
alt.food.wine FAQ: http://winefaq.cwdjr.net

Mark Lipton > wrote in
:
>
> Curioser and curioser, Santiago. I saw that the winery was in La
> Rioja, but are the grapes? Valles del Sadacia (VdlT, isn't it? not
> D.O.?)

You are correct! it is a VdlT



rules call for 85% Moscatel de Grano Menudo or Moscatel de
> Alejandría if I read the rules correctly, so I suppose that's why the
> wine isn't labeled as VdlT Valles del Sadacia. It would make some
> sense that the grapes do come from there given their ripeness, though.

According to the following press kit:

http://vintae.es/wp-content/uploads/...vds_ing_ok.pdf

they have already planted several white varieties, including Albariño, in
La Rioja (the region) which can be marketed under the VdlT Valles del
Sadacia.

It namely says:

===
Valles de Sadacia has bet for a varietal catalogue that includes
the most recognized white varieties worldwide. It started recovering the
Muscat à Petits Grains, a local variety lost to the phylioxera. Now
Muscat à Petits Grains is showing all its potential with fresh
and fruity wines, adapted to the taste of today’s consumers. On
the other hand, new varieties have been introduced such as Albariño
or Verdejo together with other international varieties such as Chardonnay,
Sauvignon Blanc, Viognier, Riesling o Gewürztraminer, some of which are
still in an experimental stage
===

While Albariño has been a traditional variety from Galice, I do not see why
it could not work in other places. However, both the soils and the climate
in Rioja is quite different from those in Galice.

It is interesting to know that Albariño is one grape that shares one
characteristic with Riesling: they both work well when harvested under high
yields. I do not mean they are the same varieties or that they are close
members of the same family (I think this has been discarded through DNA
tests), even if there was a nice story about Albariño been brought to
Galice by pilgrims that did the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela from
the northern Europe.

This thread has made me want to try one bottle of this wine. I wonder if I
will be able to find it locally.

Regards,

Santiago