Spain

Frontonio Microcosmico Macabeo 2015 Review – Not Just in Cava

Normally when we think of the grape Macabeo, it is in the context of Cava. Even there, this grape is often used for blending purposes and can be a small percentage of the overall makeup of any given glass of sparkling.

Since our quest here is to try every grape variety in the world as close to we can get as pure, single varietal expressions, you know we had to pick up a bottle of Frontonio “Microcosmico” Macabeo when we saw it.

This single varietal grape stands on its own with this rather delicious bottle (with bonus points for being six years old, too)!

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Muga Rioja Reserva 2016 Review – Green and Barrel Notes

Muga Rioja Reserva is an aged Tempranillo from Rioja, Spain, that has an intense and wonderfully complex aroma and flavor profile.

Unfortunately, this one was pretty strong in the vegetal and earthy department which, for me at least, was a bit too much for my palate.

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Partida Creus Vinel-lo VN 2019 Review – A Delightful Blend

Partida Creus is an interesting winery in Catalunya, Spain, that is run by Italians and uses grapes acquired from old and sometimes abandoned vineyards. These are then farmed organically and produce some seriously delicious natural blends.

Vinel-lo, denoted VN, is a red field blend of six different grapes in various quantities- specifically Grenache, Mourvedre, Tempranillo, Sumoll, Trepat, and Cinsaut. As wines from Partida Creus have initials in a rather recognizable format on the label, it should be noted that they have VN bottles for red (this review), white, and even sparkling- so you may come across any of these if you are simply searching out “Partida Creus VN”.

So, what is the red blend like? Well, this one had a nice complex aroma and was relatively straightforward on the palate.

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Pares Balta Cava Brut NV Review – Goes Down Quickly

One of our local wine distributors always hails the glory of Pares Balta Cava, and after enjoying their Cava Blanca Cusine 2011 we didn't need that big of a push to open a bottle of their lower-tier non-vintage Brut Cava to compare.

The differences were striking.

If you want an easy-drinking cava with some fairly straight forward flavors, the non-vintage cava is for you. But if you want something complex and thought-provoking, the Blanca Cusine should be what you go for (even when accounting for the price increase).

But in this one, we want to discuss the non-vintage Cava from Pares Balta, and if you opt for it we do have to admit you're still going to have a delicious glass all the same.

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Pares Balta Cava Blanca Cusine 2011 Review – A Stellar Cava

We've had many glasses of Cava in the past- some average, some good. But we had never had one that was absolutely stellar, that is until we had the Pares Balta Blanca Cusine 2011.

This is some stellar Cava, and for its price point (sub $40 per bottle at our local distributor) we absolutely couldn't ask for anything more. In being 78% Xarel-lo (with the rest being Chardonnay and Pinot Noir), we also were able to get a fonder appreciation for the grape in this one.

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Julian Ostolaza Ganeta 2018 Review – Light and Crisp

Whenever we get a new varietal for our quest, we consider it a good day. Popping open the Julian Ostolaza Ganeta from Getariako Txakolina, Spain was one such day as we were able to try the varietal Hondarrabi Zuri- a grape we only recently heard about.

If a great low ABV wine for a hot summer day is something you need, this one should be on your radar.

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Bodegas Olivares Panarroz 2011 Review – An Old Cellar Find

While we have a pretty good handle on everything that can be found in our cellar, sometimes we get a bit of surprise. In many cases, this is simply finding a bottle that we thought we had already consumed. Other times it is finding out a bottle does not contain the grapes we expected. In even rarer instances, we find that a bottle is much, much older than we had originally thought.

Our Bodegas Olivares Panarroz Jumilla (GSM blend- mostly Mourvedre) was the latter. We bought this one on an impulse because we saw it was on a clearance sale from a local wine store for $8. Instinctively I saw this and bought it without thinking much at the time because, well, it was $8. But it wasn't until we went to drink it that we realize this bottle was also nine-years-old.

A pleasant surprise indeed.

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