In his Nov. 1 column, the Washington Post’s Dave McIntyre features the Heredad Penalosa Verdejo 2010 as one of his monthly “recession busters”—wines priced $15 and under that provide extraordinary value. He describes the wine as “crisp and intriguing,” and recommends readers drink this wine alone or paired with appetizers and tapas.
“‘Tis the Season for Sparkling” says the Huffington Post’s Wine Sisters in their Nov. 14 post. Among other sparklers, the Wines Sisters inform their audience about Cava and explain that it is an “easy drinking and approachable” value alternative to Champagne. The article mentions Segura Viudas and Freixenet as easy-to-find Cava options for which to look.
Wine writer Nick Passmore named Finca Constancia’s Alotozano his Oct. 27 wine of the week for Bloomberg Businessweek, entitling the wine a “Spanish Star at a Winning Price.” Calling the wine “dazzling at a rock bottom price,” Passmore says that the wine has perfectly balanced acidity and could easily outperform in a blind tasting.
Spanish wines stole the spotlight on Wine Spectator’s “Top 100” List for 2011. Congratulations to those among the top 100, including:
• 23rd: Bodegas Resalte de Peñafiel Ribera del Duero de Restia Crianza Selected Harvest 2004 (Score: 93)
• 26th: Descendientes de J. Palacios Bierzo Pétalos 2009 (Score: 93)
• 53rd: Bodegas Los Astrales Ribera del Duero 2008 (Score: 94)
• 59th: Bodegas Dinastía Vivanco Rioja Selección de Familia Crianza 2008 (Score: 90)
• 71st: Bodegas Godeval Valdeorras Viña Godeval 2010 (Score: 90)
• 91st...
In a recent Wine Spectator article, "A Beautiful Traditional Rioja, executive editor Thomas Matthews discussed the underpinnings of classic Riojas, as well as his love for the region's both modern and traditional wines.
The Wall Street Journal recently profiled another fan of Rioja, international fasion designer Narcisco Rodriguez, who shares the influence wine has had on his career. Rodriguez notes Marqués de Cáceres was on his family's table growing up - "lots of red...
Sherry is getting its due in restaurants in major cities in the United States, reports TastingTable.com.
"Once predominantly the sticky-sweet province of elderly ladies, the iconic Spanish fortified wine has become the liquid darling of the dining scene." Read the full story here.
Memorable Bottles for $20
There are wine bull’s-eyes where high values intersect with low prices. On the low end, that sweet spot centers around the $20 range. Below, Eric Asimov selects 20 excellent bottles at that price point that won’t break the bank, presented here in no particular order.
Read all the details here: ...
By Eric Asimov
"ONLY a few years ago, some Spanish wine experts were suggesting that the gran reserva style of Rioja would fade to extinction in a decade or so. Their rationale seemed clear. The worldwide consumer swoon in the last 20 years for plush, dark, bountiful flavors had marginalized these smooth, pale, harmonious wines, which are aged for years in barrels and convey their complexities more through finesse and shimmering textures than bold fruit flavors.
Gran reserva style had gotten a bad name. An unthinking embrace of technology and industrial agriculture in the late 1960s and ’70s had resulted in many grim, diluted, dreary wines. Nonetheless, the experts’ concern was overstated. I believed the style would...
