Girls n Grapes Tour España!

Girls & Grapes are back at it!  We figured that since the holdiays are so close, we might as well squeeze in a number of opportunities to drink great wine.  Below is a recap of an evening spent touring ‘blindly’ the wines of Spain.  Under tin foil until the last of the tasting notes were logged, we found the wines brought were some of our favorites so far this year.  Incidentally, a majority of these wines are good for the holiday budget and great pairings to the trimmings on your holiday table!  Wonderful foodie wines with amazing flavors and exuberant profiles. 

(And because you all commented as to how much you loved the RECIPE section in the last Girls & Grapes CRUSHPAD BLOG – we added a couple of our favorites from the nite to pair.)

 Girls & Grapes: Tour of Spain  

Wine 1:
A rosé, fun!  Smells like watermelon, cherry Chapstick.  Oh, and it tastes supple – nice.
Grenache Vega Sindoa Rosé – Surdyks $12.99
Great way to start!

Wine 2:
Corny, warm flavored, tastes like squash (root veges), apple cider, but crisp
Guessed Albariño, we were wrong…still, We really like it!  We missed the green element here because this was so silky and soft on the palate – Shaya Verdejo – $16.99  @ Pairings

Loved this wine with Erin’s Spanish Styled Deviled Eggs  (recipe below)                                                        

 Wine 3:
Floral, round, lush but flabby – lacking acidity – cotton candy!
“Valley Fair, here we come!”
Candidato Viura – $11 @ Surdyks

Wine 4:
Oily – Vaseline – perfumed – red delicious apple -pulpy.  We love this wine!  Could drink a gallon of it.
Telmo Rodriguez’s Basa blanco from Rueda – $16 @ Haskells (Plymouth location)
Grapes: Verdejo, Sauvignon Blanc, Viura  – Wines like this make me think I have a secret crush on Telmo, shhhhh!

Wine 5:
Purple in color – cherry vanilla – sassafras (rootbeer)
Has a hint of cherry fruit but this was potentially a ‘corked’ bt- flavor was very flat & muted.  Would be a great bt for the $!
Federico Tempranillo – Ribera del Duero – $23 @ Pairings  

Wine 6:
Raisiny, dried fruit,  concentrated, herbs, leather
“23 yr old D Cups with a plum-colored lacy bra!”  ~ Leslee & Allison
$24 on the shelf- we think this is a huge winner for the $$ – We think, quite busty!
Ramirez de la Piscina Crianza Rioja (2005)
Very mature and lovely.  Rock my world kinda wine!!!

Wine 7:
Strawberry & dill with a hint of pink peppercorns
Luzon Verde Monastrell from Jumilla  $11.99 @ Surdyks
Super solid people pleaser – very approachable w a new world style
Loved this wine with Leslee’s chocolate covered blue cheese dates  (recipe below)

Wine 8:
Musk, wet leaves, over ripe raspberry- tastes cheap
Valencia Tempranillo Radio Boca – actually equals $ for $
Not mad at it for $7.99 (@ France 44)

Wine 9:
Dk jam, raspberry, blueberry – sh*t ton oak – coconut cream -yuk
Grenache fr Campo de Borja $35 – not worth the dollar
We’re not fans of the uber coconut – too much barrel!

Wine 10:
Stinky, meaty, dried meat – yummy!  Leather, dirt & tarnished.
Barnyardy but in a very good way, fruit is still very fresh.  
Mature – Epitomy of Old World wine – A very very well balanced wine all the way through!
Flor de Pingus (2001) -$150 on the shelf @ SoloVino

 Wine 11:
Strawberry & white pepper.  Aspirin.  Green. Stem-my.
Dido Grenache & Carignan, Merlot, Cab  $33 @ France 44
Limited production, female winemaker- supposedly a big deal wine…we don’t think so.

Wine 12:
Briny- cod water- dried cranberry, sage, and herbs- rosemary
Maybe the fruit has dropped out?
Montecillo Gran Reserva 1994 Rioja – 15 yrs old – Fruit not as plump but still solid as a product.
$80 on the retail shelf – 5yrs ago

Wine 13:
Yes, tomato – I love this wine!  Definitely, not for everyone, but it is Leslee & Erin’s heart-throb.
Ripe tomato.  Most interesting wine (period)!
R. Lopez de Heredia Viña Tondonia Rosé 1995 – we love!!!! 

(No idea the pricepoint, I bought it from Solo Vino in St Paul a few years ago.  Ask Chuck for it!)

Wine 14:
Cinnamon – acetone – pruney – big red (barrel)
Ostatu Crianza-Tempranillo- Grenache- Mazuelo
$18.99 @ Haskells (Plymouth location)

Wine 15:
Dk raisenated – blkberry- supple – yet textured – tar – violet & very layered
“This smells like ribs!  Bacon!” ~ Lindsay, Allison & Katie
Numanthia Termes -$60 awesome wine for the $, well worth it! Find @ Solo Vino
This is a rock solid wine!!

 Recipes

• Spanish Styled Deviled Eggs   (Recipe compliments of Cafe Ena owner, Erin Ungerman)

Peel eggs and slice in half (Long Way)

Remove yolks and place in med size bowl

Mix Yolks with 3-5 oz smoked salmon (mash with fork)

Mix in 3-4 TBS Mayo

1 TBS Dijon mustard

Salt and pepper to taste

Spoon Salmon/Egg filling into eggs 

Drizzle with truffle oil

Sprinkle with pimentón (Spanish Paprika)

•  Date Recipe that Leslee shared is  Compliments of Chef Mike Shannon of Cooks of Crocus Hill 

(This recipe was taught in Chef Mike and I’s ‘Steak & Cabernet IV’ Class @ Cooks, November 2011)