cheap vino

Spanish food has to be eaten with wine.

2010-09-20T19:37:00.000-07:00

Sidra in Oviedo

Someone once told me "Spanish food has to be eaten with wine", and while maybe once in a while you can substitute a little Sidra for wine, for the most part, I have found this statement to be true. My first experience with Spanish food (and wine) was about 7 years ago, when my host mother Rosa introduced me to both. I admittedly fell in love with them instantly and gained 30 lbs in three months to prove it. Let's just say it was a little bit like the Italian experience from "Eat, Pray, Love". Anyway, to pair with fabada, gulos, or just plain old hamburguesas, Rosa's wine of choice was Beronia. Now, for Spain, Beronia is considered to be a "newer" winery, established in 1973, so I could find bottles regularly at the grocery store for 3 euros or so. Now, buying cheap wine in Spain is one thing, getting it back in the states is a whole different story.
But, first, there are a few things to discuss about Spanish wine in general, or a little more specifically, about Rioja. There are four main specifications for wines coming from this region; 1) Rioja- simply stated, the youngest wine from the region, 2) Crianza- A wine from this region aged for at least two years, one of these years having to be in oak, 3) Reserva- aged for three years, again at least one of those years has to be in oak, and 4) Gran Reserva- aged at least 2 years in oak and at least another three in the bottle. Therefor, you can see the price scale is often based on the classification of the wine.
For Beronia, I suggest, start with a Crianza. You can often find a bottle in the store for around $15.99-17.99. These wines, to me, usually are very earthy with full fruit flavors, like cherry, on the finish. They pair well with most meats, dishes flavored with paprika or saffron, bbq, and pretty much anything you want to eat. If you want to splurge on one of the higher classifications (and can find a bottle) by all means, do it. These are all delicious. I have not found a Beronia that I haven't yet loved.

Sculpture Garden-National Gallery

Anyway, back to the original point of this post: Spanish food + Spanish Wine. I was recently up in D.C. for the weekend and got the chance to go to Jose Andres' tapas restaurant called Jaleo. We ordered a Smorgasbord of tapas, and of course, a few glasses of Beronia to pair with it. It was amazing, and some of the most authentic Spanish tapas I've had in the states. Below are the results.

Olives and Manchego

Mejillones a la Marinera (Mussels)

Pulpo a la Gallega (Octopus)

However, as good as the tapas were, nothing could compare to Spain:

Petite for the end of summer (2 days left).

2010-09-20T17:51:00.001-07:00

Allright, so only two days left of summer. Wow! I can't believe it is fall already, it's still 80-90 degrees out here and feels like a sweltering jungle. But yes, only two days left of summer.

So to finish off those two days, here's a great bargain of a Petite Sirah, McManis 2008. Now it's not super strong (like the kinds that will leave your teeth purple), but it does have a very nice full berry flavor. It is smooth and rich and for only $9.99 (I saw it online for less, but can't get it that cheap at the grocery store) it's a great deal. We brought it up with us a few weekends ago to Fire Island to share with the fam and it went great with the bbq!

Also, a tomato salad is a good paring side dish for this wine. A perfect way to spend

the last few days of summer.

Bugs and a cheap blend

2010-09-07T18:46:00.000-07:00

Alright, we have now been on this other side of the country for over a month now, and it's taking a little time to feel comfortable. So far, besides all of the normal east coast/ west coast things pointed out to me about every 5 min, the main difference about being here is bugs. I am covered in over 20 bites, get lulled to sleep by the sound of something humming (not quite sure which bug this is, locust, crickets, cicadas...all the above?) and have now even found new types that look crazier than dinosaurs (if you don't know what a "wheel bug" here's a nice pic). But yes, plenty of bugs. So needless to say, to take care of the bugs, wine consumption has been increased.

My pick for this week would have to be a bottle from back home; Columbia Crest Two

Vines Vineyard 10 red wine. This is a mix of Syrah, Cab Franc, Sangiovese, Grenache and Mouvedre. It's ranked as an 85 pointer from Wine Enthusiast, and at somewhere between 4.99 and 6.00 depending on tax, it's also ranked as one of their best buys. Not a bad deal, right? What's even better is that it actually tastes pretty nice. It is very bold and fruity, but no real big tanins. To me, it kind of has a cherry flavor. However it tastes, I have found it is one of the few things that help me forget all the bugs. So yes, at this price, and this flavor, I would say buy a few bottles and you can take on this jungle!

Moving and Cheap Beer (necessary)

2010-08-05T21:22:00.000-07:00

Ok, so, I know it's been forever since I've posted last, but it has been one of the busiest years of all time for me. Let's see so far since the last post, I've written a thesis, graduated with a masters, gotten married (just had our 1 month anniversary), and am now moving 2,797 miles to start a Ph.D. program in VA. So yeah, it's been a busy year. Anyway, I figured I'd try to start blogging again, and the drive across the country seemed like the perfect time to begin.

So, to start off with, this trip has honestly been about beer instead of wine (I honestly looked in the Walmart for a bottle of twist-off white, but unfortunately they had none chilled), but I have had a few good beers, so I figured I'd write about those. The first night out on the road, we met a friend in Boise for dinner. We stopped at Bittercreek Brewpub, which had an amazing tap list. I had a Rogue Chocolate Stout, which I will always recommend. The next day we made it to Sidney, NE, world headquarters for Cabela's, which meant that almost every hotel room was booked, since M,T,&W night, vendors come to town to sell/promote their sporting goods to the store. Anyway, we walked over to Walmart, where we picked up a six pack of Boulevard Brewing Co. Pale Ale for $7.47. Ok, so maybe not the cheapest beer (PBR) but it was the right price for something nice and drinkable. And it has really come in handy today (the third night) because let me tell you, i needed it by the time we stopped. We first tried to get a room in Columbia, MO, but due to Sturgis, and a local motorcycle convention, every room in the 18 hotels located there, was booked. So we traveled on to Kingdom City, MO, where things were not much better. The first place we tried was a Comfort Inn, but quickly walked out, then we tried a few more, all booked again, got lost and finally ended up at a Super 8 at about 10pm. And we are now being lulled to sleep by a hatching of locusts, which by the way can be heard through the walls. So yes, the Pale Ale has come in handy, and by the way, has a lovely taste. Anyways, gotta head to bed now, only 15 more hours of driving!

Summer white, oops it's already fall!

2009-09-10T21:26:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I'm super sorry it's been so long, but honestly it's been a super busy summer. I mean, with all the bbq-ing and wine tasting I haven't had any time to write! No honestly, it has been quite the busy little summer, but I have had some time to find a few good wines. I think I'm going to start with a nice light little pinot grigio. Ok, so now here's where you say "ewwwww.... grosss.... how could you drink that?" And here's how: a nice tuna steak sauteed in olive oil with rosemary and garlic with a summer white bean salad (fava beans, tomato, basil, balsamic). See what I mean? It just seems to pair so perfectly! Oh and now about the wine I had, it was Columbia Crest Grand Estates Pinot Grigio 2006. Online I can find it for as cheap as $9.99, but at the grocery store it was even better, only $6.99!!! Anyway, it has a nice light, crisp flavor with a little lemon on the finish. It works perfect for the warm summer (or fall) evenings we've been having.

Oh and for those of you who, like myself, tend to confuse Pinot Grigio with Pinot Gris, it's ok. Turns out, Pinot Grigio is a clone of the Pinot Gris grape that is just mainly grown in Italy. It's essentially all the same.

Cheap cab...really?

2009-06-15T21:53:00.000-07:00

Yes, really! A cheap cab, it does exist. Amazing, right? I know you probably won't believe me, but at least at this price you can afford to check it out for yourself. Anyway, here it is, Basket Case Cabernet Sauvignon, 2006. I found it online for $9.99, so maybe in the grocery store it might be marked up to $11 or $12, but at least I'm not trying to get you to buy some 50 dollar bottle just to taste it, right? And speaking of tasting, I might suggest one little rule. If you're not willing to gamble the money, just make sure to taste the big expensive bottle before you end up buying it. This is great for two reasons, first, you get to have a good excuse to go to more tastings and drink more wine, and second, you make sure that you like what you're getting. Not to say that I always like to ruin the surprise of opening up a bottle and finding out what it tastes like, but unfortunately, as a grad student, there are some wines that I just can't afford to take the chance on. Anyway, this little guy, well actually I should say this big guy, packs a pretty big punch for such a little price. The grapes come from up in Washington, actually the WA Columbia Valley, to be exact. The wine has a very bright red cherry to begin with, but ends with a plummy flavor. It's pretty complex and could pair with a nice steak or a good bolognese sauce (although I only had it with balsamic chicken, it still worked pretty well). However, just a few things more to note, if you want to go to the winery, Washington is definitely the wrong direction, turn around and head back down to Pacific City, OR (and while you're there, make a quick stop at the Pelican Brewery). Also, the lid is a screw top, and while yes, I thoroughly support the cork industry (I mean what is wine without the cork) I have recently learned that a screw cap can also work to close a bottle. While it does not have all the romance of a cork, it does allow the winemaker to do one interesting thing with their wine that a cork does not, bottle it exactly how they want it. A screw top, unlike a cork, does not allow a wine to breath over the years, therefore, once a winemaker bottles a wine with a screw top, it pretty much stays that way. What you drink is how they bottled it. Now, I'm not saying this is always a good method, but with this cab, I think it works pretty well. So give it a chance, and go open up a bottle.

BBQ and Zin

2009-06-05T09:17:00.000-07:00

Ok, so just a quick one today. I have now been introduced to one of the most perfect bbq wines (in my humble little opinion). It was about 85 degrees last weekend, so we took out the grill, threw on a few skewers and had a little party. And thanks to Howie, I have now found one of my favorite Zins, Cedarville Vineyard Estate Bottled El Dorado Zinfandel, 2007. It has a very light smoky flavor with a lot of late harvest fruit and full bodied berries. It paired very well with anything we took off the grill, but I think it's a big enough wine that it would be delicious to enjoy on it's own as well. Now I don't know the exact price of the wine, but after doing some research online, I think you should be able to find it for around $22. If you're in the Portland area, there's a cute little wineshop named Blackbird, where I know you can get it (and few other fantastic bottles as well). Even though its a bit on the high end of the budget, it's most definitely worth it. So if you're planning an outdoor bbq, or even if you're just planning to pick up a glass and sip, do yourself a favor, go get one (or ten) of these little Zin's and enjoy.

2009-05-29T09:53:00.000-07:00

So, last weekend was Memorial Day weekend, and if you're from Oregon, you know what that means....ALL THE WINERIES ARE OPEN!!! And of course, to celebrate, we had to take a tasting tour of our own. (Now most of these wines were way out of my price range, but if you stick it out and read the entire post, there'll be a little surprise at the end.) So, to begin our trip, we started off in grand fashion with champagne of course. If you start drinking at 11 (it's not that I'm a lush, that's just when the tastings start), you'll find it's a lot easier to begin with a little bubbly and ease your way in. Anyways, we started off at Argyle, and as always, I will suggest getting a bottle of their 2005 Brut for $30 a bottle. I know it's spendy, and I shouldn't even post it here, but if you watch the sales at Safeway, every once in a while it'll drop down to a nice $20 bottle, and that puts it just within the high end of my budget. It's light and crisp with a very slight bit of fruit, but not overpowering. It's just the perfect bottle for a little summer brunch.

Anyway, back to the wine trip, the next stop after Argyle was Shea Wine Cellars. Now this is what I'm talking about when I say way out of my price range, but the tasting fee was only $10 little bucks so why not, right? If you think you know pinot, or if you consider yourself not a pinot person, do me a favor, go there, taste and then tell me what you think. Now I'm not claiming it's the best pinot around, I'm just saying it's pretty amazing what they can create with the same grapes as everyone else. They're full and rich and high in alcohol and to me, taste nothing like a pinot, but they do taste like something I'd

like to have quite a few bottles of.

Now on to our next stop,

Brickhouse. If you are

a pinot person, this is

where you want to be.

If not, try the

Chardonnay, it's

pretty delicious. The

place has a great feel,

beautiful grounds,

amazing flowers (I

wonder who did

those?), and great

wine (even for the

'07 year). And if you're

looking for the perfect

spot to picnic, the little

table out in back of the barn is one of the most comfortable places I have been in a long long long time! Ok, so back to the wine, my suggestions from here would be the Chardonnay and the Les Dijonnais Pinot. Both were great!

Our final stop of the day was Ken Wright Cellars. Now I must admit, I was probably the most excited to go here, but it wasn't what I expected. The taste began with

a couple of whites, neither of which I can remember, then moved on to barrel tastings of specific blocks and clones, and finally ended with two older vintages of pinot. I must say, I should have just gone straight to the two final tastes. No offense, but the barrel wasn't worth it and the whites were unimpressive. Now this is not to say that I won't go buy a bottle of Ken Wright at the store, in fact, I highly suggest to anyone if you see it at you local grocery to pick it up, but, unless the tasting is a little different next year, it's not worth your time.

Now back to something a little happier, wine! The other week I went to an Italian food and wine pairing dinner and it began with a nice little white that I highly suggest. It was San Quirico 2006, a vernaccia from Tuscany. This grape is known for producing crisp wine with good acidity and citrus fruit, and I must say this bottle is a great example of it. It was light and crisp, but don't worry, it wasn't too heavy on the fruit. It also only cost $16 a bottle. We had it that night with some hard italian cheeses and bread, but I think it would also pair really well with seafood, especially crab. Anyways, get a bottle, take it out on a patio and pour yourself a glass, or maybe two. Enjoy!!!

Punto Final!

2009-05-08T08:56:00.000-07:00

Oh wow. So I went up to Esquin in Seattle last weekend and it was amazing! We were up there for a great birthday celebration for a good friend of mine, and on the way home managed to drag her into this wine store. And wow, it was definitely worth it. It's like an entire warehouse filled with only wine. I mean how can you beat that? Even better, most of it is really good wine. Now of course, there are a few bottles in the mix that you really don't want to pick up (I'm talking about the whole aisle of bottles they have devoted to Rieslings and Gewurztraminer) and there are even a few unfortunate reds in there, but mostly it's great!!!

Now to mention a great wine: Punto Final Malbec 2008. Ok so now I know you're reading the 2008 part and thinking "really, am I gonna drink a wine that young and like it?", and my answer is this; "YES!!!" It was amazing. The nose on it was full (I mean really really full) of berries, and the taste was just as big. Not too sweet, but definitely very rich. How can you beat that? A 2008, full wine, and guess what? It only cost $11.99. So go find a bottle, open it up, and sit on your porch/patio/living room chair/wherever and start sipping. You will be amazed at what Argentina can do with such young grapes!

I got a little excited, so here's two good buys for you!

2009-04-10T10:08:00.000-07:00

Yay for sunshine. We just had our first sunny weekend of spring and apparently it was perfect weather for wine tasting. We hopped in the car, drove a little down into the valley and went to some great wineries. I must say my favorite was Penner-Ash. They make some excellent pinots, way out of my budget, but hey, if I'm only tasting, it's still just a little 10 dollar bill. Anyways, the winery is beautiful, has a great view out over the Willamette Valley (you could even see Hood in the background), and the wines were awesome. Probably because the winemaker knows pretty well what she's doing. She was originally from Stag's Leap winery down in Napa (for those of you who have seen Bottleshock, this is the winery whose 1973 cab took the reds), moved up to Oregon, worked at Rex Hill for a while and now has Penner-Ash. The majority of the wine poured is pinot (come on people we're in Oregon now, of course it's pinot) and while I claim that I am not a big "pinot person", it was still a delightful tasting. Maybe it was the sun, maybe it was the view, or maybe it was just some really good wine. Either way, if you're in the Dundee Hills area, plan a stop there. Another winery that I would also suggest, even though we did equate it to the V. Sattui of the Oregon wine country, is Erath. Again, it has an amazing view, some good wines, and would be a perfect place to picnic. It also has a great deal on a pinot that actually is within my price range. Their 2007 Oregon Pinot Noir is just 19 bucks (yeah its a little spendy, but for pinot that's not a bad price), and has a lovely flavor that stands up to and actually surpasses some of the 60 dollar bottles you can taste in the area. It's a little lemony, but still had some nice earthy flavors too. Oh and one more thing, just to be a wine snob here for a sec, Wine Spectator rated it as one of its "top value" wines with 88 points.

Ok, so now for some actual talk about an actually delicious wine: Alpaltagua Carmenere 2006. This wine comes from the Colchagua Valley, which I am quickly finding to be one of the greatest wine producing regions around, and is located in the central valley of Chile where there is a more "Mediterranean climate". What does this climate do? I'm not quite sure other than make some tasty little wines. And by little wines, I actually mean quite big, full flavored wines, at small little prices, like this Carmenere for example, which will only put you out 9.99. It has a very smooth berry flavor, but at the same time is super rich and smoky. I think it would go great with some barbecue, but unfortunately I have not been able to test this theory since the rains have returned. However, I will tell you this, decant it for at least an hour, pour yourself a glass, and it will taste great!!!

Canyon's edge and a little pairing.

2009-04-03T22:11:00.000-07:00

Ok, so a quick post before the nice warm weekend. I was at a tasting the other week and picked up a bottle of this guy: Canyon's Edge Winery "Sagebrush Red". Now it's just a red table wine, but it has some pretty deep flavors that made it jump out quite nicely from the line-up of wines I was tasting. I would say that it has a really deep chocolate flavor, not too overpowering, and has some deep rich berries in it. Now, at the wine shop I went to, I was able to pick it up for 12 bucks, but after hunting around online, most people seem to list it at 14. So there you go, somewhere between 12 and 14, but definitely worth it. If you're into pairing, I would say that it might go nice with some pork (it can carry a red meat, but not a super heavy steak), and if you're not into the food and wine pairing thing, I have one piece of advice: try it!

Ok, so now I may need to write a little bit more. Pairing food and wine together can bring it to a whole new level. If you want to make it even more fun, do a blind tasting. Below is an image of the wines from one I did last week and all the recipes I paired with (these can be found on the Food and Wine magazine website).

First Course: (sauvignon blanc)

-shrimp and avocado salad with grapefruit and pumpkin seeds

Second Course: (chardonnay then move to a medium red with the same food)

-Crostini with creamy ricotta and chorizo

Main Course: (zinfandel)

-Smoky pulled pork with parpadelle

Dessert: (port)

-cupcakes from your grocery store (delicious)

And the wine line-up I used:

1) sauvignon blanc: Gary Farrell 2007

Redwood Ranch, $25 normally, but

you can find it at grocery outlet for $12!

2) chardonnay: SBL $3.99

3) malbec (medium red): Viu Manent $5.99

4) zinfandel: Peju 2005 $25.20 (vintage is very important here!)

5) port: Rosenblum Syrah Port 2004 $18

If you're feeling ambitious, do this pairing. Don't worry, because you can choose your own wines to fit your budget, and if the food doesn't sound great, switch the recipes up. There are plenty of websites out there that have tons of suggestions for this, I just chose Food and Wine because it allowed me to pick a recipe and then gave me a wine varietal pairing. Well, good luck. Open a bottle of Canyon's Edge if you get a chance, and try some pairing, it's great!!!

Back from wine heaven...sigh.

2009-03-26T13:43:00.000-07:00

Oh wow. So the Russian River Valley was amazing!!! We spent four days down there between RR valley, Napa, Dry Creek and the Alexander Valley. I highly recommend a visit to all! Some of the favorites from the trip were Neyers (anything they make), Larkmead (same goes for them), Locals (this is a wine "bar" that serves tastings of wineries too small to have their own tasting room, they give heavy pours and have some of the best bottles around: Ramazzotti and Portalupi are great), and of course, the B&B we stayed at, the Raford Inn. This inn is an old farmhouse built in 1880 when the Russian River was still a hops growing area. Now (and luckily for me) it has slowly become all vineyards, which make a great view for the wine and cheese hour set up every evening on the porch!

Ok, so now more about the wines:

A great zin (a bit on the pricey side, but well worth it) is the St. Francis Zinfandel Old vines '05. Now like I said, it is a bit pricey, online I found it for about $24, but if you watch the sales at your local grocery store, you can get it for the nice little price of $17.99! I was originally turned onto this great bottle by the wine steward at my grocery store who described it as just "booofff, it's for one of those special occasions." And she's exactly right, but as I've learned recently, even winning Trivial Pursuit can be considered a special occasion. Anyhoo, the wine is great, it's a full bodied, heavy fruit zin, with a nice long finish. And if you find yourself down in Sonoma county, I suggest making a stop at the winery. Now unfortunately when I went, it was a barrell tasting weekend. I mean really, who wants to taste out of a barrel? I know they tell you it's all about seeing how "promising" and "complex" and "full bodied" the grapes already are, but if you ask me, it's just a bunch of immature, sour grape juice. However, it is still quite fun to do, so if you haven't yet, go for the barrel, just make sure you have a bottle after to wash it down with. Anyway, back to describing the winery, it's in a beautiful location, at the base of Sonoma's Mt. Hood (I know, 500 miles away and I still end up at the base of Mt. Hood), it's built in the Mission style, and has a great view over the vineyards. Also, if you stand at the bar long enough, you'll find yourself talking to a great wealth of wine knowledge, a judge since '72, and a teacher of summer wine courses. He'll give you a few great pointers that you'll find yourself practicing the rest of the weekend. One thing I learned was to look at the color, not through the glass, but head on, that way you can really get a view of the full meniscus of the wine and it's not tainted by light reflecting through the glass. Anyway, enough nerding out, if you get a chance, stop in there, try everything, it's pretty great, and if you don't, pick yourself up a bottle and start drinking. Oh and don't forget to decant!

RR Valley

2009-03-19T21:23:00.000-07:00

Ok...so just a quick post tonight. I'm headed on down to the RR valley tomorrow to find some great deals on wine. Now granted, some of these bottles to come will more likely fall into the "AIG Bonus" realm, but I promise, they'll all be worth it. And the best part is, on the way I get to stop at CAOS and visit my friend Pierre. Anyways, while you're waiting, you should probably sip on some Gnarly Head Zin. This lovely bottle can be found for about 9 dollars, a little on the spendy side, but since tomorrow is the start of spring, and bbq season is just around the corner, it's time to get back to the Zins! This guy goes down pretty smooth, has a nice full finish, but still gives you a little pepper. Perfect with a nice juicy burger. Enjoy!

SBL, perfect for camping!

2009-03-15T18:40:00.000-07:00

All right, so I know whites are just not as fun as reds (although some may beg to differ), but when it comes to camping there is just nothing better than a nice little bottle of Santa Barbara Landing Chardonnay. You can find it at your local Trader Joe's for just $2.99! I mean how can you beat that, you can get a whole case for under 40 bucks, and when it comes to camping, that's just the right price. Now I must warn you, this bottle is a little on the fruitier side, and some may even claim it is "perfumey", but when I want a nice little drink to go with my Mac and Cheese, nothing beats this chard. I personally believe it has a nice oakey flavor and good crisp finish. And for all you who swear by red only, I'll give you one more reason to enjoy this guy: if you are spending a night in a tent anywhere north of California, you may notice that the temperature tends to drop a bit overnight, cooling your nice reds to the point where their full bodied flavors can just not be appreciated. However, if you look at life as a glass half full, you'll realize these cool nights are just nature's way of making the perfect conditions for drinking your whites. Free refrigeration and a budget bottle of SBL make any campfire just a little brighter.

Viu Manent...OMG!!!

2009-03-14T21:36:00.000-07:00

Ok, so if you're at all like me, you love wine. But you also might have a little problem, such as money? Being a grad student and needing a release every once in a while aka drinking at least one bottle per day, you may need to look for wines on the cheap. And here I will post my new favs:

For starters, we'll go down south, to the beautiful country of Chile. Now you may have heard by now of a lovely varietal called Malbec. It is a South American full bodied red, and is originally from the Bordeaux blends (one of the six grapes allowed to be part of this snooty little group). However, in my own humble little opinion, Chile has taken this grape to a whole new level, creating affordable bottles, that are just delicious. Now getting to my first fav, I would like to mention Viu Manent, and their 2008 Malbec from Valle de Colchagua, Chile. This cute little guy packs a big punch, has a very jammy nose with a nice earthy taste. And, now the best part, you can find it in the store for 5 to 6 bucks! So go out there now and try a glass. Cheers!

P.S. Must give props to H.A S. for this find.