Vinos Españoles

Spain has a deep and rich history of cultural exchange. Through trade, occupation, and conquest, their cuisine has developed international influences from every corner of the globe, including the Middle East, North Africa, and Mediterranean countries. Iberian viticulture dates back thousands of years, predating the Roman Empire. These wines were simple and the bodegas quaint. Thanks to a relatively recent European grapevine blight, expert French winemakers migrated to the Spanish countryside. The intellectual exchange improves the quality and invests in the region. This Iberian history is beautiful because its complexity has shaped its wine into a bold and strikingly distinctive beverage. We hope you enjoy a glass of Spain’s past as much as us. ¡Salut!

Ferrum Albarino

This bottle carries delicate notes white peach, lime, sea breeze, and cream. The wine has crisp green apple acidity with a medium body. A glass of this wine should be served chilled and paired with light seafood. The Albarino’s notes salinity and sea breeze will harmoniously complement the seafood’s ocean character. Similarly, another exceptional pairing would be a nice ball of burrata. The notes of fresh cream and salinity would complement the wine’s notes of sea breeze and light cream.

Food Pairing

Fish & Chips

Fish and chips are a satisfying balance between crispy and creamy, sweet, and savory. Fish is surrounded by a crunchy layer of the batter, while the fish remains moist and delicate. The wine we suggest to pair with this dish has enough acidity to cut through the richness of the batter and the creaminess of the fish. The glass makes for a refreshing palate cleanser that you will want with such a delectably unctuous dish!

Cooking Tips:

    • For crispier fries, dab a paper towel, or cloth to dry all potato wedges.
    • To prevent battered fried fish from getting soggy, make sure all fish is dried before. Repeat methods from crispier potatoes. Also, dredge fish in a light flour coating and rest for 15 minutes before dipping in an ice bath.
    *Use gloves when cutting the pepper for added comfort and do not touch your eyes or ears or they will become irritated.

Vinhas Altas Rose

This bottle is from the northwest of Portugal. It displays notes of strawberry and pink peony flowers. The wine has a touch of effervescence and is lightly sweet, but with enough acidity to keep the glass crisp. This wine will pair well with spicy foods, as it has some bubbles and sweetness that both help extinguishes heat. It would also pair well with a piece of mild blue cheese, as the sweetness of the wine will contrast the strength of the cheese.

Food Pairing

Jerk Chicken & Pineapple Skewers

Jerk chicken is a Caribbean dish that will leave you feeling the heat! The sweetness of the pineapple makes the heat of the habaneros tolerably tangy. Commonly this style of food is grilled, but for this recipe, you’ll be oven baking the skewers. The rose wine that we propose as a pairing will quench the heat and the floral notes will complement the tropical notes of the pineapple.

Cooking Tips:

    • Prepare two separate bowls with their brushes before glazing the raw chicken. Do not use the brush that touched raw chicken when finishing with the final glaze to avoid cross-contamination.
    • The seeds and ribs of the pepper contain the most heat. If you want to bump up the spiciness, then utilize the ribs. If you want to crank the heat up to 11 then use the seeds.
    *Use gloves when cutting the pepper for added comfort and do not touch your eyes or ears or they will become irritated.

Vadillo Crianza

This wine presents delicate aromas of black cherry, caramel coffee, and fennel. It has a zippy acidity with a medium body and tannins profile that drinks smoothly. This wine’s body is on par to pair well with savory shellfish and leaner cuts of meat. Another fine pairing would be a regional pairing of Manchego cheese as they both share their beautiful origins!

Food Pairing

Cast Iron Paella

Paella is the creation of international inspiration and influence. The two shining stars of the dish are saffron and bomba rice, which both immigrated to the region. Saffron’s origin is the island of Crete, and it lends an exotic purple flower aroma and beautiful burnt orange pigment to the rice. Bomba rice made its way to the country by the Middle East, and it creates the signature clean nonsticking crust. The wine we recommend to pair with this dish works well because the body matches in intensity with the Paella, and it is also a regional paring. What grows together goes together!

Cooking Tips:

  • Swap out Arborio rice for Bomba, as it is more traditional.
  • Lightly toast the saffron in a pan and then add to the liquid for better extraction of flavor.

Real de Aragon

This bottle delivers flush notes of smoldering tobacco, cocoa, dark cherry, and stewed strawberry with supportive aromas of spices and herbs. It is a bold wine that has moderately tart acidity with mild tannins. A food pairing of lamb or pork seasoned with generous amounts of herbs and spices would do well. The wine has the body to stand up to the intensity of the meats while also having similar herbaceous and spice notes that would complement each other. As well, a smoked gouda’s smokey notes would be accentuated by the wine higher alcohol content, also complemented by the similar notes found in the winemaking for an excellent hazy pairing.

Food Pairing

Roasted Garlic Herb Rack of Lamb

Herb crusted lamb chops is an impressive dish that is incredibly simple and easy to make. The meat has a touch of heat from the Dijon mustard with earthy and grassy undertones. The wine we suggest pairing this dish with works well because both of their notes of rosemary, black pepper, and earthiness are completing each other. Additionally, the body matches the decent heft of the dish.

Cooking Tips:

  • The USDA recommended cooking to 145°
  • Lamb dries out when overcooked, so make sure to check the temperate in two separate locations near the thickest part of the meat when you start to approach the end half of your cooking time.

Cocktails To Try

Spiced Sangria

“Makes any occasion feel like a party”

Sangria may humbly be one of the first alcoholic mixed drink, as it got its beginnings originated as a method of disinfecting questionable swills. Around 700AD, wine was added to just about everything to make beverages more potable. It took a brief hiatus when the Islamic Moor’s conquered the Iberia peninsula but returned when their hold on the region crumbled around the 15th century. The contemporary Cocktail we know of today was thanks to a Spanish envoy that introduced the beverage at the New York World’s Fair of 1964. The modern rendition we are featuring is a refreshing red wine-based cocktail that balances fruit character, warm spices, and a satisfying hint of sweetness!

Ingredients for one:

3 oz your wine mix (see recipe below)
1 1/2 oz St. Remy VSOP Brandy
1 lemon wedge
Garnish: cucumber slices

Wine Mix for 8 servings:

1 750ml bottle of Vadillo Crianza
2 cinnamon sticks
2 star anise
1/2 teaspoon whole cloves
2 1/3 tablespoon brown sugar
1 red apple

  • Place all ingredients in an Instant Pot or medium saucepot. Using the manual setting, cook on low pressure for four minutes. Then let pressure release (about 10 minutes). If you are using a saucepot heat together below a simmer. Finally, for both methods strain out solids with a conical/shinwa or cheesecloth. Cool to room temperature.

Steps for making:

Combine wine mix and brandy in a Collins or wine glass over ice, stirring to incorporate and chill. Squeeze the lemon wedge over the top and drop the used wedge into the glass for freshness.
Garnish with 4 cucumber slices.

Alfonso XIII Highball

“Drinking like a king was never as easy or refreshing”

If you were around during World War II then you would have heard of Alfonso the 13th of Spain. He was the Spanish playboy-misfit king who aligned himself with a nationalist dictator who took over his country. The dictator’s power evaporated in 1931, which forced Alfonso into exile. During that time at the Monte Carlo Hotel de Paris, bartender Frank Meier created a cocktail in his name. Frank was a progressive man, aiding in the resistance against Nazi occupation of France, and most likely concocted the cocktail to celebrate Alfonso’s ousting. It is an easy, light, refreshing vermouth cocktail.

Ingredients for one:

  • 1 ½ oz Dubonnet Rouge
  • 1 ½ oz fino or dry sherry
  • 3 oz soda water
  • Garnish: lemon twist
    • Optional: For a stiffer drink cut the sherry in half and replace with Gray’s Peak gin:
    • ¾ oz Gray’s Peak Gin
    • ¾ oz fino or dry sherry

Steps for making:

  1. Combine all ingredients in a Collins glass over ice and stir until chilled.
  2. Garnish with a lemon twist.