It seems like a lot of California wineries these days are jumping on the Spanish Albariño bandwagon. Why? Because this wine is tasty, crisp, and refreshing. It is a wonderful diversion from the popular varietals of Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay. It screams for seafood. At the Tapas Grand Tasting we were delighted to find a good number of the wineries pouring samples of Albariño wine.

We love everything about Albariño wine and we drink it often. When we were in Spain in 2007 we visited the tiny town of Cambados. The town is the center of the Rias Baixas wine region where the Albariño grape is almost exclusively grown. We happened to be in Cambados at harvest time. What a treat! There are many very small Albariño vineyards, farmed by homeowners, surrounding Cambados. They passionately farm their vineyards with many using no poisons or fertilizers. We watched at the Martin Códax co-op winery as these farmers proudly brought in their grapes to be part of the co-op bounty.

An Albariño cluster characteristically has two branches, small & large

Tapas stands for Tempranillo Advocates, Producers, and Amigos Society. Some 50 wineries poured Tempranillo and other Spanish and Portuguese varietals at Fort Mason’s Herbst Pavilion this past Saturday, June 5th. It was a pleasant but somewhat eerie atmosphere in the Herbst Pavilion, with wineries spread out along the perimeter walls. We are used to four times as many wineries and a ton of trade and media representatives packed like sardines at Fort Mason tasting events. At the Tapas we had plenty of elbow room and, best of all, many opportunities to talk to the winemakers and winery owners.

We spent four weeks in Spain in 2007 and explored the Toro, Ribera del Duero, and Riojo wine regions where Tempranillo is king. Ever since that visit, we have been constantly on the lookout for great-tasting Tempranillo wines. The Tapas tasting is the perfect opportunity for wine lovers like us to discover Tempranillo and other Spanish varietals. Read the rest of this entry »