This past month we were invited to speak at the annual wine marketing conference in the wine capital of Logroño, in the gorgeous Rioja wine region. The conference lasted for 2 days and the majority of the 300 and odd guests were local wineries looking for unique ideas for wine tourism and innovative strategies to face the global wine crisis. We gave a presentation on Wine Tourism and addressed topics such a: new wine tourism experiences (both in Rioja and abroad, such as our tours in Italy and Portugal); the profile of the winery visitor (demographics); what wine tourists are looking for when they visit; examples of top class wineries offering exclusive wine tourism experiences (we chose Badia Passignano in Tuscany and Esporão in Alentejo); what wineries need to do in order to cooperate with agencies specialized in wine tours; innovative ideas for small wineries to develop wine tourism initiatives (wine picnics,4X4 tours of the vines, tastings set amid the vineyards, etc) and trends in the wine tourism sector. The audience was enthusiastic and full of young professionals working in Rioja wineries. Amazingly everyone stayed awake throughout the presentation as by the time we spoke it was about 6PM on a Friday evening with a mid day wine tasting

Wine Tourism in Rioja

The concept of wine tours and wine tourism in Spain overall is still in the infant stages. Far from established wine country tourist destinations like Napa Valley, Tuscany, Australia or Mendoza, many Spanish wine regions still can´t get their head around wine tourism -if they want it or not, if it will be mass tourism (big coaches) or exclusive tourism and the level of cooperation between wine estates to promote their regions and sub regions as a whole has not been strategic. The buzz word these days is- potential! We have been offering wine tours in Spain since 2003 and have overcome many barriers to getting wineries interested in receiving visitors and things are improving all the time. There is still a lot of work to be done to establish Rioja as a wine destination in the minds of international travelers.  However the wineries we work with in Spain and Rioja are true professionals, making great wines and creative with the style of visits they offer.

Fellow Speakers at the Wine Marketing Conference in Logroño

What an amazing panel of speakers this conference had over the course of the 2 days! These included Alice Feiring (An American wine journalist with a huge following on her blog, who talked about the influence of the press and the wine gurus. Her book “The Battle for Wine and Love: or How I Saved the World from Parkerization” is a NY Times bestseller), Anna Riera (a bubbly Catalan journalist specialized in food and wine),  the mega dynamic and supremely entertaining Saúl Mallols (one of the business managers of Lavinia), Stephen Rannekleiv (the Vice President of Rabobank International who talked about the American fine wine consumption market and how the economic crisis is affecting it) and Paolo Battegazzore (one of the heads at  Folio Fine Wine Partners in Napa who gave a fascinating and straightforward presentation about the complex and intricate world of wine importing in the USA and his recommendations for Rioja wine producers.

We also had some interesting, live video conferences with professionals around the world such as Miguel Ángel Rivas (Director of  Marinter S.A., the most prestigious wine company in México), and Federico Vázquez de Novoa (Tourism Manager in Mendoza, Argentina- the most successful wine tourism destination in South America). The caliber of speakers was extremely high and we were honored to be included on the panel.

Half way through the day, a sensorial wine tasting was organized for us, consisting of some gorgeous wines such as Numanthia (!!!). My my my, were we ever pampered, have a look at the hard day´s work:

Logroño- this small working wine town hosts a series of interesting wine events throughout the year. The “Catarsis” music and wine festival has just concluded, but you can catch it again next year (various wineries like Marqués de Vargas, Juan Alcorta, Franco Españolas, Darien, Ontañon and Ijalba host classic music evenings, fabulous! Another reason to come to Logroño are the tapas on the mythical calle Laurel. The idea is you have a pincho (small dish on a plate or brochette) and a glass of wine and wander down the street popping into bars as a way of having lunch or dinner. It´s fun and while here you could visit La Casita (get the brocheta de calamares y gambas), Bar El Cid (flagship pintxo is the grilled wild mushroom), Bar Donosti (get the Boletus con jamón de reserva), Bar Entremuros (stuffed red pepper), Taberna del Laurel (patatas bravas), and La Tasca del Pato (Atlantic crab). Other lovely places to wander around here include the Iglesia de Santiago, Plaza del Mercado, Calle Portales, and El Espolón.

Read about our site inspection of Rioja wineries here.

Check out other wine marketing and wine tourism conferences in Cape Town (July 2009) and Bordeaux (November).

On Valentine´s Day this month, we were delighted to attend a phenomenal chocolate and wine tasting event in Madrid organized by Cristina Alonso of Vintage Spain. They offer these scheduled events regularly so check out their calendar. What a great night!

The venue- a private room at El Coso restaurant, where we had a superb dinner afterwards. Highly recommended for Madrileños or travelers visiting Madrid looking for a good value gourmet experience.

The concept - the theme was wine and chocolate pairing, and it was fascinating. Chocolate is traditionally paired with sweet wines, and in Spain it is also served with sparkling “Cava” during the holidays (a major wine crime actually as the bubbly tastes insipid when mixed with mouth coating chocolate). The purpose of this wine and chocolate tasting was to see how chocolate could hold up next to dry wines (although we did have one sweetie, more on that below), and the golden rules of pairing bitter with sweet.

The “Maridaje”- the pairing is called a “Marriage”  in Spanish, and our marriage of wines and chocolates included:

CHOCOLATES- the line we tried was from the producer Valrhona

Jivara 40% cacao (milk chocolate)
Extra Bitter 61% cacao
Coeur de Guanaja 80% cacao

WINES- we tried the chocolates next to dry Spanish wines (white and red)

Finca Los Nevados Viognier- one of our favorite Spanish whites at the moment.
Vallegarcia Viognier de Pago
Alidis Crianza – Ribera del Duero, Tempranillo
Lara O – Ribera del Duero,Tempranillo- outstanding wine, too!!
Alvear PX- Montilla Moriles, Pedro Ximenez

The Best Match- we personally enjoyed the Alvear PX with the 80% cacao chocolate the most. Surprisingly, the white Finca los Nevados Viognier with the milk chocolate was also gorgeous.

The Worst Match- the Alidis from Ribera del Duero was absolutely awful with the bitter chocolates.

The golden rules of chocolate and wine pairing we learned include-

- Pair the chocolates to wines with a similar “weight”, so heavy flavored chocolates with heavy wines; more delicately flavored chocolates with lighter wines.

- Match chocolates to wines with similar flavors (for example almonds, hazelnuts, cedar, spice, berries and forest fruits, creaminess, etc)

- Your tastebuds are your own! Virtually everyone at this tasting disagreed about the matches, and we had fun doing it!

Sommeliers traditionally recommend the following sweet or off dry wine and choco matches:

WHITE CHOCOLATE- Muscats, Late Harvest wines, Ice wine.

MILK CHOCOLATE- Hungarian Tokaji, Tawny Port, Muscats, Amontillados, Palo Cortados

BITTER CHOCOLATE- Banyuls, LBV Port, Vintage Port, Amarone, Pedro Ximenez

Spanish Chocolate Makers-  Spain is full of some fabulous chocolatiers. Established and reliable companies include Chocolates Valor and Chocovic. Enric Rovira is an artisan master choco maker who also does some cross merchandising of wine and chocolate with the Priorat Odysseus winery. At the top of our list though, of favorite Spanish companies is Cacao Sampaka (with ultra trendy choco shops in Madrid, Barcelona, Bilbao, Berlin, Valencia, Tokyo, Lisbon and Málaga).

This past week here in Madrid, the annual Madrid Fusión gastronomic event took place.  The mood was slightly different than in the last few years (boom years in Spain), with much talking and debating about “High end cuisine for the economic crisis” and brainstorming on how to flourish in tough financial times. Presentations on this theme included “Haute poor cuisine-  Imagination in crisis times by Paco Ron and Peter Nilsson”. However it certainly wasn´t all glum, and as always was an opportunity for top chefs from around the world to exchange ideas and to receive their kudos.

Some of the more interesting topics included “Natural Pantry of the Amazon Jungle: the last version of Peruvian cuisine” by Pedro Miguel Schiaffino (Peru, FYI, is a hot gastronomic destination this year and chef Pilar Latorre is leading an ultra luxury culinary tour there in the spring);  “Gastro Botanic Subtleties of the Desert Garden” by Rodrigo de la Calle and Santiago Orts, “The Chef Perfumist: Renaissance in the 21st Century” by Corrado Assenza; “Science and Cuisine Discussion: Does Molecular Cuisine Exist?” (THE hot topic!!!!) by  Ferran Adrià, Heston Blumenthal, Andoni Luis Aduriz, and Harold McGee; “The Mexican Avant-Garde: Conceptual Dishes with Roots” by Enrique Olvera; “Haute Creative Cuisine with Gorgonzola, Parmigiano Reggiano, and Provolone Valpadana” by Nacho Manzano, Jordi Vilà and Paco Roncero; “Plankton: Life’s Origin of the Sea, A New Dressing” by our beloved Ángel León;  “Color: Another Taste” by Elena Arzak; and “Jerez Vinegar in Haute Cuisine: An Acidity with Tradition” by Pepe Rodríguez Rey, Carles Abellan, and Kisko García.

A quick summary of some of the highlights from Madrid Fusión 2009:

TOP AWARDS FOR CHEFS- 11 CHEFS FROM ALL OVER THE GLOBE WERE SELECTED FOR THEIR CONTRIBUTION TO HAUTE CUISINE:

Gualtiero Marchesi- Italian

Ferran Adriá- Catalan (Spanish, inventor of molecular cuisine)

Juan Mari Arzak- Basque (Spanish)

Michel Bras- French

Heston Blumenthal- British

Alain Ducasse- French

Pierre Gagnaire- French

Pierre Hermé- French (called the Picasso of Patisserie)

Thomas Keller- American

Nobu Matsuhisa- Japanese

Charlie Trotter- American

AWARDS OF EXCELLENCE IN MADRID

Sponsor: Madrid Chamber of Commerce

Chef of the year: Paco Morales at Senzone restaurant in the stylish Hospes hotel in Madrid

Restaurant of the year: Casa José in the royal town of Aranjuez (chef Fernando del Cerro)

Maitre of the year: Eduardo Navarrina at the Madrid institution Dantxari

Sommelier of the year: Dani Poveda at star chef Sergi Arolo´s superb new Gastro restaurant in Madrid

Lifetime achievement award- Evaristo García of the 100 year old seafood restaurant Pescaderías Coruñesas

AWARD FOR BEST NEWCOMERS

Sponsor: C.R.D.O. JEREZ, MANZANILLA DE SANLÚCAR Y VINAGRE DE JEREZ (the Sherry consortium)

Finalists-

Restaurante Trigo (Valladolid. Victor Martín)

Restaurante Embat (Barcelona. Fidel Puig, Santi Rebés, Cristina Torrás)

R De La Calle (Aranjuez, Madrid. Rodrigo de la Calle)

Gastromium (Sevilla. Miguel Díaz, Ernesto Malasaña, José Carabias)

Narru (San Sebastian, Guipúzcoa. Iñigo Peña)

Gavara (Bocairent, Valencia. Silvia Gavara)

Spanish tapas are fun, easy to prepare, and always a crowd pleaser. Here are some ideas on how to throw your own tapas and wine party for your (appreciative) friends:

FIRST OF ALL, WHAT ARE TAPAS?-  The word “tapa” means “lid” in Spanish, and it refers to the tradition in centuries past in hot and dusty Spanish inns and bars to place a plate over the customer´s drink (usually a glass of wine), to keep out the flies. Over time, innkeepers realized that if they placed savory and salty food on the plate, the clients would drink more- and voilà, the concept of tapas was born. Today in Spain, “tapas” refers to small portions (as opposed to “raciones” which are full plate portions) of savory, Spanish cuisine. You´ll find traditional tapas all over Spain based on cheeses, olives and various meat and veg dishes as well as elaborate tapas made with all kinds of gourmet ingredients including foie gras, duck confit, and sea urchins (particularly in Madrid, San Sebastian and Barcelona). Tapas are often placed on a slice of bread or in a little vol au vent (see photo above) and these ones on bread can be called called “Tostas” or “Pintxos” (an expression used often in Basque Country).

Now, to plan your party……

THE MUSIC- start the night with some mellow Paco de Lucia and Diego el Cigala´s flamenco jazz fusion album (Lágrimas Negras), follow with the exceptionally talented Carmen Paris, and carry on with the Flamenco pop band Ketama.

THE TABLE SETTING- Spanish olive wood bowls are beautiful and very traditional; you can use them for salads, as a bread bowl, etc. Place the tapas on pretty, colorful ceramic plates. Bring out the hot tapas directly in the earthenware pottery you cooked them in. Serve the wines in typical Basque “chiquito” glasses, and bring out the paella right on the paella pan.

Pick tablecloths with bright colors like yellow and red, from the Spanish flag.  Decorate the room with atmospheric candles. There is a fabulous company in Madrid called “At Spain” that sells all of these products and ships all over the world, info here.

THE WINES- Have various wine bottles open for guests to choose from. Keep the Finos, Cavas and White Wines on ice and the red wines and Amontillados at room temperature.

Finos/Manzanillas- La Gitana Manzanilla is a classic, as well as the Tio Pepe Fino, both easy to find. Serve on their own, or make a Manzanilla cocktail such as the “Rebujito”.

Cava- Spain´s classic sparkling wine, Cava, has a whole range of quality spectrums. Freixenet produces millions of bottles of cheap and cheerful cava, while upmarket cellars like Agusti Torellò make sublime cavas like “Kripta”, on a par with a fine champagne. Our favorite producers include: Torellò, Parés Baltà, and Raventos i Blanc. Codorniu, one of the main (and one of the oldest) producers also make a wonderful rosé cava, lovely in summer.

Vino Blanco- Our favorite white wines in Spain at the moment include: As Sortes (from Valdeorras, made with the trendy Godello grape), Conreria de Scala Dei´s “winter white” Les Brugueres (a 14% Garnacha blanca based, delicious weighty white), Belondrade y Lurton´s Rueda Superior (made with the zippy Verdejo grape) and the spectacular Selección de Añada Albariño from the Pazo de Señorans estate.

Vino Tinto-A crime to have to only choose a few favorites, but to choose a few…. begin the tapas party with a juicy red from the Finca Loranque estate (La Mancha) accompanied by the (Bierzo) ever-popular Dominio de Tares old vines. Carry on with the (Ribera del Duero) Arzuaga Crianza and contine with the Roda Reserva (our absolute favorite Rioja at the moment). If you want to splash out on a fab red, go for the Clos de l´Obac from the chic region of Priorat.

Other Sherries- We love sherries to accompany the cheeses and amontillado sherries in particular. Pick up a bottle of (dry and nutty) Amontillado from a good estate like Lustau and bring out with the cheeses. Learn more about Sherry here and discover the varied grapes of Spain here. Finally, see some top Spanish winery profiles here.

THE TAPAS- and on to the food! Some ideas for the tapas to choose:

Cheeses - Make  a Spanish cheese plate with cured Manchego, sultry Roncal, smoked Idiazabál, blue Cabrales, savory Ibores and creamy Garrotxa. If you can get your hands on a whole Torta del Casar cheese, this will probably be the party favorite! More info on Spanish Cheese.

Olives and nuts-some easy ideas for tapas:

- walnuts, panfried for five minutes with fresh rosemary and sea salt

- almonds, panfried (and moved constantly) with Spanish paprika (pimentón), sea salt and the smallest pinch of ground Cumin

- Spanish green (unpitted) olives marinated with garlic, olive oil, coriander seeds and fresh thyme

- Spanish black olives (unpitted) marinated with olive oil, lemon zest, cumin seeds, freshly chopped parsley

some tapas recipes here.

Veggies-

- Padrón peppers (Pimientos de Padrón) grilled with olive oil and sea salt

- Spanish red piquillo peppers (they come packed in jars), served on their own on a plate

- Green asparagus wrapped in Serrano ham and roast in the oven

- Tortilla Española, the ultimate tapas party favorite

Meat based tapas-

- Small chorizo sausages slow cooked in Asturian cider in earthenware pottery in the oven

- Spanish meatballs (albondigas), recipe here.

- plenty of thinly sliced Jamón, including Serrano ham and Bellota ham

- Spanish Paella!! There are countless recipes, and it is a colorful and striking addition to your tapas party

Seafood based tapas-

- Gambas al ajillo (shrimp sauteed in garlic and olive oil)

- Calamares a la Romana (breaded Calamari), recipe here.

- Marinated Boquerones (anchovies)

- Croquetas de Bacalao (cod croquettes)

And for Dessert- cheese! also Crema Catalana, and Flan

Follow dessert with “Chupitos” (shot glasses) of chilled Galician Orujo (we love the Martin Codax orujo de hierbas) to wash it all down.

We hope your Spanish tapas fiesta is a hit, tell us how it goes!

“Las Uvas”

The most popular New Year´s Eve tradition is “las doce uvas de la buena suerte“ (the 12 grapes of good luck).  At 12 seconds to midnight the countdown begins and each time the bell rings in a new second, millions of Spaniards (sitting at home, at parties and in the streets watching the celebrations) have to eat a grape, for a total of twelve grapes.  The origin of this funny tradition supposed to bring good luck, apparently comes from some enterprising farmers with a surplus of grapes a century ago, so it is is not a tradition dating back to medieval times. It is however a tradition that EVERYONE in Spain celebrates. Enterprising Chinese street merchants even sell pre-bagged grapes in the plazas of all major Spanish cities on New Year´s Eve, to bemused tourists.  At the stroke of midnight the cork on the Cava bottle is popped, and people tell each other “Feliz año nuevo” and kiss each other on both cheeks.

“Bragas Rojas”

In Spain, as in Italy, the tradition is to wear red underwear and lingerie on New Year´s eve….what more can we say?

“El Brindis”

The toast of bubbly at midnight is made with Spanish Cava, most of which (and the best of which) is made in the wine region of Penedès south of Barcelona. Made by traditional method in the same way as champagne (with second fermentation in bottle), there are some fabulous examples of Cava. Our favorite is definitely Agustí Torelló´s stylish “Kripta” cava, which comes in an amphora shaped bottle. Other excellent producers include Parés Baltà, Albet i Noya, Gramona and Raventós i Blanc.

Wherever this nochevieja finds you in the world, we wish you a very, very happy new year and todo lo mejor for 2009!

June 14-15- Medieval Fair, Briones

The beautiful small wine hamlet of Briones located in La Rioja is home to a very picturesque medieval festival every year in June on the 3rd weekend. This year it will be held on 14-15 June. With less than 1000 inhabitants, this historic “aldea” is a treat for wine lovers to visit with as you have an incredible wine museum (Dinastia Vivanco), boutique wineries like Miguel Merino and darling restaurants like Los Calaos de Briones. Las Jornadas Medievales (Medieval Days) celebrate and remember the ancient customs and traditions of Briones. The streets are decked out in colorful flags, tapestries and coats of arms. The town is transformed into what it would have been like in medieval times including the local carpenters, aristocrats residences, tanners, weavers, shoemakers, tailors, even an Inquisition jail. This is a great time to come visit La Rioja, take in some wine tasting, dining and sightseeing in this delightful corner of Northern Spain..

More Info

June 29- La Batalla de Vino, Haro

The Wine Battle, an annual wine event that takes place in Haro, in La Rioja is held on the 29^th of June. Its origin is based on a historic land dispute and over time has evolved into a folkloric wine party. The event begins with a procession led by the mayor on horseback who leads attendees to a mass. The dress code is white shirt (all the better to get soaked with red wine after) and red scarves, and various containers with wine. After the mass the battle begins and people spray each other with wine, from their wineskins (botas), jugs and containers. Within a short time, the streets of Haro fill with red wine stained revelers. Following the wine battle, the crowd hit the bullring and do a small scale running of the bulls. A big Spanish lunch wraps up the day with local specialties like baby lamb chops roasted over grape vines, red Piquillo peppers and of course rich red wines from La Rioja.

More Info on the Wine Battle of Haro