As wine connoisseurship evolves, I look toward developing ways to express the aspects of wine I love the most. I recognize that wine is a product of nature and science; my goal is as natural as can be: to help make the connection between joy of taste and the bountiful pleasures of life.”

bebeosage@comcast.net

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

lands of sinking sand



Downpresson like a bail of hay or a load of bricks? You know,.. I hear every week from friends that tell me about their trips around the country. In the past three months more so, but in generally speaking,… the updates are hauntingly similar. Apart from the large metropolitan areas that successfully mask the core nature of this economic wallow, life esta dias appears to be the beginning of what I might call the lands of the sinking sand. I say, straighten up...stand firm friends, gaze across the horizon, ..find a rock and respect it like a buoy. Now, above the frey, refreshed and refurbished ..you are effortlessly floating..take a second to look around before you bend over and willingly submit to the idea that forced sacrifices in personal pleasures are a way of life. Allow the break ,…and look to the light. If this is on a platter, it’s a food that id like to get to know better. It’s like the "tastes of value" people... and im here to throw you the rope.

This week’s standout flotation devices.

Bodegas Borsao, “Monte Oton”, Garnacha, Campo de Borja, Spain
Spry, very forward and richly aromatic. Like a wooden crate full of a mix of almost too ripe black bush fruits on its way to a pyrex and some dough. Purity, pleasing and balanced with naught a splinter nor faulter..this lil gem harks back to the days of my Spanish revelation caravan circa 1995. Another round cometh! New labels, distinctive blend of New World plushness and Spainsh terroir , and damn straight delicious…
Spain is still hitting hard in a way like that creature in the Incredibles cartoon- In this case, it, (Spain) has learned exactly what we want. Despite that im feeling bit like a lab rat. I recommend this stuff highly.
Poured BTG at a few locations in and around Metro Atlanta…Places like Ecco and South City Kitchen, both located in Midtown to name a couple…Swing by, have a sip before you order/buy your first case at the local wine merchant.


Paso a Paso, Verdejo, La Mancha, Spain
As its penetrated this market a bit over the last 4 years or so, …sometimes from Australia , but more often from the Spanish D.O of Rueda, this Verdejo varietal is taking a deliberate and seemingly effective stab at yet another appendage of the long lived Sauvignon Blanc category. In this instance, a slightly different wine than is typical, and an unexpected region to boot. Richer with more concentration overall but also a bit slipperier and mouth coating….hmmm….the vintage?, the warmer more arid continental climate of La Mancha?,…old vines?...im not 100% sure but I can tell you that wherever this little dollop of proper fatness is coming from it’s a welcomed in my casa. .. All the bright high toned character you’ve come to know and love but with this added swath of yellow stone fruits, and silky slightly creamy (not butyric) mouthful the wine and varietal before us is both more diverse as a food partner and in its own complexity. A “bridge wine” in my book is one that helps folks that are snagged helplessly on a spire of chardonnay to free themselves with minimal pain and suffering. Good for us in the hospitality industry and maybe even more important for you and your guests. Can you say “ ok..ill be buying a case of this” ? Really. !!!

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