Spanish Wines & Paella

A very big “Muchas Gracias” to everyone who came along to our Spanish Fiesta last weekend! It was really great fun and the sun shone!! We had a lovely little get-together here in the village. Alvaro, our Rioja maestro, played an absolute blinder with the paellas and the Spanish nibbles and the range of wines on tasting went down very well. In fact two of our wines sold out completely on the day, the El Camino Rioja and the Marieta Albarino, two seriously tasty wines…It was truly fascinating to watch Alvaro step by step as he fashioned the paellas with all the various ingredients… and the aromas emanating from his frying pan had everybody’s taste-buds tingling! It was also very interesting in terms of “wine education” to sample the Godello white from Galicia and the Bierzo red (made from the local Mencia grape) a lovely supple fruity red. The wines certainly tasted great with the Spanish ham, cheese and olives. The wines we tasted were: Marieta Albarino 2011 RRP15.99 Alba Martin Albarino 2011 RRP15.99 Martin Codax Albarino 2011 RRP17.99 Mara Martin Godello 2012 RRP15.99 Pizarras de Otero Mencia 2012 RRP15.99 El Camino Rioja 2010 RRP15.99 Thanks again! John & Harry Nectar Wines Sandyford Village 01 2944067 ps dont forget to keep an eye on our Facebook page for more updates and photos of the event. Feel free to share any thoughts or photos you may have taken!

In praise of Malbec..

The recent "World Malbec Day" got me thinking about this rather wonderful red grape and the unique wine it produces. Malbec is a purple grape variety used in making red wine. The grapes tend to have an inky dark color and robust tannins, and it is known as one of the six grapes permitted in the blend of red Bordeaux wine. The French plantations of Malbec are now found primarily in Cahors in South West France. It is increasingly celebrated as an Argentine varietal wine and is being grown around the world.A popular but unconfirmed theory claims that Malbec is named after a Hungarian peasant who first spread the grape variety throughout France! Luigi Bosca "Single Vineyard" Malbec 2007 RRP 19.99 If you fancy a real Malbec treat try this absolute beauty from Mendoza in Argentina. Aged for 14 months in oak this is a very serious bottle of wine.Give it plenty of air and ideally try it with your favourite steak! There's something very special about Malbec and beef, a perfect wine and food match if you ask me!

Ann and Noel's Wine Review

Ann and Noel’s Wine Review

Zenato Lugana 2010 RRP 14.95
A white wine from the north east of italy, origina controllata "San Benedetto"
bottled by Zenato in the same area. A terrific wine, one we always go back to.
Smell the apricot aromas! A medium dry, fruity wine that is smooth on the palate, with no sharp aftertaste. Excellent as an aperitif or with cheese and crackers. Recommended as a worthy accompaniment to tasty chicken or fish dishes. Very easy to drink on it’s own when you want to relax. Best to buy 2 bottles, as one is never enough!

(We asked our customers to come on board our WineBlog to review some of their favourite wines. This is the first instalment. Many Thanks to Ann and Noel!)

Cheese and Wine Tasting

Thanks to everyone who attended our Cheese & Wine Tasting last Friday.
We'd a great turnout and there was hardly any cheese or wine left over
for myself and Harry to snaffle!(I took that as a good sign that the various
combinations had gone down well!)

Our line-up was as follows:

“Honoré de Berticot” Cotes de Duras Sauvignon Blanc 2010
and Sainte Maure Goats Cheese (French)

Nespolino Trebbiano/Chardonnay 2010 and Manchego Sheeps Cheese.(Spanish)

Parrell Montsant 2006 and Comté cheese (French)

Delicato Old Vine Zinfandel 2008 and Cashel Blue Cheese. (Irish)


A “mystery cheese” turned up aswell. It arrived fresh off the plane from Galicia.
Many Thanks to Paula and Viv for bringing this little beauty along!
We found out that its called “San Simon” It looked amazing and tasted wonderful!

Here are some more details..

San Simon is a popular smoked Spanish cheese. It is made from cow's milk in the region of Galicia in the northwest of the country. The curd is transferred into pear-shaped molds, after a day, the forms are immersed in hot whey. After two weeks, the cheeses are smoked. The gourmet San Simon cheese has a delicious, creamy buttery texture. The cheese has a thin chestnut-orange rind, a soft inside and is mild but full of flavor. This versatile cheese is great on its own, and sublime when paired with fresh fruit or served as a dessert cheese.

Italy..by the Liffey!

Here are some more details about the exciting "Italy Unwrapped" wine tasting event,which will take place at the rather lovely venue No. 10 Ormond Quay on Thursday 8th September.

You can check out the venue on their website here:
http://www.no10dublin.com/

“Italy Unwrapped” Event”
Thursday 8th September (7.30 – 10pm)
Venue : No. 10 Ormond Quay, Dublin 1
Ticket Price 20euro / Tickets now available to buy in the shop.
(Limited number of places available so please register your interest as early as possible)

We hope you can join us and one of our favourite Italian Wine Importers for a celebration of Italian Wines, their diverse regions and the fabulous breath of grape varieties and wines styles that are such a feature of the country.
The Showcase will include 7 different wineries covering 8 regions from the Veneto in the North to Sicily in the South. The wines and wineries on show have won a host of awards from the likes of from Decanter World Wine Awards, Mondus Vini, Vinitaly and include many 2 and 3 glasses Gambero Rosso wines. Some of the wineries include Masciarelli, Valori, Montalto and Poderi dal Nespoli. There will also be nibbles and antipasti to sample along with the wines!

An opportunity to taste thirty fantastic Italian wines and meet some of the “faces behind the label” this is a once-off wine event not to be missed!

If you're interested in attending just give me a call at 01 2944067 or send me an email: john@nectarwines.com

Muscat + Valrhona “Tanariva” 33% Milk Chocolate

“Domaine de Fontavin” Muscat de Beaumes de Venise 2005 (Sweet White)
Valrhona “Tanariva” 33% Milk Chocolate

I found this “milk chocolate” to be quite fascinating in that there’s a distinct caramel flavour going on. This is apparently down to the character of the cocoa bean varieties and plantations in Madagascar that Valrhona select in making this chocolate. Just as with coffee beans, different cocoa beans produce various flavours and aromas in the final chocolate. The sweet and “grapey” Muscat worked well in creating a luscious, honeyed and creamy sensation together with the chocolate.

Overall..a “choctastic” wine tasting!

Ribera del Duero + Valrhona “Guanaja” 70% Dark Chocolate

“Hoya de Los Lobos” Ribera del Duero Crianza 2005(Oak-Aged Red)
Valrhona “Guanaja” 70% Dark Chocolate

We paired up the dark, oaky Ribera red with the darkest of the dark chocolate options, the 70% Guanaja (named after the Caribbean island where Christopher Columbus landed in 1502)
The chocolate and wine both possess a smoky, spicy allure and this match worked very well also. I was picking up a coffee/mocha impression from this pairing, which was very nice indeed!
I’m told “Los Lobos” means “the wolves” in Spanish..I thought they were an 80’s band famous for the worldwide smash La Bamba..Oh well you live and learn.