A Surge in Spanish Wines

A correction. In my last entry, I mistakenly listed the old — last week’s — Happy Hour wine at Sapor. Rather than the Austrian Gruner Veltliner, the Washington Avenue wine bar is now featuring a Spanish Protocolo Blanco (in addition to the Luzon Mourvedre-Grenache). I’m not famliar with this wine — a blend of Airén and Macabeo grapes — but the tasting notes cite an aroma of banana, apple, and peach, with a "silky" mouthfeel and a strong finish. And this new pairing reflects a trend I’m seeing in the popularity of cheap but interesting Spanish wines.

For example at Sam’s Wine Shop, just down the street from Sapor, I recently tasted the Salneval Albarino Valle del Salnes 2006, from the area of northwestern Spain that borders Portugal. Salneval is a cooperative of more than 360 growers and is considered one of the highest quality wineries in the region. Their Albarino is a lucid, complex wine: pure lime on the nose, with a foretaste of green leaves and ocean surf and a finish that hints at bell pepper and flint. It has 12.5% alcohol and sells for just $11.99.

Bill Summerville, partner at La Belle Vie and the principal wine buyer for its sister restaurant, Solera, says it’s about time the general public learned to appreciate fine Spanish wine.

"Everyone in town is trailing Solera," Summerville says. "The ball was rolling on this five years ago. Wine gains in popularity based on two things: value and people who are willing to take a chance on very high quality. Spain has always produced a lot of value wines, but now they’re also producing wines of fantastic quality on the other end."

Like France, Spain defines its wines by region (or Tierra) more than varietal: Rioja is one of the most well-known winemaking regions. Others include Rías Baixas, Rueda, and Toro. Summerville warns, however, that the sudden surge in Spanish winemaking has led to "new appellations appearing out of the woodwork," mostly for political or economic purposes.

Like Italian wines roughly ten years ago, Spanish wines, both great and terrible, are suddenly flooding liquor store and bottle shop shelves. The solution, Summerville says, is to buy from people who know — and care about — the Spanish imports they’re selling. His top recommendations: Sam’s, Solo Vino, and The Wine Thief.