This summer I fell in love with Spain and Portugal’s albarino wines. I think I have a new lover!

Rob and Ashley at Cork and Cracker in Indy have recommend Cote EST a couple of times and I bought a bottle on the first or second recommendation. Note: They are persistent, having recommended it a couple of times since.

This is a French white wine blend that is really a fabulous wine for a mere $11.

It’s a very light-color yellow wine that will remind you of a Chardonnay on the nose. This wine generally received rave reviews over the past few vintages. They do mix up the blend a little. The 2008 is 50 percent Grenache blanc, 30 percent Chardonnay and 20 percent Marsanne.

This is a light flavored wine that still packs a rich lemon and green apple flavor. I alternately thought it reminded me of Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc. At $10.99, it certainly drinks like a much more expensive white wine. It’s full-flavored without being heavy, it has a nice crispness without too much acidity, and it matches up nicely with food. I paired it with veggies and potatoes in a butter sauce and it was awesome!

It’s no surprise this is an Eric Soloman selection.

The grapes are grown and the wine is made near the France-Spain border. When Rob first recommended the wine, he referred to it as a “wine with an identity crisis! It sits on the two national borders and from vintage to vintages mixes up the percentage of juice from the three grapes.

But I found this white wine not confusing at all. It’s one of the best I’ve had in 2009!

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I’ve made it clear here before that I do occasionally accept wine samples for review. I recently accepted and just enjoyed a bottle of Campo Viejo 2006 Crianza.

This wine is 85 percent Tempranillo, 10 percent Garnacha and 5 percent Mazuelo. The wine gets 12 months in oak, has a very deep color and a nose of dark fruit and certainly some vanilla.

I like it for its nose as much as its taste. It’s just 13.5 percent alcohol and would be good with a small plates concept.

I have some recipes that have come with bottles of wine as did the ones below with the Campo Viejo. I haven’t tried these but of the three I was sent, thought these two sounded pretty good.

The wine is good $10 Spanish wine. Again, comparative to the price point of others in this range, it’s a nice choice if you see it in your wine shop.

Enjoy the recipes! If you try them, drop me a note to the email below and let me know. They do sound rather yummy!

Caramelized Figs with Mahon Cheese
Recipe created by Chef Stephen Justynski of Café Madrid, Dallas
Makes 6 pieces

3 figs, cut in half
4 ounces Mahon Cheese (or other semi-firm cheese such as Gouda), broken into crumbles
3 tablespoons sugar
1 rosemary sprig
Honey

Lay figs on an oven tray and sprinkle sugar on top. Slide into a preheated toaster oven and broil quickly to brown the sugar. Place the Mahon in the center of a platter and arrange the figs around it. Drizzle with honey to taste.
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Pumpkin Empanadas
Makes 6-12 empanadas of varying sizes

1 16-ounce bag of pre-made pizza dough, preferably whole wheat (can make your own dough if pre-made is not available)
All-purpose flour to cover hands and table
Filling:
1/2 cup golden raisins
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup canned, unsweetened pumpkin puree
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg (optional)

Pre-heat the oven to 450 degrees and lightly grease a baking sheet. Spread flour on wax paper or other surface on a table. Roll small balls of dough around in flour and flatten into thin circles a few inches in diameter. Mix filling ingredients together in a bowl; spoon two tablespoons of filling into the center of each circle. Fold the circle of dough in half over the filling to enclose it, aligning the edges of the half-circle of dough. Press down all along the joined edges to seal the empanada. If you wish, add a bit of milk on the top of the empanadas and sprinkle with additional cinnamon and sugar before baking. Bake for 15-25 minutes, turning once.
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Eric Soloman is a wine importer who just never seems to miss the mark. A couple of my wine retailer friends just shout the praises of this New York man with a nose and palate for great wine.

Soloman is a big, big name in retail wine. He was named “Best Importer” by Food & Wine Magazine in 2006 and Robert Parker’s “Wine Personality of the Year” in 2002.

Ashley at Cork & Cracker pointed me toward a Soloman import just last weekend – a 2005 Les Alcusses Spanish blend that I just “had to try.” I’m such a sucker for a recommendation from those I trust.

This wine is a blend of Monastrell (check!), Tempranillo (the great Spanish grape, check!), Syrah (Okay, sounds good!), … and Mando (huh?). All I could think of when she said Mando was Mongo from Blazing saddles! But I digress!

Mando is a varietal found primarily in the Valencia region of Spain. It is a dark grape usually high in alcohol. Valencia is in the eastern region of Spain bordering the Mediterranean. Most of my research on “mando” included words like “rare,” “experimental,” and well … you get the idea.

But the wine, isn’t bad. I admit though the initial nose on this wine was scary as Mongo when angry in that great Mel Brooks’ classic. Often wine drinkers use the “barnyard” term in association with earthy wines and particularly with fine Pinot Noir. The nose on this wine was barnyard with the animals still hanging around!

But after a short period of time the wine calmed down and was actually pretty darn good. Robert Parker gave this juice an 89. It’s a very dark wine with some vanilla and berry hints. It’s soft on the finish … but definitely has a different taste and nose!

It does have a pretty cool label! (at right)

I’d recommend giving it a try! Mando – who can resist something you’ve just NEVER heard of before!

In photos: Top right, wine importer Eric Soloman. Center left, Mongo – aka, Alex Karras.

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I’m becoming convinced one of the best value Cabernet buys is Washington State. I’ve tried three Washington Cabernet Sauvignons in recent months and really liked them all.

Lumping a region’s wine together is going to be inaccurate and unfair, but generally the Washington state Cabs are easier to drink than many of the bigger, bolder Cabernets coming out of California.

I opened a Milbrand Vineyards 2006 Traditions Cabernet Sauvignon Saturday night and enjoyed it with a great ribeye off the grill. I finished it tonight with some pasta. It was very good both nights.

The wine is made by Butch and Jerry Milbrandt. They have sold their grapes for years to many different producers but save some of their best grapes for their own wines.

It’s definitely a fruit-forward Cab with a hint of the oak used in the aging … but again, very smooth. The Traditions Cabernet is 75 percent Cab, 12 percent Merlot and some Petit Verdot.

Wine Ennthusiast gave this nice Washington wine 90 po0ints.

The Milbrandts have 1,600 acres in vineyards and make wines at several different price points. This wine is most often found at $13-$16. I bought it at Kahn’s Fine Wines on Keystone Avenue in Indianapolis for $15.99. Even though I bought it at the top of the range, I’d quickly add it’s a great wine at that price point!
Forget the wine geekiness, this is just a very smooth, nice and easy-to-drink Cabernet. I’m not sure there is any better compliment.

I’m trying something new here tonight – a food site that helps pairing food with wine. Check it out and send me an email if you’d like this type of feature to appear regularly!

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Anyone who likes Pinot Noir, knows finding a good one under $15 is like a wild animal safari … or to lean on an old cliche’ … a needle in a haystack.

Mark West makes pretty good Pinot around $10. Chilean Cono Sur isn’t bad near the same price point. Dashwood, from New Zealand, is pretty darn good for around $15. I recently tried an Argentinian Pinot that missed the mark, badly!

So I was skeptical when Liz over at Vino 100 in Columbus, Ohio, insisted a try another of Argentina’s Pinot Noir wines.

I bought a bottle of Alfredo Roca 2008 Pinot Noir which sells for about $11-$12. I was pleasantly surprised. From the first sniff of the wine glass, I was sold this was better than my previous Mendoza Valley Pinot.

This wine has a bit of a sweet cherry taste and a mild finish. This isn’t memorable wine but good enough to recommend you give it a try. Really good Pinot Noir, like those out of Oregon, are at a price that can’t be justified for a Tuesday night. This wine, on the other hand, is one that can be justified for just $11 on a Tuesday night!

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I’m finding myself in an Italian “thing” lately and really enjoying it.

I’ve complained about Chianti before but found some nice ones in the last couple of months . I had a great Chianti Classico Reserva tonight. I opened a 2007 Rocca delle Macie Chianti Classico Reserva.

Ok, here is an over-simplied overview of Chianti – Chianti is a region of Tuscany. Chianti Classico is a small region within Chianti. The standards in Italy, as with much of the Old World wine regions, are specific to amount of certain grapes used and production methods. The primary grape in all Chianti wines is Sangiovese

The Rocca Delle Macie is a great Chianti Classico. It has an intense nose of berry with a black cherry color. This wine is 90 percent Sangiovese, with five percent Cabernet and Merlot. It’s rich with mild tannins but good structure.

You could enjoy this wine with meat or full-flavored pasta dishes. Wine Specator gave this particular Chianti Classico 90 points!

I bought this wine at Costco in Indianapolis. It is widely distributed at prices ranging form the high teens to $24. I paid $19.

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There is no better way to enjoy great wine than with great food. Wine and food are such an important part of life in Old World countries like France and Italy. The concept is what Robert Mondavi talked about all of his life.

I had to be in Cleveland this weekend for work and made my second-ever visit to Lola’s in downtown. If that sounds vaguely familiar to you foodies that’s because Lola’s is owned by Food Network Iron Chef Michael Symon.

My dinner started with a potato/leek soup. It featured bits of braised pork belly with a silky smooth puree poured into the bowl at the table of the pork and some herbs.

I had the potato-crusted sturgeon for dinner that was just tremendous. The sturgeon sat on a bed of carrot, mushroom, onion and bacon in an incredible veal/cabernet sauvignon reduction.

For dessert, and who goes to a restaurant like this and NOT have dessert, I enjoyed the Coconut Caramel Bavarian. It was a very thin layer of chocolate cake with a lightly-flavored coconut cream layer, then a thin dark chocolate wafer on top. The dessert was garnished with big blackberries and toasted pecans.

I really was in the mood for red wine but had never had sturgeon so was unsure. Our delightful waitress assured me the reduction and sturgeon would pair well with a Cotes du Rhone.

We decided on a Jean Louis Chave Mon Coeur 2007 Cotes du Rhone. It was a grenache based wine that was silky smooth with very light tannins. It had a hint of oak that kept it balanced but was really rich and enjoyable.

Now the only bad news is that in restaurants at this price point they really run up the wine prices, as most of you probably know. We paid just over $50 for this wine. When I got back to the hotel room I looked it up to find the normal retail is about $22.

If you’re going to have a nice bottle of wine in a fabulous restaurant, you just have to acknowledge you’re going to substantially over-pay for a bottle of wine.

Lola’s has a fabulous wine list with a wide range in prices. Friday night was my second visit. It’s the kind of place you think about returning again as soon as you walk away.

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A nice Sauvignon Blanc is great in the heat of summer and good year-round with seafood. I opened a bottle of Pomelo Sauvignon Blanc last night with a shrimp dish.

The Pomelo is made by Mason Cellars in Napa Valley. They get the fruit from Lake County which is just north of Napa. This is a value bottling that is very very drinkable Sauv Blanc.

Some people shy away from Sauv Blanc because it is often acidic or very acidic. If you’re one of those people, this is the white wine for you.

I opened the bottle to a nose of strong citrus, primarily grapefruit. That’s a typical Sauv Blanc. But on the palate there is a strong taste of peach with a very mild mid-palate and easy to enjoy finish.

The texture is very smooth for a wine normally known for minerality and acid. In one review the word “creamy” was used to describe the Pomelo.

By the way, a pomelo is a member of the citrus family often compared to a grapefruit. It’s grown mostly in south eastern Asia. None of that in hear but plenty of peach and citrus with a smooth finish.

I found this wine online at $9-$13. The suggested retail price is $10. Disclaimer: this wine was provided for review.

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I haven’t been singing the praises, nor drinking, Malbec much lately so I’ve picked a couple up.

I had previously enjoyed Susana Balbo’s Crios Rose and was well aware of her reputation in the wine world as one of Argentina’s real leaders in value wine.

The 2008 Crios Malbec is a really great representation of Malbec, in a lighter but balanced style, under $15.

The Malbec has the dark purple colors of all other Malbecs but this one is done with a freshness and light hand. You will find some spice on the finish and luscious cherries on the front of your palate.

But there is nothing big and scary about this wine at all while still delivering big flavor. You could enjoy this wine with a steak or drink it alone. Balbo is known for making great young wine to be enjoyed immediately. She really knocks it out of the park with the Crios Malbec. Simply put, it’s very well made wine. (Balbo in photo at left.)

She is also a darling with the critics who tend to gush over most of her wines. Previous vintages of this same wine consistently scored around 90 points with most major publications.

You can find Crios wines in most wine shops in Indiana. They are a great buy and great wine!

When I have the time (and I’m a couple days late writing this post), I like to check YouTube to see if there is anything on the wine or winery. I found an interesting video under ‘leylaswinningwines.’ Leyla speaks with a thick accent but offered information about Balbo I had not known before! Unfortunately, I couldn’t find much about Leyla but her take on Balbo was good stuff.

You can easily find more of her wine videos on YouTube. Here is Leyla on Susan Balbo:

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My latest newspaper column focused on Spain’s great tempranillo grape. I have comment in that column from Donna Lattzanio, who operates the Village Bottle Shop in West Lafayette on the bypass.

Donna has been to Spain, visited the wine regions, and even dined with Spanish wine icon Miguel Torres Sr. Miguel Torres would be to Spain what the Rothchild name is to France or Mondavi to the United States.

You can see the latest column here.

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