Cava at its best

Pares Baltà, Blanca Cusinè Brut 2006, Penedès

Simon Juhl Olesen is a 24 year old Sommelier from Denmark. He currently works in the heart of Copenhagen, in the restaurant Le Sommelier. All his gastronomic education was gathered in Spain, where he has lived most of his life. The last two years before coming to Denmark he was a teacher/Restaurant chef in a restaurant school “La Fonda” in the south of Spain. He also spent time in the 1 star Michelin restaurant Guggenheim in Bilbao. Among other things he is a three time winner of the Andalusian championship for Sommeliers and in top 10 Spanish Sommelier. In his free time he enjoys playing golf if the weather allows it. If you want to contact him you can do so on: simonjolesen@gmail.com

Winery: Pares Baltà

Vintage: 2006

Appellation: D.O Penedes

Varietal: 59.5 % Chardonnay. 40.5 % Pinot Noir

Ageing: The Pinot Noir goes through the malolactic fermentation and then 2 month ageing with the lees. The Chardonnay stays on stainless steel tanks. The second fermentation in bottle goes on for 26 month.

Average Price: 15 €

Tasting Notes: Yellow color with golden tints. On the nose complex and subtle aroma with delicate notes of almonds, hazelnuts, honey and prickly pear. In the mouth it is fresh and round. Notes of preserved fruit together with flavors of almonds and honey. Long and complex finish.

Food Pairing Suggestions: This Cava can be enjoyed as the welcoming drink with the typical spanish tapas like the Iberico ham and Manchego cheese. Used in a menu, I would pair this great Cava with something tasteful and with a natural sweetness. For example; Roasted Scallops with a carrot pure white asparagus and a lobster bisque.

Winery Notes: Pares Balta was started in 1790, when the first wine plants were planted. In 1978 the bodega was bought by Joan Cusinè Hill. Joan Cusinè Cusinè, son of Joan Cusinè Hill took over after his dad and today there is the second generation running the bodega. Grandsons Joan and Josep Cusinè Carol brought a more modern aspect to the bodega and to the Penedes area.

Vintage Notes: 2006- After a normal autumn and winter concerning rain and temperatures, the spring was extremely dry, this only made the plants stronger and better. The summer was very hot as usual. The result of a very hot year was that the fruits maturation was slightly advanced.

Seleccion Cepas Viejas 2004, Dominio de Tares, Bierzo

Simon Juhl Olesen is a 24 year old Sommelier from Denmark. He currently works in the heart of Copenhagen at the restaurant Le Sommelier. All his gastronomic education is gathered in Spain where he has lived most of his life. The last two years before coming to Denmark he was a teacher and a restaurant chef in a restaurant school “La Fonda” in the South of Spain. He also worked in the 1 star Michelin restaurant Guggenheim in Bilbao. Simon is a three time winner of the Andalusian championship for Sommeliers and among top 10 Spanish Sommeliers. In his free time he enjoys playing golf when the weather allows it. You can contact him on: Simonjolesen@gmail.com

Winery: Dominio de Tares

Vintage: 2004

Appellation: D.O Bierzo

Varietal: Mencia

Oak: 9 month in barrels from the Virginia and Missouri Forrest (American oak)

Average Price: 15 €

Tasting notes: You can enjoy the fine elegance of the Mencia grape. Mencia is also called Negra by the local wine makers. Visually it is an attractive cherry red color, with violet tones around the rim. In the nose it has strong fruity aromas of raspberries and cherries, also a hint of violet, which with the oak forms a hint of liquorice, chocolate, toffee vanilla and spices. In the mouth it is smooth, full bodied and very elegant.

Food Pairing Suggestions: With now many lovely trips to the area of Bierzo, Castilla Leon in the north west of Spain I have never missed out on the traditional pairing of food and wine from this part of Spain. Ergo my suggestion would be young lamb baked in the stove, or maybe a suckling pig with the nice crispy skin.

Winery Notes: Dominio de Tares is quite a new bodega, with all the newest technology, young wine makers and very modern ways of making their wines, but... The grapes are old and very local. To sum up, they take traditional (from the area) and local grapes to make the wines suitable for international market.

Vintage Notes: 2004 was a great year for Spanish wines, not too warm (and warmth can be the worst enemy). '04 is compared to '01 and even '96 which both were greatest years since the mid 80's or even 50's. The 04' vintage can be drunk now, but even better is to save some bottles for some years and you could be very positively surprised.

Alion 2004 Ribera Del Duero

Rasmus Amdi Larsen is a 21 year old sommelier. He is currently working as head-sommelier and Restaurant Manager at the restaurant Le Sommelier in the centre of Copenhagen. Administrating the 1600 bottle wine list, one of the largest in Denmark, this young sommelier is showing a lot of potential. Rasmus is also educating at the Hospitality College in Copenhagen, competing in sommelier competitions - and in the limited free time, golfing is a huge interest. To get in touch with Rasmus email him at amdi@gastrodenmark.com

Winery: Alion

Vintage: 2004

Appellation: Ribera Del Duero

Varietal: Tinto Fino (Tempranillo)

Oak: 15 months in oak (100% new)

Average Price: $80.00

Tasting notes: This is a untraditional Tinto Fino. The pale almost tawny color is not normal for a Tempranillo this young. The nose is covered with red fruits and floral hints. Strawberry, redcurrant and light red cherries. The nose develops as the hours in the glass go by, so the list is very long. The palate is fruity and has a extraordinary depth. This is one red to decant when the snacks is served - and to enjoy when Dean Martin is playing and your love one is around you.

Food Pairing Suggestions: Let’s grill a chop of lamb! Let’s serve lamb shoulder with courgettes, white beans and truffle sauce. Fried Foie gras (Yes, try something else than Pinot Noir) with beetroot, mandarin and port sauce.

Winery Notes: Maybe some of you guessed that this is a very special Tempranillo. Alion is owned by the winery Vega Secilia – which needs no further introduction. Vega Secilia makes, in my opinion, the absolute best, most delicate Tempranillo in the whole of Spain. Alion is physically separated from the Vega Secilia winery, but it is the same hands that make these golden wines. Alion is simply the best value for money in Spain. Try to open a bottle and drink a glass every hour to see it develop. Thats my favorite Sunday!

Vintage Notes: 2004 was a good year in most of Spain. Despite high temperatures in September the harvest was plentiful, and the best producers made wines to store for many years.

Organic wine & food matching: Vertvs Tempranillo & Hawaiian beef stew

Randy Caparoso is an award winning wine professional and journalist, living in Denver, Colorado. For a free subscription to Randy's Organic Wine Match of the Day, visit the Denver Wine Examiner. Contact Randy anytime at randycaparoso@earthlink.net.

There’s a memorable story in Cervantes’ Don Quixote, told by the faithful Sancho Panza, of the great wine judges in his lineage; particularly, two on his father’s side who were once challenged to identify a wine from a barrel. The first one brought the wine to the tip of his tongue, and declared the flavor of iron. The second one just needed to pass it under his nose before declaring a stronger flavor of cordovan leather. The owner of the wine protested, however, saying his wine was perfectly clean, with no trace of iron or leather. Days later, though, after the wine was sold and the barrel emptied, cellarers found a small iron key at the bottom of the barrel, hanging by a thong of leather.

The story of these men from La Mancha took place at the start of the 1600s, during the same period of time Cervantes wrote his epic tale. Sometimes we forget how old the fine arts – like literature, wine judging, and great winemaking – really are.

There are written records from the court of King Pedro I of Castilla in Spain, for instance, dating Bodegas Iranzo back to 1335. Evidently, the family of Iranzo Perez-Duque is still going strong after over six hundred years, as our organic wine of the day – Iranzo’s 2003 Vertvs Tempranillo Crianza (about $14) – is as bright, rose petal fresh, raisiny ripe and round as any red wine in the world. Doing justice to the Spanish connoisseurs of olde, Doug Frost MW/MS goes further by describing it as “layered and vibrant… soft… a little grippy… red raspberry, cooked cranberries, blueberry hints…” and whom, bodacious mis amigos, am I to argue?

The vineyard plantings of Bodegas Iranzo – in the region of Utiel-Requena, made up of lime-crusted sandy soils in hills some 2,700 ft. in elevation, just off the Mediterranean coast near Valencia – are also fortunate enough to be located in the middle of a National Reserve Park, and for centuries were cultivated naturally, without the use of modern day chemicals or fertilizers. So it was simply natural for this estate to attain, in 1994, one of Spain’s first EU/Agricultura Ecológica certifications; and the first in all of Spain to receive USDA National Organic Program accreditation as well.

Bodegas Iranzo’s fertilizers, as it were, are derived from sheep manure from extensively farmed flocks within the district; and the family has encouraged further biodiversity, since the 1950s, by maintaining a program of reforestation on some 75 acres of surrounding land with native woodland species, as well as the establishment of a nearby flora micro-reserve.

Hawaiian Beef Stew

But all this is beside the most important point for us: the wine makes damned good drinking; full flavored, yet soft and warming on the palate. It’s this kind of wine, in fact, that always makes me think of soft, warming dishes like Louisiana style red beans and rice, or Mexican machaca (shredded beef). But since I’m from the Islands, I have to say that it may be even better with a luscious tomato, carrot and beef studded Hawaiian beef stew, which comes in as many variations as Islanders who cook. This recipe -- adapted from Muriel Miura and Betty Shimabukuro’s What Hawai’i Likes to Eat -- is pretty much basic, but guaranteed deliciousness:

2 lbs. lean stewing beef, cut into 1-inch cubes
½ cup flour
¼ cup canola oil
2 medium sized sweet onions, wedged
1 clove garlic, pressed
5 cups water
2 bay leaves, broken in half
½ cup red wine (or dry sherry)
2 tsp. salt (or to taste)
¼ tsp. black pepper
2 cans (8 oz.) tomato sauce
1 can (13.5 oz.) whole or stewed tomatoes
4 carrots, about ¾ inch chunks
4 potatoes, pared and quartered
1 cup sliced celery

Dredge beef in flour; brown lightly on all sides in hot oil. Add onions and garlic; brown lightly. Add water and bay leaves; simmer 1½ hours, or until beef is tender. Add remaining ingredients; simmer additional 30-60 minutes, or until vegetables are tender. If desired, thicken stew with flour water mixture. Serves 6-8, and strongly recommended with steamed white Japanese rice.