Among the many delights of Spain, wine surely is high on the list. I hope to sample the very local vintages as we traipse along the coast. In my family, we raise our cup on Friday nights and say a
barucha, pronouncing God "blessed" for giving us the "fruit of the vine". The Psalmist (#104) starts listing all of God's blessings to humanity and says even before praise of bread and oil, "wine that gladdens the heart". Well I hope to have a "glad" heart nearly every night of the journey.
In the Basque region, where we begin, there is an obscure variety called Txacoli that I'd like to sample. As we wind our way further west, certainly all the Tempranillo and Granacha Tinta from the Navarre and Rioja regions should be easily available. Near Bilbao, I'll be on the look out for wines of the Bizkaiko Txakolina (notice the Basque spelling) that are allegedly very tasty. In Cantabria, I've heard you must depend on wine from further south. The original Celtic inhabitants did not bring much of a wine culture with them, and the region is better known for cheese and sea food (bummer, eh?). In Asturias I'll try sidra (a hard apple cider and definitely not wine!), and I'll look for Verdejo Negro from the Cangas region. It is made from the Mencia grape. Supposedly if you get a bowl of Pote Asturiano (a stew of cabbage, potato, wide beans and pig parts of various sorts) and drink Verdejo Negro you will want to stay in Asturias forever. In Galacia, wine comes from the Riberio and Rio Biaxes. I'll be looking for a nice bottle from the Martin Codax bodega to split with Ketl on our first night together in Santiago de Compostela. For so many reasons, that will be a memorable evening, eh? What could be more of a blessing: a soft woman to hold near my heart and a good wine. Some many reasons to be singing the Doxology.
In the Basque region, where we begin, there is an obscure variety called Txacoli that I'd like to sample. As we wind our way further west, certainly all the Tempranillo and Granacha Tinta from the Navarre and Rioja regions should be easily available. Near Bilbao, I'll be on the look out for wines of the Bizkaiko Txakolina (notice the Basque spelling) that are allegedly very tasty. In Cantabria, I've heard you must depend on wine from further south. The original Celtic inhabitants did not bring much of a wine culture with them, and the region is better known for cheese and sea food (bummer, eh?). In Asturias I'll try sidra (a hard apple cider and definitely not wine!), and I'll look for Verdejo Negro from the Cangas region. It is made from the Mencia grape. Supposedly if you get a bowl of Pote Asturiano (a stew of cabbage, potato, wide beans and pig parts of various sorts) and drink Verdejo Negro you will want to stay in Asturias forever. In Galacia, wine comes from the Riberio and Rio Biaxes. I'll be looking for a nice bottle from the Martin Codax bodega to split with Ketl on our first night together in Santiago de Compostela. For so many reasons, that will be a memorable evening, eh? What could be more of a blessing: a soft woman to hold near my heart and a good wine. Some many reasons to be singing the Doxology.
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