Two Fruit Wine Variants To Recreate Your Normal Dining Experience
Paella? Embutido? Jamon? Who wouldn’t recognize these sumptuous dishes from Spain? Although Spain’s rich and diverse culinary culture varies from one region to another, it’s one of the most easily recognizable cuisines in the world—other than hearing their names, of course. Although geographical, cultural, and natural reasons paved way to culinary differences, garlic and olive oil are the two most common ingredients found in almost all regional varieties. But because Spanish cuisine also draws heavily from its neighbors such as Italy, France, and Greece, a Spanish meal is never complete without another important component: wine.
Working in the wine industry for almost 40 years—not to mention acting as a wine buyer for a global retail store—Chris Murphy has attested to how and why wine became a favorite. According to him, Spain’s rich regions provide some of the best wine variants in the market.
“The (Spanish) wines too are favourites and have come on leaps and bounds in the last decade alone. In the past it was all about Rioja and Cava but today all sorts of exciting regions have emerged and great strides have been made with white wines in particular, with everything from refreshing, simple, zingy styles to more serious examples made from unusual indigenous grape varieties,” Murphy wrote on the M&S blog.
He further added that there are certain kinds of wine that can be matched with some of the most popular Spanish dishes. To learn a few of them, we provided two of the most well known favorites right below.
Beef Estofado
Beef estofado is a savory dish from Madrid is prepared by thoroughly cooking the marinated braised beef in tasty Rioja sauce, usually served with mashed potatoes. This dish is perfect when followed by a glass of Val de Pedron Monastrell Alicante 2010—a wine rich in plum fruit taste and orange zest.
Seafood Paella
Who wouldn’t savor the wildly diverse flavors of the ever famous Spanish Paella? This dish is so popular that even restaurants have their own versions of Paella. The authentic Spanish Paella is made of juicy prawns, calamari, and mixed vegetables—all cooked with saffron-infused rice. A refreshing Cuatro Rayas Verdejo white wine can add more flavor to your meal as it has a rich tangy taste of lemons and pears.
Seafood Tapas
Tapas are a wide assortment of appetizers and snacks in Spain. Usually served during casual gatherings or pretty much whenever they like, dishing out different kinds of finger food to the guests is a great way to spice up parties or even simple events. Because of the bountiful fruits of the Mediterranean Sea, most of the appetizers cooked for tapas are seafood such as prawns, scallop, and shrimps. These dishes pair perfectly with a bottle of a crisp and clean Mount Bluff Sparkling Brut NV that has subtle hints of wild berries and a citrusy clincher.