I have been in the UK for a week, and unfortunately I have missed one of my favourite tastings of the year. The tunnel of wine tasting at this year’s albariño festival, where nearly all the wines of our denomination are lined up under one roof. For me, this is by far the best opportunity to assess the quality of the latest vintage. Of course you can read all the reviews, recommendations and ratings that you like, but the only real way to know is to taste for yourself! To be quite honest, I don’t always agree with the official ratings anyway, quite apart from the fact that they can only provide a very generalised overview, whereas a detailed tasting can reveal good and bad in every vintage.

The tunnel of wine is by far the most civilised way to taste wine during the five day festival, and offers a much more comprehensive selection than the festival area itself. As I have mentioned in previous years, the festival area can become very ‘animated’ in the evenings, and is certainly not a suitable location for serious wine tasting. So the conclusion is quite simple – serious tasters and professionals should use the tunnel – drinkers and party-goers the festival area.

By the way, this years festival could go down as the longest in history. The official website actually advertises the festival as running from 29th June to 2nd August (instead of 29th July to 2nd August)!!I have been in the UK for a week, and unfortunately I have missed one of my favourite tastings of the year. The tunnel of wine tasting at this year’s albariño festival, where nearly all the wines of our denomination are lined up under one roof. For me, this is by far the best opportunity to assess the quality of the latest vintage. Of course you can read all the reviews, recommendations and ratings that you like, but the only real way to know is to taste for yourself! To be quite honest, I don’t always agree with the official ratings anyway, quite apart from the fact that they can only provide a very generalised overview, whereas a detailed tasting can reveal good and bad in every vintage.

The tunnel of wine is by far the most civilised way to taste wine during the five day festival, and offers a much more comprehensive selection than the festival area itself. As I have mentioned in previous years, the festival area can become very ‘animated’ in the evenings, and is certainly not a suitable location for serious wine tasting. So the conclusion is quite simple – serious tasters and professionals should use the tunnel – drinkers and party-goers the festival area.

By the way, this years festival could go down as the longest in history. The official website actually advertises the festival as running from 29th June to 2nd August (instead of 29th July to 2nd August)!!