Since the very first time that I tasted the grape must of our 2022 vintage I must confess that I was very enthusiastic (or perhaps it would be fairer to say that, at that point, I thought it had great potential). We had enjoyed some pretty good vintages in both 2019 and 2020, although I have to say that I was never completely enamoured with our 2021’s (which was quite a difficult year).

A year or more down the road, after several months on its lees followed by a few months in bottle our 2022 is only just now starting to show its real identity. (I have said for a long time that it really takes a year from harvest, for our wines to realise their potential, and our 2022 Castro Martin certainly does not disappoint).

In Tim Atkin’s recent, and very comprehensive review of the 2022 vintage in Rias Baixas, he awarded our Castro Martin Family Estate 93 points and commented: “Unfiltered and lees-aged, this unwooded Albariño hails from Salnés Valley vineyards grown on a combination of granite, schist and sandy soils. Fuller flavoured and more textured than
the 2021 release, it has notes of oatmeal, pear, lime and kiwi fruit and the focus and salinity that come with the territory in this part of Rías Baixas.” He recommends drinking between now and 2027, clearly showing great faith in its ageing potential.

Apart from this positive review and the points, our Castro Martin also appeared on Tim’s ‘Podium’ of awards for different categories of the 2022 vintage. He rated this wine as ‘Value White Wine of the Year’ (bearing in mind that many of the wines above ours in the general ratings are premium cuvées, older vintages, limited editions and special elaborations, that attract a much, much higher price in the market. As a former wine buyer myself I am very proud of this accolade as  we always preach that quality/value is a very key point in the philosophy of our Bodega.

Of course, this score can be added to the 92 points that we also received for our Family Estate 2022 in the Guía Vino Gourmets 2024. I highly recommend that you buy a bottle (or two) to savour with your favourite marisco!

I now have reached a ‘certain age’ whereby an annual check-up with my local doctor is strongly advised. After a recent blood test came the almost inevitable speech, cut down on fats, cut down on sugar, cut down on salt etc., etc…. This was accompanied by a diet sheet – three columns of food types from ‘healthy’ to ‘don’t even think about it’!

Don’t get me wrong, my results were marginal and in most cases my blood didn’t actually exceed any dangerous levels, it was more a case of take care with what you eat (which I do, more or less, as a matter of course). Indeed I follow the same mantra for food as we recommend for our wines…. eat/drink in moderation.

On a subsequent visit to my local supermarket I actually did shop with a bit more caution than usual, trying to read some of the (very) small print on the packaging highlighting the nutritional values. One of my weaknesses is a sweet tooth, and I do like an occasional biscuit with my mug of tea. (Usually only one or two a day). On the shelf my eye was drawn to a packet of oat biscuits strategically placed very near to the vegetarian/health food section. With a green packet and a small medallion highlighting the use of sunflower oil (instead of palm oil), I picked up a pack and dropped them in my basket – assuming that I had done the right thing. It seems that I was wrong.

At home, under closer inspection, I realised that these ‘pseudo health biscuits’ actually had an identical sugar content to my normal brand, and so, apart from the sunflower oil, there was almost no health benefit at all. What’s the phrase? “Caveat emptor” (buyer beware).

The name of our district, where the bodega is located is Ribadumia, a name that derives from our local river, the Umia.

Yesterday, we had a famous visitor (or should I say visitors), to the Estuary of our river; namely Gordon Ramsay (the Michelin *** chef and his two companions). They were filming a TV series for HBO called Gordon, Gino and Fred’s Road Trip, where this group of three travel around various countries (in a campervan) exploring local culture and cuisine. Gordon and Gino are both chefs, whilst Frenchman Fred Sirieix is a well-known restaurateur.

On a cold, grey Galician morning they donned their boots, grabbed their rakes and waded into the river to collect clams with a group of local women from Cambados.

After a couple of hours filming came the serious business of cooking – a simple dish of clams cooked in white wine (albariño, of course), with garlic, onions and lemon juice, served on a bed of spaghetti. Actually more of an Italian dish, than Galician, pasta alle vongole!

A few days ago I was thinking about the day when restaurants finally re-open and we can all sit down to enjoy a nice meal (that is not home-cooked). But how do we actually go about selecting the restaurant that we chose (assuming that it’s not a place that we already frequent)?

Whilst a wine cellar will have their range of individual wines rated on a points system, a restaurant will usually have just one classification for the overall dining experience, based on Michelin stars or perhaps a Trip Advisor rating. Although, to be honest I take most Trip Advisor ratings with a pinch of salt! (Deliberate food pun).

I then asked myself, what if each individual restaurant dish could be rated in the same way that wines are? Of course, I am aware that such a system would be completely impractical to set up and monitor, but it would certainly give the consumer a more detailed guideline of what to select, or perhaps just what to expect.

In this reflective mood I also wondered why restaurants (especially those without a wine waiter), don’t simply print two or three different wine suggestions next to each dish on their menu? Maybe some already do, but I don’t recall seeing any. It’s really just about giving your customer/consumer a bit more guidance in making their selections.

2020 must go down as one of the most difficult on record, for a multitude of different reasons. However, I’m sure that many of our American friends will still find at least one thing to be very thankful for this year…. (no names).

We simply want to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving. Kick back, enjoy the turkey, enjoy the football, and enjoy a refreshing glass of Castro Martin albariño!

Just when you think you’ve seen it all!

I’ve talked about food and wine pairings many times before, but never anything like this. I have recently read an article about pairing wine with crisps (or as our American friends call them, potato chips)! Not only does the article make a comparison with generic salted crisps, but actually considers a number of different flavours, and recommends a different wine, or wines, with each one!

Now you can call me a wine snob, but pairing wine with different flavours of potato chips? Really?

For me, the only valuable thing that this comparison will highlight, is how the flavour of any wine can be altered completely by different foods (albeit that in this case we are actually talking about artificial food flavourings). Of course, it would not be uncommon to perhaps nibble a few crisps with a glass of wine as a pre-dinner aperitif, but I would never dream as to go as far as trying to make a ‘food’ and wine pairing! Perhaps if we were talking about tapas with wine, that would be more understandable, but a bag of sour cream and onion, or barbecue flavoured crisps? Well, for me that’s just a step too far.

By the way, albariño is recommended with salt & vinegar crisps!

As a follow up to my ramblings about natural wine, I thought that I should write a little about food trends too. After all, food and wine are very closely related and both subject to innovation and fashion.

Admittedly, I am a little cut off from the main centres of food fashion, being out here on a limb, virtually in the middle of nowhere, but I will have a go regardless.

Whilst ‘painting pictures’ on a plate might seem a bit outdated, presentation of food is still important, and dishes must still have eye appeal, one way or another. One slightly strange trend is that some chefs are not only desperate to discover new ingredients to cook, and different styles to incorporate, but they are also taking the presentation of their dishes to the extreme, using all sorts of odd receptacles on (and in) which to serve their food.

Meanwhile, ingredients themselves are changing, as we are now being encouraged to eat odd cuts of meat and fish, that we perhaps haven’t tried before. Bellies, brains, cheeks, combs, ears, gizzards, hearts, hocks, kidneys, lungs, marrow, necks, shanks, spleens, tongues, trotters, and even testicles are all appearing with much greater frequency on our restaurant menus. Not to mention a whole range of edible plants that can be added to the list.

Sourcing of ingredients is also more important than ever. We are now finding a multitude of naturally grown and sustainable products, together with meat and fish sourced either from the wild or from naturally reared livestock. Organic, grass fed, sustainable and fair trade are just a few of the words now appearing regularly on our food labelling. (Not even taking into account the more specialised categories such as vegan and gluten free etc.,)

Experimentation in food is spreading like wildfire, fuelled by a whole army of celebrity chefs, cookery programmes and TV competitions. Meanwhile, on the internet, the competition for likes and clicks is fierce – and so, in may ways, the more outlandish and unique your dish, the better. We are very rapidly adapting, modifying and re-defining the way we cook and eat, and often in a very positive way.

Please don’t worry, I promise that one day soon I will write something about wine again! In the meantime I have become a bit obsessed with using the appropriate receptacle for serving food (it’s really just a hygiene thing, I promise you).

I received an e-mail today from ICEX – Foods and Wines from Spain – effectively run by a branch of the Spanish Government. On the homepage they included a photograph of a ‘high top’ sneaker containing food. I couldn’t help myself, I had to investigate…

The shoe is apparently used by Spanish chef José Andréas in his Spanish/American restaurant chain Jaleo in the United States. The offending dish is a serving of croquetas (I say offending, because the thought on using an old re-used shoe on my dining table offends me).

It simply seems that some chefs are obsessed with finding original (and ridiculous) ways of serving food these days, and to be honest, under current Health & Hygiene laws, I am quite surprised that some of them are allowed to slip through. In this particular case (as you will see from the photo) whilst one pair is made from resin, the other appears to be quite real – unused no doubt, but still not perhaps the most hygienic platter for something that will no doubt be re-used over and over again. You can hardly put a shoe through the dishwasher each time it’s used!

Please believe me, I am not a snowflake (perhaps just a bit old-fashioned and more traditional)!

Imagine walking into a restaurant where the information on the wine list was restricted to merely the wine colour and country of origin. For example, you would be offered French red or white, Spanish red or white, Chilean red or white and so on. It would be a complete lottery and you probably wouldn’t be too happy about it… By simply adding the grape variety it would add a whole new level of information, and you might be at least be a little more confident about your selection.

Of course, the importance of varietal does not only apply to grapes, but also to many other fruits and vegetables. However, the problem is that retailers don’t always pass this varietal information on to the consumer. In the case of apples, pears tomatoes and a few other products variety is usually clearly indicated, but there are still just too many exceptions for my liking. Here in Spain there is one, nearly always omitted, that particularly annoys me. Potatoes!

Over here, potatoes are usually only distinguished by use or recommendation. For example, for frying, for boiling, for garnish (whatever that means), and my personal favourite, potatoes for cooking! The latter leaves me wondering how many people eat them raw?

Whilst I realise that for the majority of people this might be sufficient information, there are still two problems that arise. Firstly, the potatoes sold under each grouping are not always consistent, and more importantly, they are not always as advertised. For example, ‘frying’ potatoes that simply do not brown and refuse to crisp (even at super high temperatures). By simply including the variety it would then be much easier to avoid repeating this mistake again it the future.

Anyway, enough about potatoes!

In a restaurant I want my food served on a plate, it can be any shape or colour, I really don’t mind, but on a plate please. An exception might be a scallop served in it’s shell, or other types of seafood – but even then they would still be served on a plate or platter of some sort. Fast food is of course, a whole different matter.

I follow a site called “we want plates” which contains photos of some of the more outrageous and bizarre examples of how food in sometimes offered – some are quite hilarious.

My favourite is actually a local Galician delicacy served “in the Dutch style”…. served in a clog!! Can they really believe that this looks appetising?