Madrid was an awesome start to the annual Kane brothers football trip. The aim, to visit each of Europe’s best stadiums for one weekend every year, watch a match, take in the atmosphere, get a taste for the culture, and importantly for us, sample the food and drink.

We arrived in Madrid early on Saturday morning after catching the Ryanair flight from Dublin, and taking advantage of the amazing subway network, it didn’t take us long before we got checked in to our hotel, got a quick shower and grabbed a beer.

Hungry as well as thirsty, it was a lovely surprise to have some complimentary tapas land our way shortly after the beer was set down. Tapas vary, from a simple plate of cured ham, to meatballs, or a side of paella and a bowl of olives. But in a lot of places in Madrid, we were getting a few portions with each round of beer ordered. I think you really notice how poor the quality of beer is on tap in Ireland when you try it on the continent. Even with stout, you have to come all the way to Cork for a decent pint! (feel free to lambaste me below)

An afternoon of beer and tapas soon past in the city centre before we made our way out to the home of the Galácticos. Santiago Bernabeu lived up to all the hype. A capacity of over 80,000, the terraces were steeped and the seats were tight. The fans were close to the pitch. We didn’t expect the infrastructure in the surrounding area and the stadium itself to be as modern and impressive as it was, it was incredible. Real Madrid beat Alicante side Hércules CF two nil, with two goals from Karim Benzema, the second of which was very well taken.

We found a great tapas bar after the game I would recommend to anyone going to Madrid. La Soberbia is located just off Puerta del Sol, on C/ Espoz y Mina. It had everything you could want. The atmosphere, the food, the wine, the service – all top drawer. We started with a Fino Sherry and then moved on to a lovely Albarino and then numerous bottles of Verdejo. Things got a little fuzzy after that. The second night we found some great Rioja and Ribera del Duero.

Of all the tapas bars we went to, we couldn’t find a bad bottle of wine. The entry level wines in restaurants in Spain seem to be on a par with the mid-range wines we get here in an Irish restaurant. Of course, price has a lot to do with it, but while the disposable income is lower in Spain, they still have a lower tolerance for boring or bad wine, which we inevitably find as house wines in too many restaurants in Ireland.

So what’s the verdict on Madrid? Well, there aren’t too many tourists. Many of the locals can’t speak English, so I get the chance to embarrass myself trying to speak the native tongue. There’s not in fact a huge amount to see for tourists, but as a result a more authentic side of Spain is on display compared to, for example, Barcelona. The infrastructure is second to none and if you’re there to shop, think New York style department stores, such as Macys and Bloomingdales. You’ll be in heaven.

The football is great, but it’s what you do with your evenings that really had us fall in love with the place. We found the social scene to be intoxicating. Hours upon hours of grazing and chatting over good food and good wine. You don’t go in and stuff your face for an hour and a half and go home. Dinner might take four hours and the bars stay open late so there’s never a rush to get out and get fed.

Is a weekend in Madrid a must do? You can bet your bottom dollar it is, a fanatic of the beautiful game or not.

Some people just love animal labels. It’s something I enjoy observing as they place one animal after the other on top of the counter. A giraffe, a lizard, an elephant and a squid. Yes, a squid.

There’s some more good news for curious animals lovers. Just in time for the March/April sale, we introduced eight new wines to our Spanish range. These included three red wines under the La Granja label, meaning “the farm” in English. Adding to our already extraordinary line-up of furry mammals and slithering reptiles, we’re delighted to introduce a pig (Tempranillo), a hen (Syrah) and a zebra (Tempranillo/Garnacha).

I’m always the first to say a wine shouldn’t be judged on its label, so obviously we didn’t bring these in for the fun of it. All three are made by a quality driven co-operative sourcing grapes in Cariñena, a DO (Denominación de Origen) in Spain’s north-east. This is the Spanish equivalent to the French Vin de Pays. Here’s what Robert Parker had to say about the pig, keeping in mind 86 points is a great score for a wine priced at €7.99 (currently €6.39).

The least expensive wine to be recommended in these pages in close to 30 years, the 2009 La Granja Tempranillo is a 100,000 case cuvee made at a co-operative in Carinena. Dark ruby colored, it offers up a nose of red cherry accompanied by a whiff of incense. Sweet, ripe, and tasty on the palate, this nicely balanced effort will deliver uncomplicated, straight-ahead pleasure over the next 2-3 years.

Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate #188, June 2010, 86 points

About the winery

The Bodega was established 1945, in Almonacid de la Sierra, and came under the ownership of San Nicolas de Tolentino, the patron of the village. This cooperative has today approximately 280 members and 1,700 hectares of vines cultivated.

The red wines produced are made from the Garnacha and Tempranillo. For some years now Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah are also cultivated, but to a lesser degree. Garnacha is sourced mainly from vineyards above the Village of Almonacid, at about 600m altitude, while Tempranillo and Syrah is sourced from vineyards below the village. Many of these vines are over 50 years old and therefore some of oldest vines in the D.O. Cariñena.

La Granja range, along with the rest of Spain, has 20% off for the months of March and April.

We’re going all Spanish this month as part of our 20% off promotion and we’ve a tapatastic goodie box to give away in March’s contest.

Up for grabs:

• One copy of Culinaria Spain, a 488 page panorama of the cultural and culinary traditions of Spain, including the most important winegrowing regions of the land and over 200 traditional recipes;
• Four terracotta tapas dishes to help test out a few of the recipes; and
• Three bottles from our brand new La Granja 360 range of Spanish table wines to help wash the tapas down.

To win, you must be subscribed to the Curious Wines newsletter. We’ll be including a not-too-difficult question and instructions on how to enter in our March newsletter going out soon.

Just missed it? Sign-up here and you’ll automatically get it sent to you.

Buena suerte!

A fortified wine described by renowned wine critic Jancis Robinson as the “world’s most neglected wine treasure”. If you haven’t got aboard this train yet, now is the time. Despite a difficult thirty years or so for the industry, Sherry is making a comeback.

Overproduction and a market flooded with poor quality Sherry in the 1970′s and early 1980′s resulted in some serious image problems, leading to a gradual decline in demand from consumers. It wasn’t helped by the sweetened up “cream Sherry” that was finding its way onto supermarket shelves across the country. Finally though, the industry has pulled itself together after learning from its past, and with fresh interest and growing demand, consumers are being opened up to a range of better quality choices. Hurrah!

Sherry takes its name from the town of Jerez in the south of Spain. The main grape variety is Palomino, producing two basic styles; Fino and Oloroso. After fermentation is complete, Brandy is used to fortify the wine. Here’s what Norman Miller had to say about styles of Sherry. It’s from an article in The Guardian that is well worth a read.

Sherry’s fortunes have improved recently though, and it’s being celebrated once again for its taste and variety – after all, sherry ranges from the driest wines on earth to the sweetest. Fino is the lightest: bone dry with hints of grass, green apple and citrus. Its cousin manzanilla has a tang imparted by the briny breezes blowing through the seaside wineries of Sanlúcar de Barrameda – one of three places, along with Jerez de la Frontera and El Puerto de Santa Maria, that define south-west Spain’s “sherry triangle”. Amontillado is a matured fino with nutty, caramel notes, while oloroso is generally sweeter and more complex, with hints of caramel and toffee, dried fruits and spice. The sweetest is Pedro Ximenez – often just known as PX – the dark intensity of which is perfect with dessert and also a robust match for cheese.

Miller also sees a revival for Sherry, a revival that was helped by restrictions put in place after the market suffered decline. Large areas of vines were uprooted to reduce supply. Company’s are now restricted by how much they can sell every year. The Sherry ‘houses’ came together to end bulk exports, and as well as this, they helped boost the higher end of the market with the introduction of age-dated Sherries, indicating solera wines where the bottled product has a minimum average age of 20 years and 30 years respectively. Age dated categories for 15 and 12 year old wines have also been created.

To help win more people over the Sherry, we have four award-winning Sherries, including an Oloroso crowned “Best Sherry” at the International Wine Challenge.

There’s a lot of questionable sparkling wine out there, so when we were on the hunt for a new Cava house to source from, we wanted to make sure we found something that would punch above its weight. We searched high and low to raise the bar and bring the best quality Cava to Ireland. After much deliberation tasting a variety of sparklers from numerous different cellars, it was Mont Marçal who got the nod.

We think the wines are sensational, and obviously the critics agree, with the Brut Cava Reserva picking up Gold at Concours Mondial de Bruxelles and Robert Parker’s right-hand man, Jay Miller, awarding the flagship Cava, Brut Cava Extremarium, an electrifying 90 points. This kind of consistent recognition over the years has earned Mont Marçal a place as one of the most prestigious cellars in the Penedès.

The winery

The cellar at Mont Marçal was founded in 1975 by Manuel Sancho who, after dedicating many years to the music world, directed his attention to the art of wine and Cava making. It is Blanca Sancho, the founder’s daughter, who now runs the cellar together with a team of young professionals.

The estate has 40 hectares of its own vineyards which comprises indigenous varieties such as Macabeu, Xarel.lo, Parellada and Tempranillo, in addition to other varieties that have adapted perfectly to the region, such as Chardonnay, Syrah, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon.

With the aim to optimise each phase of the production and the quality of its products, Mont Marçal has the most advanced technology at hand:

• A cellar with a maximum storage capacity of 1 million litres
• A barrel park with 250 barrels of American, French and Hungarian oak, each with 225 litres
• A laboratory to undertake microbiological and physical/chemical analysis
• A bottling line for 3000 bottles per hour
• A cellar capable of holding up to 6 million bottles at a time for ageing

The range (Cava & still wines)

Mont Marçal Brut Cava Reserva: A blend of Xarel.lo, Macabeo and Chardonnay, the Brut Reserva has aromas of yeast and ripe apples. The palate is fruity and balanced with very fine bubbles.

Concours Mondial de Bruxelles Gold Medal

Mont Marçal Brut Cava Extremarium: This is a step up from the Brut Reserva, with a more savoury complexity as well as being fruit-driven. It has received three silver medals and a 90-point score from Jay Miller.

Jay Miller (Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate) 90 points

Mont Marçal Brut Cava Rosado: Made from the native Trepat grape variety, this dry sparkling rosado is packed with red berry fruit and hints of plum and fig.

Jay Miller (Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate) 88 points

Mont Marçal Blanco 2009: Great value Spanish white of Penedès. Crisp & fruity, this is a real class act with or without food.

Mont Marçal Tinto Joven 2009: Classically warm & rustic Spanish red blend, with lashings of red & black fruits to arouse the palate.

Even the most fervent beer drinkers among us (myself included) are able to hazard a good guess at the most famous wine producing region in Spain.

Before those classy little numbers from Toro and Ribera del Duero found their way to these shores, Rioja was the only Spanish wine most of us really considered or were familiar with. As a result, prices sneaked up to reflect demand, but they seem to have found their level now. It has a long tradition of producing unique, aged wines of incredible drinkability, and despite being challenged from rival regions in terms of value for money, great buys are really quite easy to find.

The red Tempranillo is the key grape variety, and is often blended with other popular varietals. To name the three main grapes – Tempranillo for acidity and elegance, Garnacha (aka Grenache) for spice and luscious berry fruit flavours, and Graciano for structure and ageing potential.

Grapes and the terroir are not the only things to have their say on the characteristics of the wine. The traditional winemakers of Rioja are very keen on using American oak, which is generally more powerful than French oak, adding sweet vanilla-like overtones. Those of us with a keen nose may also be reminded of tobacco, cedar and smoky oak. Crianza is aged for at least two years, one of which is in oak. Reserva is aged for three years, with at least one year in oak, and Gran Reserva has at least two years in oak and three years in bottle.

Whilst the traditionalists will age in oak and bottle for lengthy periods, the standard Rioja, young and usually inexpensive, many of which are aged in French oak and released after 3-4 years, are more about the rich, ripe, vibrant fruit characteristics. Perhaps more of a drink now proposition.

Rioja is not without its whites, with Viura (Macabeo), Malvasía and the Garnacha Blanca reigning supreme. There are many lovely examples, but the reds will always dominate for their sheer brilliance.

You’ve still got time (last day Sunday 28th February) to avail of our Spanish wine sale with 20% off, including the wines of Rioja, Rías Baixas, Ribera del Duero and more. Prices will revert to normal on Monday 1st March.

Home of one of my favourite grape varieties, Rías Baixas lies in Spain’s north west corner and is Galicia’s top wine producing region. It is responsible for some of Spain’s most popular dry white wines, many of which are from the Albariño grape.

They have those monks to thank again, as they were the first to introduce and harvest Albariño in the 12th century. The white grape variety now covers around 90% of vineyard area. Crisp and fragrant, the wines have bags of flavour, some which may remind you of stone fruits, such as apricot and peach.

Rías Baixas achieved DO status in 1988. It was joined by a few other big wine producing regions around this time, as the country finally geared themselves towards leaving the devastation of Phylloxera behind them. For years after the pest had ravaged vines across Europe, the region had been producing a lot of low quality wine from high yielding hybrids (a cross between two grape species).

In the late 1970′s, however, growers were encouraged to replant native varieties and in turn they were given incentives from the government and the EU to help build more modern wine making facilities. From here, Rías Baixas grew from strength to strength and their fantastic wines are now widely available from good stockists worldwide and here in Ireland. Adventurously, a few wineries have started to experiment with the use of oak in Albariño, including Valdamor.

The DO is divided into 5 sub-regions, all offering something a little different in terms of terroir. Godello and Torrontes are among a few other grape varieties that are permitted to be grown.

There’s no better time and place to take advantage of the treasures of Rias Baixas than here, with 20% off all Spanish wines for the month of February (while stocks last).

The white grape Viura, also called Macabeo, is widely grown in the Rioja region of northeastern Spain. This 100% Viura of Rioja is cultivated in vineyards at an altitude of 400 metres above sea level and the vines are, on average, 20 years old.

To view product page and for more details, click on Valliciergo Viura.

An easy drinking, superb food wine with easily dissectable aromas and flavours that linger on and on. It’s been aged in American oak casks for 3 months prior to bottling. I’m quite a big fan of American Oak since trying this wine, for the unique vanilla and coffee flavours it imparts into the wine.

To view product page and for more details, click on Legado Muñoz Garnacha.

Toro, a red wine zone in Castilla Y Leon, is another little pocket of Spanish gems. Famous throughout Spain since medieval times, the region boasts some of Spain’s oldest vines.

Tinta de Toro, like Tinto Fino of Ribera del Duero, is a variant of Tempranillo that has adapted to the harsh climatic conditions of the area (temperatures can drop as low as -11 degrees C in the winter!). If left to ripen during the warmest months, the grapes can produce wines with very high alcohol levels, so DO regulations put a cap of 15% on all wines. As a result, winemakers are careful to pick at the right time.

The thick-skinned grapes make for character-filled reds famous for their colour and strength. Most of Toro’s best-known wines are 100 percent Tinta de Toro, although wines with just 75 percent of the variety can still qualify for DO status. Other varieties grown here include Garnacha and Cabernet Sauvignon (although only Garnacha is allowed to be blended with Tinta de Toro in DO-certified wines). A few white wines are made as well, mainly from the varieties Malvasía and Verdejo.

Toro was a key wine region during the Phylloxera crisis at the end of the 19th century. The sandy soils in the area restricted the spread of the destructive insects, so the vines were relatively well protected. As a result, exporting to France and further afield became a big business. The region was officially granted DO status in 1987.

For a piece of Toro magic, check out our Decanter Silver Medal winner, Quinta el Refugio Tinta de Toro. Selling at €8.39 (for the month of February), this is easily drinking like a €12 or €13 wine.