Features

Wines outside the lines: Bodegas Frontonio

by  |  30-06-2021

Alpartir, Spain isn’t a destination on any wine map of the country. Even in a non-wine context, I’d never heard a whisper of the place before. While it’s about 10km south of a larger town... more »

The mightiness of Mencía

by  |  23-06-2021

For the June, 2021 edition of wine magazine World of Fine Wine, I’m happy to have contributed an extensive profile of the Spanish grape variety, Mencía. For those unfamiliar with this publication, it’s an impressive... more »
Map of new Cava zones, DO Cava

Spanish wine DO overs?

by  |  21-06-2021

Various news outlets have been circulating the new changes to DO Cava recently that are mainly about the application of subzone names and a change to the grouping of aging tiers. Why are they circulating... more »

The wines of DO Calatayud 2021

by  |  16-06-2021

My first encounter with DO Calatayud was picking up a wine over 15 years ago at a shop in San Francisco, thinking that it was from Catalunya. I don’t know how many people may have... more »

In The Glass: Olivier Rivière- Rayos Uva 2019

by  |  26-05-2021

I don’t know when, but someday we’ll look back from a vantage point far, far in the future and say, “So… why on earth did people think Rioja wines had to be almost all Tempranillo?”... more »

A Southern European selection of François Lurton

by  |  03-05-2021

François Lurton is but one member of the vast Lurton family, long-established in Bordeaux. If you’d like to read up on their history, I’d recommend having a look at this article as I would but... more »

Lobeiras, a descent into madness

by  |  28-04-2021

Silíce Viticultores is a project from three parents, born in 2013 that’s based in Barrantes, Galicia. It was started by two brothers, Carlos and Juan Manuel Rodríguez who are based in Vigo. They wanted to... more »
Photo provided by the winery

The latest from Sierra de Toloño in Rioja Alavesa

by  |  15-04-2021

An imposing as well as important piece of Rioja’s geography are the Cantabrian Mountains in the north that act as a guard against the worst of the Atlantic Ocean’s intentions. It isn’t just one range... more »

In The Glass – Verónica Ortega – ROC 2017

by  |  09-04-2021

Verónica Ortega is no stranger to these pages. I reviewed her Cobrana 2016 two years ago and she’s been a winemaker I’ve watched closely since first meeting her just over seven years ago at Vinisud... more »

The wines of DO Bierzo in 2021

by  |  05-04-2021

It’s not an exaggeration to say that the Bierzo region in northwestern Spain is in the middle of nowhere. Its main town and capital, Ponferrada is three hours by car from the airport in Vigo... more »