The other day I was invited for lunch with a colleague and we went to one of my favourite wine bars in the City of London "The Planet of the The Grapes". I have no commercial connexion.
I arrived early and was recommended a glass of the Albariño 2012 La Liebre y la Tortuga white wine from
Rías Baixas.
La Liebre y la Tortuga - the Rabbit and the Tortoise what a lovely name for a wine. And a very apt name for having a leisurely and slow chat in the Cockney hinterland right underneath Bow bells. "Rabbit and Pork" means "Talk" in cockney rhyming slang and well tortoises are slow and leisurely. It must have been the wine - enough of this "Rabbit"!
http://www.cockney.co.uk/
Nine pounds for a glass is not cheap but you are paying, also, for the location and the knowledge and good service of the wine staff. The wine was well recommended so we we decided on a bottle to go with our lunch.
Albariño is a dry white wine produced in the Rias Baixas of Galicia in Spain. Rias Baixas is near to the Atlantic ocean and the wine reflects the climate and granite based soil of the region.They are lively wines with well integrated fruit and acidity. They go well with good food especially fish. They are a bit expensive but when matched with well cooked food they are worth it. They also go well with pie and mash.
http://www.riasbaixaswines.com/wines/index.php
The white Albariño grape is thick skinned and is resistant to the mildew caused by the moisture from the Atlantic. The grape and the soil combine together to give the wine a refreshing taste which is so characteristic of the appellation. It is quite easy to recognise this wine but it could easily be confused with Alvarinho which is produced from the same grape just across the river Miño or Minho in Portugal's Vinho Verdi region.
http://www.wine-pages.com/features/vinho-verde-alvarinho.htm
Whilst working on a project in Hamburg this wine was a team favourite when we dined at the Vasco da Gama restaurant and it was always drunk with fish -superb. And they had both the Spanish and Portuguese wines.
http://www.vasco-da-gama-hamburg.de/
Next time you are in the City then why not pay a visit to the Planet of the Grapes especially if you are feeling flush. And in the supermarket, why not buy a bottle of Albariño or Alvarinho if you can find it? So enjoy some happy eating and drinking
http://www.morrisonscellar.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/KeywordSearchResults?storeId=10701&catalogId=11802&langId=-1&fcd=set&Ntk=primary&N=0&Ns=Relevance%7C1&pageView=&sourcePage=keywordSearch&Ntt=Alvarinho&x=-1078&y=-69&gclid=CJS3ysux9bkCFeXMtAodxFgAfQ
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