The dynamic duo, Franco and Domingo, rounded off the wine tasting season for the Moraira-Teulada U3A with a selection of superb wines from Valdepeñas.
There was a brisk trade in the six Corcovo wines offered for tasting, unsurprising given the new tasting term will not open until the autumn.
Domingo, boss of the family run Bodegas Megia e Hijos, offered up two white wines, a rosado and three reds, including the Crianza which has just won another top award – Gold at the prestigious Bacchus de Oro 2024 International competition.
There was a dispute between Mrs G and myself as to which were the best wines to select. So we ended up with cases of five of the six wines – and an empty wallet!
Mind you, it was thirty six bottles of great quality wine at an average price of under 5.60 euro a bottle . You can’t get that in any supermarket!
The Hill Top Bar in Moraira again played host to the 40 plus tasters.
First up was the Blanco Airén a fresh , fruity, crisp wine and one of my choices. Next came the Muscat Petit Grain. It’s usually a sweet grape but picked by hand in the moonlight, cool and macerated before dawn, it produces a delicate, fresh wine, smoother and more cultured than its predecessor. Franco debunked the old story that the grapes were picked by a team of virgins. Shame. Mrs G’s pick.
The Rosado, 100% Tempranillo, has an intense pink colour as a result of the skins being left on for the first three to four hours of the maceration process. Think strawberries and raspberries or, as the ever ebullient Franco declared, three of your five a day in a glass. Mrs G’s preference.
The first of the reds, the Joven, was a young, fruity but full bodied wine packing a 14.5% punch. My pick for a summer BBQ. The award winning Crianza, “one of the Big Boys” according to Franco, was aged in American oak for nine months resulting in a silky smooth wine with a hint of oak and vanilla. Marital harmony, our choice.
Last up was the Reserva , five years in the making including 22 months in oak barrels. An exceptional wine which, like the Crianza, has won accolades down the years. It’s a personal favourite but this time was left on the shelf – think cooler nights or no room in the boot.
Our thanks, as always go to Pat and Brian Clarke for organizing the night and the whole tasting season.
Long summer drink tip from Franco, a Mayflower. Mix the rosado with soda and ice .
Ian Graham
Our thanks go to Ian Graham for his write up of the evening and to Dina Jones for the photos. Our last event before the summer break will be the day trip to Bodegas Bleda in Jumilla on 26th June.
Have a good summer and we will look forward to seeing you again in the autumn.
Pat & Brian