The flavor of pear in wine of Cantabrie
Discover the of Cantabrie wines revealing the of pear flavor during the olphactive analysis (nose) and during the gustative analysis (mouth).
Cantabria is a small region on the northern coast of Spain, wedged between the Cantabrian Mountains and the Bay of Biscay. Together with its neighbours, Asturias (to the west) and the Basque Country (to the east), this lush, mountainous region is affectionately known as España Verde, ("Green Spain").
Viticulture has not traditionally been important here, as the local soils are too fertile and the Climate too wet and windy for quality viticulture. The few wines that are produced tend to be low-alcohol, high-acid, bright-tasting white wines, similar to the txakoli of the Basque Country.
The region's most respected drinks are its tangy Sidra (cider) and orujo. The latter is a brandy distilled from GrapeMarc.
Nevertheless, there are now two Vino de la Tierra (VT) titles in Cantabria: Liebana VT and Costa de Cantabria VT. Liebana is nestled in the southwest corner of the region, in a particular mesoclimate created by four valleys.
I’d like to say we took advantage of the lockdown and its related commotion to do a stock-take, explore new avenues, turn over intriguing stones, widen and deepen our drinking, taking careful notes as we went. Sadly, no. I won’t say we got stuck in a rut, but we did tend to stick with comfort wines – and “comfort”, in our case, means familiar. Regular readers of this quarterly column can probably guess the labels on the resulting empties. We have a wider range of comfort foods, I’m afraid, than ...
By 1965, the vineyards of Condrieu had largely been abandoned – phylloxera and two world wars had decimated the place and its people. There were just 8ha of vines remaining on these granite slopes. If it weren’t for the hard work of a few steadfast vignerons, the appellation might have disappeared entirely, reclaimed by the forest. Thankfully, Condrieu survived and has since flourished – but great appellations have been lost before. We know this because some have recently been rediscovered. In f ...
It’s no secret that climate change is breaking records for heatwaves, frosts, fires, droughts, hail and wildfires. Their increasing frequency has left the wine world awash with initiatives, conferences, and research all concerning sustainable viticulture and its many facets: biodiversity, regenerative agriculture and the host of organic, biodynamic and sustainable labels or certifications they embody. More than simple posturing, many are concerned with the very real practicalities of saving wate ...