Well here we are again. It feels like deja-vu, back in lock-down with restaurants closed for the next few weeks in peak winter. And shortly after the Premiere’s announcement my phone started pinging with questions if we were going to start the Lockdown Wine Club Zoom tastings again? Well…I’ve got nothing better to do on Saturday…so let’s drink some good wines together!!

If you need a refresher from last year, or you’re new to this, here’s how it works:
All you need to do is pick up a bottle of either wine (but more interesting if you get both) and send me a quick email saying you’ve got the wines and I will share the Zoom link with you. The online tasting is free to those who pick up any of the wines. These wines are not available at the LCBO or SAQ and can only be purchased by-the-bottle at the Byward Wine Market in Ottawa, at Pan Chancho in Kingston, or from Lifford Wines directly by-the-case. But we’re past the delivery deadline for Lifford orders, so Byward Wine Market or Pan Chancho are the only options for this week. Then we meet up online, Saturday at 7pm. I give you all the geographic and historical context behind the wines, terroir, and producers; then we drink the wines together!. It’s very interactive, we discuss our thoughts and opinions on the wines, and I answer any questions you have about them. Or if you’re not the interactive type, it’s just some fun wine entertainment you can watch on mute over dinner with your open bottles and taste along. We can get pretty in-depth and geeky about the wines, but it’s all fun and very casual.

I’m feeling like making some warm and hearty meals this weekend for the cold weather to help cope with the depression of what I’m calling “Seasonal Lockdown Syndrome”. So let’s explore a region that makes nice big rich wines that we never got to delve into last year: Castilla y Leon in Spain!

Castilla y Leon is a pretty large overall region in northern Spain that politically borders the eastern edge of Portugal and almost reaches the Atlantic in the north. But its most famous sub-regions are geographically central in the Iberian Peninsula, so it has a warm continental climate throughout most of the region that is tempered by the Duero river and areas of high elevation. And two of these more famous sub-regions that we’re looking at this week are Ribera del Duero and Toro. Here’s a nice map of Spain’s wine regions to situate yourself.

Surveying the vineyards of Ribera del Duero in 2017

Some say that Ribera del Duero is Spain’s Burgundy, meaning it is very terroir site-specific and produces some of Spain’s most famous wines. The soils are mostly clay and sand, with layers of limestone, marl and chalk. The Duero river runs through the middle of the narrow and long east-west oriented region that has long cold winters and very hot dry summers. Ribera wines must have a minimum of 75% Tempranillo in the blend to carry the regional title, but 95% of the whole area is planted with Tempranillo. The rest of the plantings that account for any blending include: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Malbec, Garnacha and Albillo. Many people have heard of famous names from the area like Vega Sicilia or Pingus, but there’s a multitude of other well situated, terroir driven wineries that deliver similar quality and style for a fraction of the cost. Wines of this region are usually bold and powerful, but marked by finesse and elegance, especially after some time in bottle.

Bull silhouette signs throughout Toro, Spain.

If Ribera del Duero is the Burgundy of Spain, then Toro could be the Rousillon: big, tannic, age-worthy wines at fantastic values. I drove across Portugal, Spain, and Southern France on an Iberian wine road trip in 2017, and Toro is a region that you immediately know you’re in because of the not-so-subtle signage along the highways. The way we have billboard advertisements in North America, you have big black bull silhouettes on roadsides and peeking over hilltops. Here, BBQ and big wines are king. It feels like you are driving across a relatively flat landscape with scattered hillsides, but in fact you’re up 600 - 800m altitude on the Castillian plateau which gives a cooling balance to the very hot summers. The result is powerful wines made from predominantly Tempranillo grapes. The Toro region has its own, late-ripening, variation or clone of Tempranillo called “Tino de Toro” that has a thicker grape skin with more phenolics/tannic structure, resulting a big powerful wines.

Here’s the two we’ve chosen for this week’s feature to highlight these respective sub-regions:

CONDE DE SAN CRISTOBAL, D.O. RIBERA DEL DUERO, 2018
$42 per bottle at the Byward Wine Market and Pan Chancho, $36.99 x6 from Lifford Wines

The winery was established in 2001 by the family who owns the Marques de Vargas estate, one of the famous original “Three Marques” outside of Lorgroño in Rioja Alta. They were looking to start a second winery in the heart of Ribera del Duero and named it for the Count of San Cristóbal, which is one of the family titles of the winery owner D. Pelayo de la Mata. This is 100% Tinto Fino (Tempranillo) from 2 of their estate owned vineyards at 780 and 880 Metres Above Sea Level. Further to the Burgundy comparison with Ribera terroir, this estate is comprised from 7 different types of soils and microclimates: sandy-loam, limestone-loam, clay, loam with layers of marl, sandy-clay, chalky-clay and river alluvial soils. All grown without the use of any pesticides or chemicals and aged in French oak for 12 months. The result is an herbal and spicy wine with dried dark fruit flavours, hints of earth, leather, and cigar box. A really nice Ribera showcasing how Tempranillo develops in the region.

TELMO RODRIGUEZ, ‘DEHESA GAGO’, D.O. TORO, 2019
$24 per bottle at Byward Wine Market and Pan Chancho, $21.99 x12 from Lifford Wines

Those who know me know that Telmo Rodriguez is one of my favourite winemakers in the world. But I won’t rant about that here. If you’re interested in why, or what’s the big deal, check out this post I did last year. As one of the pioneers of biodynamics in Spain and a terroir hunter making epic wine from often abandonned or wild overgrown old vineyards, he searches for old school authenticity in all corners of Spain. The Dehesa is a very unique vast landscape in Spain that is famous for Jamon Iberico, acorns, and epic wines in regions like Toro. The region has ancient winemaking roots and was among the first to get an official D.O. status in 1933, but after the civil war fell into disrepair and financial hardship losing it’s D.O. status. When it was being revived in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s Telmo was among the first people helping rediscover this terroir and began producing wines in this forgotten region. Grown entirely on bush vines, organically, 100% Tinto de Toro (Tempranillo), fermented with native yeasts, and aged 6 months in cement vats before bottle aging. This is a softer more approachable Toro wine that still has nice tannins, but with more fruit and less aging required than many of the more structured wines from the region that need a lot of time in the bottle. Look for slightly smoky earth, black tea, dark fruit and spice mixed with black cherries and plums.

And since you legally need to purchase wine from bottle shops with an item of food, we’ve put together a special little Spanish snack to pair: marinated Olives, Manchego, and Chorizo for $8 each. If you’re purchasing online you can click here to get them all together! I’m probably going to make a nice rich Coq au Vin for dinner along with the marinated olive, manchego, and chorizo to start. Should be perfect for a cold January night. Here’s a link to all 3 together. Hope you can join us!

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The Byward Wine Market is fully open for in person shopping, as well as online orders offering curbside pickup or local delivery within Ottawa. Reach out if you have any questions, and check out the archive of past FEATURES if you’re interested in other recommendations. Lastly, please feel free to forward this to anyone in Ontario who may be interested in home wine delivery and follow us on Instagram at @bywardwinemarket!