presented by Joy Dixon from Main Vine Wine
Tonight’s wine tasting includes a pairing bonus with XCEL Bars
~ Vegan Meal Bar ~ Made to Fuel Every Hustle.
We are pleased to have Ernest Swindell & Alonna Bailey from XCEL.
Biutiful Cava Brut ~ NV [89 WE]
Isaac Fernández Selección is a unique collaborative venture between two individuals – Isaac Fernández Montaña, one of Spain’s most acclaimed winemakers, and Aurelio Cabestrero whose vision and commitment helped bring Spanish wines to the forefront in the United States. The Biutiful Cavas are produced utilizing the latest technology. The vineyards are in the area of d’Espiells, the highest, windiest part of the municipality of Sant Sadurni d’Anoia. Bordered to the south by the coastal Serrelada mountains and to the north by the Montserrat mountains, the vineyard enjoys an exceptional microclimate. The soil is alluvial and comprises of three layers. The first consists of clay and silt, the second, pebbles and loose stones, and the third, the deepest, consists of fine sand that compacts down and is called “sauló”.
Appellation: Cava D.O., Requena, Spain
Grapes: 50% Macabeo, 35% Parellada, 15% Xarel•lo
Tasting notes: A lovely nose of lime, sea salts, stony minerality, menthol, wild fennel and a note of dried flowers. On the palate the wine is crisp, full-bodied, focused and complex, with pinpoint bubbles, bright acids and lovely focus and mineral drive on the long and complex finish.
Producer: Isaac Fernández Selección
XCEL Pairing: Cashew Coconut
Vina Otano Viura ~ 2021
Vina Otano comes from a family winery, whose beginnings go back to 1886. The winery utilizes a number of methods to produce the best possible wine including multiple thinning/green harvest passes through each plot, mechanical weeding (no chemicals used), application of organic fertilizer (from composted winery waste) and hand-harvesting of the ripe fruit. Their vineyards range in age from 30 to 95+ years old.
Appellation: Rioja D.O.Ca., Spain
Grapes: 100% Viura (Estate)
Tasting notes: A pretty bouquet of pear, raw almond, salty soil tones, and a note of lemon blossoms. On the palate, the wine is medium-full, nicely balanced and focused.
Producer: Union De Viticultores Riojanos
XCEL Pairing: Almond Bliss
Bovale Rosado ~ 2022
Isaac Fernandez Seleccion continues rediscovering forgotten regions of superior terroir and maximizing the potential from old vines of indigenous grape varieties. Bovale is the old Roman name for the local grape, Bobal, grown in the mountains of southeastern Spain.
Appellation: Utiel-Requena D.O, Spain
Grapes: 100% Bobal (single, 40-year old vineyard)
Tasting notes: Delicate, pale salmon color. On the nose, it offers up a bright bouquet of tart orange, wild strawberries, chalky soil tones and dried flowers. The palate is bright, juicy and full-bodied, with a good core of fruit, fine soil undertow, good focus and balance and a long, bouncy finish
Producer: Isaac Fernández Selección
XCEL Pairing: Chocolate Covered Strawberry
Acentor Maturana Tinta ~ 2020
Maturana Tinta is a variety with small compact clusters and small berries. A high concentration of phenolic compounds, especially anthocyanins, produces wines with deep, high intensity garnet color, high acidity and medium to alcohol levels. A grape variety indigenous to Rioja, but it was almost lost when it fell out of fashion and has been brought back by conservationists believing it still has a role to play in the region.
Appellation: Rioja D.O.Ca., Spain
Grapes: 100% Maturana Tinta – ABV 13.5% (1 yr used French oak)
Tasting notes: Black fruity bouquet of dark berries, cassis, espresso, a nice touch of meatiness, cigar smoke, chalky soil tones, fresh herb tones and a touch of cedary oak. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, focused and complex, with f ine soil signature, a good core of fruit, ripe, buried tannins and a long, complex and very nicely balanced finish.
Producer: Isaac Fernández Selección
XCEL Pairing: Cherry Sunflower
