Montes Alpha M & Paso A Paso Spanish Tempranillo

Here we are again discussing wines…my favorite subject…wine, red wine, Spanish red wine. Ahhh, but I have a surprise. This past weekend I was out with some of my very dear friends, from Spain nonetheless, and we had a Chilean red wine.

So, I will start with the Chilean red wine called, Montes Alpha M! Now this wine is a bit more expensive ($80.00 a pop) then most other wines I have recommended but don’t be afraid of that. It is a sexy wine and is every bit worth the price. Yes, I loved it because it had Alpha in the name, but more importantly, it was a yummy red wine, so much so that we ordered two bottles. Moreover, it has all the aspects that I love in wine: blackberry, plum, dark cherry and hints of vanilla and chocolate…mmmmm! This top Chilean Cabernet (approximately 80%) is aged in French oak barrels for about 12 months. If that price isn’t in your budget, don’t fret. You can also get something similar by the same maker called Montes Syrah Colchagua Valley Apalta Vineyard Alpha 2005 for under $25.00.  I highly recommend that you add this to your favorites.

As we say talking on Saturday night, my friend Jose gave me a little history lesson. He told me something that I didn’t know about the Spanish grapes and vineyards. When I went to Whole Foods, I asked my wine contact about it and he said it was not only Spain but all of Europe that grafted the American grape into their vines.

The story goes: in the 1800′s a root louse hit the European vineyards that was destroying the vineyards. In an effort to save the vineyards, these European wine growers needed to graft the resistant American vine into their vineyards. It is a very interesting historical read!

My second wine recommendation this week was highly recommended by my wine guy at Whole Foods. Yes, they now know me well and look for my weekly visits. He knows what I like and is very excited to see me each week. This week he recommended a Spanish 2007 red called Paso A Paso. It is 100% Tempranillo aged in French Oak for about six months. Paso A Paso is made in La Mancha, a very fertile region just south of Madrid in central Spain. The grapes are hand harvested. This lovely wine consists of rich cherry, dark berries and notes of chocolate. A full bodied wine with lots of ripe red fruits and a steal under $15.00 per bottle!

So, what are you waiting for? Go on…get one or two and try it out. Let me know what you think!