Vinos de Madrid seminar at Barcelona Wine Bar in Washington DC

Earlier this week we had an invitation to attend a seminar tasting with wines from the Vinos de Madrid DO. The seminar was followed by a walk-around tasting. The venue was held at the Barcelona Wine Bar on 14th Street NW in Washington DC. We have attended several wine tasting at this restaurant all featuring Spanish wines. The restaurant does a wonderful job with tapas served during the walk-around tasting.

One of the purposes of the tastings and seminar was to introduce wine enthusiasts, distributors, importers and writers to Vinos de Madrid, an often undiscovered wine region in Spain. Many of the producers in this area are crafting premium wines at very reasonable prices. Gretchen Thomas, Vice President of Beverage at Del Frisco’s Restaurant Group that owns Barcelona Wine Bar, conducted the seminar and tasting. 

Gretchen became interested in wine while attending culinary school in New York. She was instrumental in introducing Spanish wines to the Barcelona Wine Bar chain of restaurants in the country. During the presentation, we learned that the Spanish capital was moved around the country over the centuries. Wherever the capital was located, the surrounding area was agricultural, in order to meet the needs of the inhabitants. This occurred when the capital was moved to Madrid. The wine production from this immediate area had to be large to meet the needs of the people. Through the 1900s, the wine region had more of a bulk wine reputation than a fine wine status. During the past couple decades, though, fine wines are now produced by the wineries.

The Madrid wine region is divided into three sub-zones (Arganda del Rey, Navalcarnero, San Martin de Valdeiglesra), and a fourth zone (El Molar) will be created in the near future. The seminar focused on the Arganda del Rey zone east of Madrid, and the San Martin de Valdeiglesras zone west of Madrid. We discovered a few grape varieties that were new to us including Albillo Real and Malvar for the whites. We have tasted the red grapes varieties before. The most common varietal red grapes in the zones are Tempranillo and Garnacha. The Vinos de Madrid zones currently comprise of 8,391 hectares (20,734 acres) of wine grapes.

Nine wines tasted during the seminar on Vinos de Madrid.

The Seminar Tasting

Five wines caught my attention. For the white wines I liked the 2017 Navaherreros Blanco from Bodegas Bernabeleva. This yellow colored wine had a light green hue. The wine was a blend of Albillo Real and Macabeo. Mineral, flowers and citrus were noted on the aroma. The taste included honeysuckle, white roses, mineral and citrus. This wine had a velvety mouthfeel and was full bodied. The finish was crisp with layers of flavors.

There were several of the red wines that were notable. The 2009 Bodegas Nueva Valverde 750 was a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. This 14% alcohol wine was an opaque dark ruby color. Black fruits were on the aroma. The taste included blackberries, black cherries, black raspberries and baking spices. The wine was full bodied with kissing tannins (tannins that would pucker your lips as though you were going to kiss someone). The finish was fruity and spicy.

One of my favorite reds is the 2014 Felix Martinez Cepas Viejas Reserva is from the Vinos Jeromin portfolio.

The 2014 Felix Martinez Cepas Viejas Reserva is from the Vinos Jeromin portfolio of wines. The wine was predominantly Tempranillo. It had an opaque dark ruby color with a black hue. Black fruits and spices were noted on the aroma. The taste included black berries, raisins and spices. The full-bodied wine had kissing tannins. The finish was spicy and fruity.

The 2016 Seleccion Especial by El Regajal was a blend of Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah and Petit Verdot. The wine had an opaque dark ruby color with a black hue. The 14.5% alcohol wine had dried jammy fruits on the aroma. The taste had a perceived sweetness with blackberries, blueberries, black raspberries and baking spices. The full-bodied wine had bold tannins. The finish was fruity with spice.

The Tierra Calma 2015 was crafted with 100% Garnacha. The 15.5% alcohol wine was an opaque dark ruby. Floral and black fruits were picked up on the aroma. The taste was reminiscent of violets, roses, blackberries and baking spices. The full-bodied wine had bold tannins. Fruit and spices were on the finish.

We enjoyed the wines during the seminar and the walk-around tasting. Many of the fine wines from the Vinos de Madrid offer a great value for wine enthusiasts.

Cheers,
Terry