Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Texas Wine School Wine Foundation Course: Wines of Spain in 3 Parts - Houston, Texas


Wednesday, October 3, 2012 from 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM
Houston, Texas

Chilled at French Country Wines
2433 Bartlett Street
Houston, Texas 77005
713-882-8773

Wine Foundation Course: Wines of Spain

Level: Beginner
Cost: $180.00 – includes wine & materials
Time: 7.00pm – 9.00pm each session
Date: October 3rd, 10th and 17th.
Location: Chilled at French Country Wines – 2431 Bartlett Street, Houston, TX
Instructor: James King

- For each wine-producing region, describe the style of wines made, identify the key grape varieties used for wine production and the meaning of common regional labeling terms.
 - Describe the meaning of common labeling terms indicating quality or style.
 - Understand what grape varieties are connected to each DO so that you can pick a wine in a restaurant or retailer with confidence, for example Tempranillo – Rioja.

We will cover all the main regions.
Andalusia: Focus on the production, style and quality of Sherry and Manzanilla Sanlúcar de Barrameda & Montilla-Moriles.

Aragon:  Look at this once over looked region sitting in between Rioja and Catalonia. We will focus on Calatyud, Campo de Borja, Somontano and Carinena.

Castile and León:  This vast region stretching from Rioja to the Portugal encompasses such great regions as Bierzo, Cigales, Ribera del Duero, Rueda and Toro and world class grapes: Tempranillo, Mencia and Verdejo.

Castile-La Mancha: This holds the largest single region in Spain, La Mancha, and we will discover what it is doing to convert from bulk wine to quality wine. The other regions we will look at are Jumilla and its steep rise in the last 10 years and Valdepeñas an enclave of La Mancha.

Catalonia: This diverse region seems to have it all: Cava (sparkling wine), Priorat (big bold reds), Penedes (elegant whites) and that is to name only three! We will also discuss Catalunya, Montsant, Tarragona and Terra Alta.

Galicia: The Celtic Jewel of Spain! This region is cooler than the rest of Spain and so produces great whites from Rias Baixas and elegant reds from Monterrei, Ribeira Sacra, Ribeiro and Valdeorras. We will look at the grapes, the terroir and the styles that make these regions so unique.

Basque / Navarra: This region incorporates the imperious Rioja region and we will spend time looking into what makes it so globally known. We will not forget its neighbor Navarra and we will also look at the very unique wines of the Basque region.

Murcia & Valencia:  These regions occupy the South Eastern Mediterranean zone of Spain. We will discover the new wave of styles coming from traditional grapes. The regions we will focus on will be Alicante, Yecla, Alicante and Valcencia.

For more information, click here to visit their website.

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