Wednesday, June 18, 2014

Tired of Sauvignon Blanc. Try Verdejo from Spain's Rueda

When it comes to wines for summertime drinking, I have to admit that I have a strong bias for whites from Spain. In fact, the home to one of my favorite hot weather white wines is Rueda.

The Rueda Denomination of Origin (DO) was created in early 1980, making it the first DO to be approved in the Autonomous Community of Castilla y León in northwest Spain. Winemakers had pushed for the creation of the appellation to promote and protect the area’s native grape, Verdejo.

Verdejo, which has been grown in Rueda since the 11th century, is one of Spain’s best white varietals. It's used to make clean, fresh whites with citrus notes and crisp acidity. Because these wines are often medium- to full-bodied, they can pair with a variety of foods, but I particularly like them with fish.

While wines from Rueda can often be found at wine shops, they are not so common in St. Louis grocery stores. So I was very pleased to find the Bodegas Naia Rueda at the Dierbergs Brentwood Pointe. It was priced at $14.49 in May and is featured in my June 18th St. Louis Post-Dispatch column. Naia is a well-respected winery that produces reliable Verdejo wines that win high points from critics.

Bodegas Naia's winery is located along the southern bank of the Duero River in La Seca just to the east of the town of Rueda. Some of its Verdejo comes from old vines and some strains are more than a century old. The winery also grows smaller amounts of Sauvignon Blanc and Viura.

Among other highly recommended producer is Bodegas Shaya, which consistently wins high scores from critics and which I’ve featured in previous year-end columns about my favorite wines. Bodegas Shaya is a Gil Family Estates wine.

The Shaya winery and vineyards are located in the province of Segovia, but it has an Australian winemaker. She’s Belinda Thomson, who splits her time between Spain and her parents’ respected Crawford River Winery in Victoria, Australia.

Another excellent choice is Bodegas Ordoñez Nisia, made from old vine Verdejo. Owned by the well-respected Spanish importer and wine producer Jorge Ordoñez, Nisia also earns rave reviews from critics.

Both the Shaya and Nisia wines are priced at $13.99 at Randall's in St. Louis.

But if your budget is below $10, it is possible to find a good Verdejo in your price range. It's Trader Joe’s to the rescue. The chain is now carrying the Marqués de Cáceres Verdejo Rueda for $7.99. It's a great deal and well worth trying.

#winesfromspain #verdejo #rueda #CastillayLeón #wine #winewednesday @summerwines







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