I continue exploring the white wine of Galicia, with reviews of two more Albariños.
This summer I have been quite fixated on Albariño wines from Rías Baixas, today I provide more in depth wine and food pairings, in a slightly different direction from my earlier posts. As I've learned from the previous seven bottles of Albariño I've reviewed this summer, never assume about food pairings until you have actually tasted and paired.
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| Wine and food pairings for these two Albariño wines of Galicia. |
My pairing menu for these two wines consisted of:
1. Saigon Salad - clean and crisp.
2. Whole Shrimp - sauteed in bacon fat and garlic.
3. Sliced Shrimp - served with a Thai Peanut Sauce.
4. Beef Dumplings - heated in a white wine, shrimp shell, bacon fat reduction sauce.
5. Watermelon - sliced.
The Possibilities of Albariño from Rías Baixas.
Tasting Notes: Valminor Edicion Especial 2017 - O Rosal Subzone
The first wine is made by Adegas Valmiñor, located in the south subzone, O Rosal.
O Rosal Valley is located in the South of Rías Baixas, where the Miño River flows into the Atlantic Ocean and shares the border with Portugal. The climate is soft, without drastic thermal oscillations, and with mineral rich soils. With excellent ripening conditions, this valley is a perfect place to grow high quality wine grapes.
Nose: Moderate intensity, fresh, savory, minerality, nectarine, apricot skin, chamomile flowers, hint of the ocean.
Palate: Medium intensity, some weight, creamy, stone fruit, slate, bright, textured on tongue, chamomile, focused to front, very dry, hint of salinity, medium finish, austere quality.
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| Enjoyed best as a drinking wine. |
Food Pairings: Drinking wine, best with clean, bright flavors. The crisp Saigon salad was a suitable pairing. Light and fresh, made for an enjoyable repast during the heat of summer. Follow up with sliced watermelon and your friends will thank you for a light and healthy meal.
- Saigon salad, Yes a good match, complimentary flavors.
- Whole shrimp, garlic, bacon fat, Just okay. Add noodles better.
- Sliced shrimp, peanut sauce, No. Acid does not work with food.
- Dumplings, beef, wine and shrimp sauce, Not bad, acid stands out.
- Watermelon, Yes. Hello salinity.
Day two: White grapefruit, melon, white flower, minerality. Kumquat, bright, almost creamy, apricot, dry, focused with lemon into the finish. Fuller in the mouth than at open. Very enjoyable drinking wine. Like.
Day three: Clean and fresh, citrus and minerality, lemon and white flower on nose. Almost creamy, dry and savory, bright acidity, fresh herbs, citrus, touch of salinity, textured, savory on medium finish.
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| Saigon salad is all about fresh and crisp veggies. |
Thoughts: This wine drank well for three days. What's not to like? If you want to pair this wine with food, think veggies and fruit. The Saigon salad was so my speed this summer during the hottest days. If you read my previous Rías Baixas reviews, then you also know that watermelon was at the top of my pairing list. A most enjoyable wine.
Recommended.
Country: Spain
Region: Galicia
DO: Rías Baixas
Subzone: O Rosal
Blend: 100% Albariño
ABV: 12.5%
Closure: Screwcap
SRP: $18.99
Sample provided by snooth.com
www.adegasvalminor.com
Adegas Valmiñor
E-Mail: valminor@valminorebano.com
Address: Adegas Valmiñor, S.L.
A Portela s/n, San Juan de Tabagón.
36760, O Rosal – Pontevedra
GPS coordinates: 41º 55’ 59.1’’ N, 8º 47’ 41.5’’ O
Phone: +34 986 60 90 60 | Fax: +34 986 60 93 13
Tasting Notes: Pazo Señorans 2017 - Val do Salnes Subzone
The winery is situated on lowlands, generally situated at an altitude of less than 300m, close to the sea and the lower stretches of rivers, which bring about Atlantic climatic conditions with mild temperatures and extensive rainfall and a drier period during the months of summer.
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| Harvest at Val do Salnes, Rías Baixas (photo Pazo Señorans). |
In Rías Baixas, the soil is distinguished by the appearance of "xabre. " Xabre is the pure breaking down of granite caused by the high humidity conditions of the area. It is rarely found outside of Rias Baixas. It adds hints of minerality and floral notes to the wine, according to the winery. Harvest is typically around the third week of September. 2017 was a warmer than typical vintage.
Nose: Medium plus intensity, a lot of ripe stone fruit, peach, edged with salinity, chamomile flower, dried oregano, hint of petrol.
Palate: Medium plus intensity, stone fruit, blend of ripe and tart peach, dry, textured on gums, a hint of salinity, with alfalfa, stone fruit, minerality and ripe melon into the medium plus finish. Interesting. Enjoyable sipping wine.
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| Pazo de Señoráns was made to pair with food. |
Food Pairings: Fantastic food wine. Um, loved this wine with food. Stunned by how flexible this wine was with all the food pairings. Not one bad pairing. The beef dumplings with the wine, shrimp shell reductions sauce was AMAZING. This wine also matches spicy heat well. And the bold flavors of the peanut sauce? No problem. And don't fear, the watermelon pairing was luxurious.
- Saigon salad, Yes a good match, pepper flakes heat and fruit of wine work with flavors.
- Whole shrimp, garlic, bacon fat, Yes. Good match. Heavier wine with heavier food.
- Sliced shrimp, peanut sauce, Yes. Bold flavors, touch of heat work with wine and food.
- Dumplings, beef, wine and shrimp sauce, Hella yes! Great match. Warm, savory, sauce, beef, wine shrimp, bacon reduction compliment character of this wine. Lovely.
- Watermelon, Yes. Hello salinity. Luxurious pairing. Brought out more fruit from the watermelon, into a tropical category. Yum.
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| Thai peanut sauce with hot sauce, no problem. |
Day two: Tropical nose, leaned into banana, savory note with river rock. Palate, almost sweet, banana, peach, melon, salty, long finish. Wants food. Too heavy for me for drinking wants, wants to interact with food. And that's a plus for this wine.
Day three: Fruity, banana taffy, hint ocean breeze. Salty goodness, white grapefruit, hint of oregano, weighty, banana. OMG, fantastic with fresh watermelon, brought out fruit in watermelon.
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| Beef dumpling pairing was amazing! |
Thoughts: This wine impressed me. If ever there was an Albariño made for food, this is that wine! By day two the wine was too heavy for me to enjoy alone. By day three it was watermelon nirvana. I know, I know. You are tired of watermelon pairings. But it was so *expletive good. The Val do Salnes subzone is where Albariño originated. And the 2017 Pazo de Señoráns is a truly amazing wine. Go seek out this wine and prepare for a memorable wine and food pairing experience to remember. I can't get that beef dumpling pairing out of my mind. Bravo!
Highly Recommended. For food.
Country: Spain
Region: Galicia
DO: Rías Baixas
Subzone: Val do Salnés
Blend: 100% Albariño
ABV: 13.5%
Closure: Cork
SRP: $20
Sample provided by snooth.com
www.pazodesenorans.com
Pazo de Señoráns, S.L.
Pontevedra, España
telephone +34 986 715 373
email: info@pazodesenorans.com
The Pazo and the winery were owned originally by husband and wife team Marisol Bueno and Javier Mareque. Today, both are in the hands of their four sons and daughters, Marisol, Vicky, Javier and Santiago, who began its wine-producing career in 1989.
The origin of the name Pazo de Señoráns is unknown. Though the site has grown wine grapes for many years previous.
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These two wines made me even more of a fan of DO Rías Baixas and Albariño. Galicia is at the top of my must visit wine regions. Still thinking about the beef dumpling pairing.
Many thanks again to snooth.com for inviting me to participate in this Rías Baixas Wines Albariño tasting. And heartfelt thanks to the participating wineries for sharing these beautiful wines.
I have a couple more Albariño wines to write about before long.
Cheers!