I was invited by a Spanish friend to attend this wine tasting event, Iberian Peninsula Wine Flight, at the Instituto Cervantes in Manchester in support of the institute and the event organisers Marco Castelanelli and Meruert Rakhimova.
With only days before I travelled to the Kingdom of Spain, to revisit the beautiful city of Barcelona, it was the perfect occasion to spend an evening with good friends, the fantastic organisers of this event, and meeting great new people, who were attending thanks to the website Internations. Internations is a global social network, which primarily focuses on bringing ex-pats together with similar interests and for group activities and events, but also welcomes like-minded people who yearn for that specific international experience. The network is an organisation for all people visiting, travelling, working and relocating around the world.
On this occasion, the wine tasting occurred in Instituto Cervantes, which is situated in the heart of Manchester on Deansgate in an inconspicuous building. Inside, the building is incredible - the structure of the interior is very open like a hollowed shell, with metal stairs rising in the centre, classrooms around the outside, and floor to ceiling glass panels. The building hosts language classes, specifically Spanish teaching, dance classes, a library, and a whole lot more!
A little bit about the host/sommelier/wine merchant, Marco Castelanelli: he is a qualified Sommelier who has spent the best part of seven years in Italy working at one of Italy's prestigious vineyards, and building a network of contacts from wineries, restaurants, and wine producers. Personally, I found Marco to be a really pleasant host, and I have attended a handful of wine tastings in the past years, and one thing that seems to be apparent in all great hosts, which adds to a splendid evening, is an abundance of passion for their craft - Marco is truly committed to his passion, and has a very calming exposition when talking through the varied wines and their histories. He is without a doubt, full of knowledge about all the wines presented to everyone participating in the tasting, which becomes an engaging experience for all involved.
The setting of the tasting looked fantastic, with several tables dotted around the room, but one of the best parts (well, apart from the wine itself) were the placemats and information sheet. The placemats contained 6 red wine stained rings for each glass to contain the different wines, and the information sheet was a map highlighting the origin of the wines listed. Brilliant idea!
However, I wanted to bring your attention to another brilliant piece, which was the nose and taste picture guide to help participants place and describe the wines. One of Marco's talents is to encourage everyone to engage with the discussions and presentations of the wines. Excellent!
Now for the wine! For the tasting, we had:
1. Celler Can Blau, Blau 2015 - El Molar - Monsant D O - Catalunya
2. Dfj Vinhos, Portada Selection 2015 - Vila Chã De Ourique - Lisboa
(1 & 2 were swapped around on the night, but this is the order from the infosheet)
3. Bodegas Valdesil, Valderroa 2014 - Ourense - Valdeorras D O - Galicia
4. Bacalhôa, tinto da Anfora 2014 - Azeitão - Alentejano
5. Bodegas Beronia, Crianza 2013 - Ollauri - Tioja DOC
6. Symington Family, Altano 2014 - Gaia, Douro
I like a full-bodied taste to my red wine, with an earthy and smoky aroma, so my two favourites were the Can Blau 2015 and Altano 2014. Can Blau, in particular, has a fruity and spicy taste, and the oak leaves a sensation of roasted coffee on the palate; a great combination of taste. As for the Altano, it has that dark fruit taste, again with a hint of spice.
I wholeheartedly recommend these wine tastings, and if you are interested in attending a event with Marco, they will be monthly in Manchester, with the next one scheduled for 31st May 2017 at Tapeo & Wine, and if you are interested, tickets can be purchased on Eventbrite here. Further details will be available soon, but if you are interested, you can contact Marco through his website: http://marcodrinks.com/
On this occasion, the wine tasting occurred in Instituto Cervantes, which is situated in the heart of Manchester on Deansgate in an inconspicuous building. Inside, the building is incredible - the structure of the interior is very open like a hollowed shell, with metal stairs rising in the centre, classrooms around the outside, and floor to ceiling glass panels. The building hosts language classes, specifically Spanish teaching, dance classes, a library, and a whole lot more!
A little bit about the host/sommelier/wine merchant, Marco Castelanelli: he is a qualified Sommelier who has spent the best part of seven years in Italy working at one of Italy's prestigious vineyards, and building a network of contacts from wineries, restaurants, and wine producers. Personally, I found Marco to be a really pleasant host, and I have attended a handful of wine tastings in the past years, and one thing that seems to be apparent in all great hosts, which adds to a splendid evening, is an abundance of passion for their craft - Marco is truly committed to his passion, and has a very calming exposition when talking through the varied wines and their histories. He is without a doubt, full of knowledge about all the wines presented to everyone participating in the tasting, which becomes an engaging experience for all involved.
The setting of the tasting looked fantastic, with several tables dotted around the room, but one of the best parts (well, apart from the wine itself) were the placemats and information sheet. The placemats contained 6 red wine stained rings for each glass to contain the different wines, and the information sheet was a map highlighting the origin of the wines listed. Brilliant idea!
However, I wanted to bring your attention to another brilliant piece, which was the nose and taste picture guide to help participants place and describe the wines. One of Marco's talents is to encourage everyone to engage with the discussions and presentations of the wines. Excellent!
Now for the wine! For the tasting, we had:
1. Celler Can Blau, Blau 2015 - El Molar - Monsant D O - Catalunya
2. Dfj Vinhos, Portada Selection 2015 - Vila Chã De Ourique - Lisboa
(1 & 2 were swapped around on the night, but this is the order from the infosheet)
3. Bodegas Valdesil, Valderroa 2014 - Ourense - Valdeorras D O - Galicia
4. Bacalhôa, tinto da Anfora 2014 - Azeitão - Alentejano
5. Bodegas Beronia, Crianza 2013 - Ollauri - Tioja DOC
6. Symington Family, Altano 2014 - Gaia, Douro
I like a full-bodied taste to my red wine, with an earthy and smoky aroma, so my two favourites were the Can Blau 2015 and Altano 2014. Can Blau, in particular, has a fruity and spicy taste, and the oak leaves a sensation of roasted coffee on the palate; a great combination of taste. As for the Altano, it has that dark fruit taste, again with a hint of spice.
I wholeheartedly recommend these wine tastings, and if you are interested in attending a event with Marco, they will be monthly in Manchester, with the next one scheduled for 31st May 2017 at Tapeo & Wine, and if you are interested, tickets can be purchased on Eventbrite here. Further details will be available soon, but if you are interested, you can contact Marco through his website: http://marcodrinks.com/
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