Tempranillo and Paella

Well, the wine for review on Saturday was corked! Very unfortunate since I was really looking forward to it. Instead I opened up a 2001 Gundlach Bundshu Rhinefarm Tempranillo. This wine was subdued in its aroma. There was some light blueberry aromas with overtones of oak-not heavy handed oak. The wine didn't hold up to the Paella spice and would have been better with a beef dish with herbs. A younger and fruitier wine would have been a better match, but you don't always know until you try it. Then again I could have made the Paella not so spicy..................nahhh! I do recommend trying the G-B Temp- something that they have been producing on a regular basis.

On another note, it is that time of the year again for wine competitions. There is a new competition with a focus on women- Wines Women Want. As a founding member I am giving it a go this year. Then there is the San Francisco Chronicle Tasting coming up about the same time. I always wonder if the awards really mean anything to wine consumers, but it does lend credibility to the wines and those of us that make them. Still waiting for a domestic Tempranillo only competition. Maybe something that another organization I belong to, TAPAS (http://www.tapasociety.org/) may be able to get going one day!

Well, back to the cellar, checking on the wines that are resting after this hectic hectic year-
Cheers to good food, good friends, and good wine- The Mustang Winemaker