Our Picks for #NationalDrinkWineDay!
Today might just be our favorite holiday of them all, National Drink Wine Day.
In celebration, we asked two of our Wine Stewards, Angela Demmel in Greenwich and Janeen Jason in Inman Park, their favorite Barcelona Wine Bar wines, as well as what they drink outside of work and where they recommend shopping for great selections locally.
“Asking a sommelier what their favorite wine is is like asking a parent who their favorite child is. It’s extremely difficult to choose, if not impossible. But on Barcelona’s wine list there are two bottles that I will always love: Echeverria Limited Edition Cabernet Sauvignon from the Central Valley, Chile, and Blanco Nieva Verdejo.
What I love most about the reds from Chile is the distinct peppery note you get that makes them stand out, especially in the Cabernets and Carmenee by the glass. I love helping guests discover this wine for the first time, and they probably think I’m crazy for how excited I get when I talk about it. (Barcelona is good at finding wine stewards and bringing out their inner wine geek!)
Angela Demmel
The Echeverria has a perfect balance of dark fruit, chocolate, & pepper tones that fill your palate and leave a nice long finish. It’s full bodied but not too rich and strong yet elegant.
The moment you put your nose to a glass of Blanco Nieva Verdejo, you get intense aromatics of candied green apple, lime & a beautiful grassy note. If you close your eyes, you can imagine yourself in a grassy field on a breezy summer day. Perhaps in a green apple orchard. It’s crisp, full of flavor and leaves your mouth watering. Perfectly enjoyed on its own or with a nice grilled fish, like the mahi mahi a la plancha. It’s a great wine to have a stash of at home for a ladies night or a summer BBQ.
Over the last few months, I’ve spent most of my free time outside of Barcelona working at a lovely little wine shop on East Elm Street called Putnam and Vine. The owner, David Johnson, took over what was a French wine shop and expanded the selection of wines from the New World as well as craft liquors and beers. It’s been so beneficial for my studies to work at the shop; I get to taste all types of wine on a daily basis and it’s great getting to know more people in the community and collaborating with the restaurant. We plan to do many joint dinners and tastings! We just brought in a new Spanish wine that I am absolutely in love with. It’s called Louro, and it’s a Godello from Valdeorras. It smells like orange blossoms and sugar cookies, and it’s creamy and full of apricot fruit on the palate. It’s a really cool wine to try for people that tend to like Chardonnay. It’s quite unique and special, and a very pretty wine. I’m hooked. We actually carry its big brother, As Sortes, at the restaurant. Rafael Palacios has proven to be the God of Godello!
Whether you’re going out for dinner at or picking up a bottle for a night in, enjoy National Drink Wine Day!”
Janeen Jason
“My two favorite wines on the Barcelona wine list are the Can Rafols Gran Caus 2005 and the Pazo Senorans Albariño 2014. The Gran Caus is a Bordeaux style blend made in Penedés and has been aging on bottle for 8yrs. It transforms in the glass after every sip and is fun to drink. The new vintage of Pazo is great with food. It smells like mango, banana skin, and white flowers, with lots of mineral on the palate.
Outside of our menu, there’s a fun Gamay grown in Loire Valley called La Boutanche. Its funky and carbonic with a crayon purple color. The label has a fish wearing a varsity jacket, I love it. If I’m not buying wine at our shop, VinoTeca, I shop at Ansley Wine Merchants. It’s close by and the staff is super friendly. They always have a few funky wines in stock.”
