Ricardo's Blog

A Visit to Dominio De La Vega   It was another blisteringly hot afternoon, the last before predicted thunderstorms and rain, when I set off for my appointment at Dominio de La Vega. I have been  looking forward to this visit for some time, indeed since the winebloggers tasting in April in Utiel. Assistant enologist Raquel Moreno had invited me to visit after our discussion of the outstanding new

VII Certamen de Vinos de Venta del Moro.   Friday 6 August, a very hot day in Valencia with the relentless summer sun and humidity intensified by maritime cloud rolling in off the coast. However come 6 o´clock in the evening and it was time to drive the 100km inland from Valencia to the small wine growing town of Venta del Moro, also a centre for wine tourism and adventure holidays using the

Las Añadas de España Holds its First Minifair for Gourmet and Natural Health Foods.   Tuesday 27 July saw Las Añadas hold its first miniferia de ¨productos gourmet, ecologico y saludable¨. The fair was held within the stores tasting area.   A number of products were on show from different producers around the Valencia area.   Alimentos Funcionales de origen Tradicional, SL were showing their

Summer storms damage 10000 hectares of crops in Utiel-Requena.   The spectacular electrical storm and thunderstorms which lit up Valencia´s skies on Friday night have caused serious damage to the vineyards,olive and almond groves of Utiel-Requena ( damage now estimated at 3.

Where to eat around Valencia(1).   Valencia is a beautiful city and once you learn to avoid the tourist traps and chain eateries around the centre you soon start to find wine bars, tapas bars and good restaurants serving authentic Valencian and modern style food at very reasonable prices. This then is the first in a new strand of blogs aimed at finding good places to eat in and around Valencia

A Visit To Bodega Finca Collado.   Finca Collado sits in a valley, overlooked by the Sierra de Salinas and overlooking the small town of Salinas, 60km from the sea and Alicante. The Finca currently consists of about 120 hectares, mostly olive and almond trees but there are 13 hectares of vines. The wines produced are DO Alicante and the white is a 50% blend of Chardonnay and Moscatel.

Italian Wine Course in Utiel.   Last week I was fortunate enough to be invited to attend a course run by the Valencian Governments Tourism Ministry as an observer. The course , an introduction to and tasting of wines from around Italy was held in the Bodega Redonda, the HQ of the controlling body for the wines of Utiel-Requena, in Utiel. The course is aimed at broadening the knowledge of

DO Rueda Comes To Valencia!   Last night, 7 June saw DO Rueda sweep into Valencia to present their wines at the Valencia Palace Hotel. Last time the DO was here was April 2007 and was one of my first invitations from Verema to attend a major tasting. This time the motive was the 30th anniversary of the DO but who needs an excuse to taste these excellent white wines? Also by invitation of Verema

The DO Utiel-Requena wants your attendance on 26June!   Your attendance on the evening of 26 June is requested by the CRDO Utiel-Requena, governing body of the wine area. They have teamed up with ¨Social Security¨, a well known pop/rock band to film a video promoting the wine of the area.   The video will be shot in the square surrounding the CRDO HQ, the Bodega Redonda at 7.

Las Añadas de España- Tasting of Wines from the Current Range.   May ended on a high note with a public tasting of wines from the current range offered by Las Añadas. Situated near Xativa metro station in the centre of Valencia Las Añadas has a range of top quality wines and spirits from across the world, and a good representative range of wine from across Spain, including a good selection from