| Spain "The Sipping Point" - edited by Darryl Beeson | | | | By: Darryl Beeson |  Page 1 of 2 next >> |
Where are top chefs and cooking schools looking to find new inspiration, from wine to food? Spain. This past Fall, two of the most prestigious cooking schools in the U.S., the French Culinary Institute (now the International Culinary Center) in New York City, and the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone in Napa, CA, dedicated major symposiums on Spanish wine and food for students, chefs, media and culinary educators. Spain's most innovative chefs and winemakers flew in to conduct detailed workshops, inspiring wine tastings, and dramatic cooking demonstrations. Both events drew capacity audiences.
Michael Green, wine and spirits consultant for Gourmet Magazine and a frequent lecturer on wine concludes that Spanish wines have reached, what he calls, "the sipping point."
"Spanish wines are no longer in the back corner of a wine shop, or on the last page of a restaurant wine list. They are taking front and center," said Green. "Today Spanish wines can be found in restaurants serving Asian, Indian, French and contemporary American food. Spanish wines continue to deliver excellent value, and now even more variety, as shipments from up and coming wine regions of Spain make their way to restaurant and retailers throughout the U.S."
The U.S. Department of Commerce reported that exports of Spanish wines to the U.S. have increased 17% (as of August 31, 2006), and total imports of Spanish wines have increased 100% since 2000.
"While Spanish wines are increasingly "hot" in the U.S., the rise in popularity has not happened overnight ," says Katrin Naelapaa, director of Wines from Spain, a division of the Trade Commission of Spain in New York City. "The process has been evolutionary with most of these developments taking place over the last two decades."
The third largest wine producing country in the world, Spain has been producing wine since 300 B.C. Historically, Spanish wines were a bit too "old world" meaning aged for long periods of time, perhaps in a tired, so-called traditional style.
"While these wines have always been appreciated by the wine cognoscenti, they are just the tip of the iceberg in terms of where Spanish wines are today," said Naelapaa. "In the late 20th century, a new, young and very talented generation of winemakers started experimenting with modern wine making techniques and cultivating very old varieties of Spanish grapes. These new styles of Spanish wines were full of flavor and fruit, and they added a new depth and dimension to Spain's wine culture. Regions like Toro, Priorat and Bierzo have now become as fashionable for their fragrant red wines, as their more famous cousins, Rioja and Ribera del Duero."
Another development, according to Naelapaa, is the small and influential group of wine importers who have dedicated all or a major portion of their portfolios to carrying quality Spanish wines from various regions.
"You also can't discount the fact that the most famous chef in the world, Ferran Adrią of El Bulli, is from Spain," added wine consultant Michael Green. Spain has become a mecca for those who travel to eat. U.S. chefs have been flocking to Spain to seek culinary inspiration from chefs like Adrią, Juan Mari Arzak, the father of modern Spanish cuisine, and Paco Torreblanca, the ground-breaking pastry chef. The results here in the U.S. are more Spanish-inspired menus, from tapas restaurants to the use of Spanish cooking techniques and ingredients, including piquillo peppers, sherry wine vinegar, Spanish olives, and white anchovies.
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