Viva Espania!
Could this have been THE summer of Spain? I say “SI!”
Before I left for the B & W Wines’ Spain Trip of 2008, I admit I was pumped, but I had no idea how amazing an experience it would turn out to be. Here it goes:
Six esteemed wine lovers left Pearson International on a evening flight for a whirlwind tour of the remarkable wines of Spain: Arron Barberian, Mehron Halitsky, James Drummond, Anthony Dumas, Tom Skrela, and of course myself, met by Toronto’s very own ambassador to Spanish wine (and true renaissance man) Fernando Garcia.
At the Airport
Our great adventure began on a sizzling hot July day in Madrid…and I do mean HOT! We made our way from the airport to the gorgeous old city of Toledo. What an incredible introduction to Spain that was!
As we wandered down the crowded cobblestone streets with all its old-world charm, you could just imagine what it must have been like to be here five-hundred years ago.
Toledo
After our tour of the old city, our next stop was the first winery of the trip, Aldofo wines. The wines were outstanding (we are getting 15 cases!) and the restaurant and cellar were classic old school – every bottle in the cellar was wrapped in plastic.
The Aldolfo cellar
After touring their amazing cellars, we sat down for our lunch that was not to be believed.
Both the restaurant and winery are a true family affair, with Aldofo’s oldest son helping out in the kitchen. The food was truly outstanding. I even got to try caviar made from snails and white strawberries!
Lunch....mmmmmm
As tough as it might have been to top that incredible lunch we had, we somehow managed to crank it up a notch for the second half of our day. We were invited back to Aldofo’s to his castle that was not to be believed. Unfortunately it was being rented out that day for a wedding, so we had to behave ourselves somewhat, but that didn’t stop us from enjoying great wine and cigars in the grandeur of castle with beautiful rolling hills as our backdrop.
Hanging at Aldolfo's Castle
Even better, that night was the final match of the Euro cup football match….and for those of you that don’t keep track…yes SPAIN WON! How do you top an experience like that?!?
Celebrating in the streets after a HUGE victory
This, my friends was day one. It was difficult to imagine how the rest of the trip could possibly get better than that, eating and drinking like kings……but of course, it did!