Spanish Rioja is quickly gaining popularity here in the United States. This past week I went to my favorite wine bar Riposo 46 located on 9th Avenue at 46th Street. On every visit I choose a Rioja since these bottles are extremely well priced and you are guaranteed a wine with amazing flavor. This night we selected El Coto Rioja 2005. This red is made with 100% tempranillo grapes which create wine that has a higher acidity and mild tannins. It’s medium bodied with cherry and raspberry flavors and light oak. Riposo 46 has the best cheeses, pizzas, and olives to go along with all the great wines they feature. The El Coto Rioja went extremely well with the mixed olives served warm in oil and garlic and the vegetarian flatbread pizza made even more delicious by adding prosciutto on top-not so vegetarian anymore! A great table wine and the price can’t be beat at under $40 per bottle at the wine bar.
Later in the week while perusing the aisles of my local wine store I came across a white Rioja. Normally sticking to reds but both of us being more in the mood for white we decided to see how the white version would compare to the red we drank earlier in the week. We purchased a bottle of Marqués de Cáceres 2007. The white version was equally flavorful. Light mineral notes accompanied by flavors of ripe melon, apple, and pepper. A great wine to pair with seafood and bargain priced at under $12 at retail.
Last week I had the pleasure of visiting 
I recently went on a 4 day boat trip up the Hudson River with my boyfriend. Turns out it was the last good boating weekend we would have for the season. As with all our boat trips we have to provision and make sure enough bottles of wine are on board to get us through the trip. One of the selections that I brought along was
The best way for anybody to learn about wine is to try many different types whether through your own purchases or by attending tastings to figure out what you like and dislike. Over the past few years I have stayed away from South African reds. I was not impressed with those that I had tasted as I found them to be overpowering and have a heavy tobacco flavor. I am all for strong reds but this was just too much for me. At a tasting I attended I saw that we would be trying 7 different red wines that afternoon, 3 of which were from South Africa. Needless to say I was not a happy camper and was ready to write them all off. To my surprise this was not the case at all. Two of these wines changed my opinion and have taught me a valuable wine lesson-try it even if you think you may not like it. 
There is no better way to spend an evening for me than to cook a hearty meal and uncork a mysterious new bottle of wine. While making tortellini with vodka sauce my boyfriend selected 
