April Meeting

Rueda and Riberia de Duoro  Sarah Rowland 

This is the first time we have had a tasting of the wines of these two well known wine regions of Spain. Rueda is known for its white wines – mainly Verdecho, and Ribera del Duero for its reds. 95% of the grapes grown in the latter are Tempranillo so we can look forward to a feast of Spain’s premier variety. Rueda is a little visited farming region famous for its sheep cheeses and of course the Verdejo grape - a very old grape that was supposedly brought into the region over 1,000 years ago before the Moorish rule of Iberia. Ribera del Duero was named Wine Region of the Year 2012 by the Wine Enthusiast Magazine, its vineyards stretch along the Duero River (the upstream part of the Douro in Portugal) and in one critic’s view its wines underscore the purest expression of Tempranillo.

Sarah, who lives nearby in Hindhead, is highly rated by Selborne Wine Society and is the author of The Periodic Table of Wine which arranges 127 wines by their essential colour, aroma and flavour properties. She trained as an actuary (so it really does drive people to drink!) before seeing the light and training at Leiths School of Food and Wine. She now works freelance, hosting wine tastings, acting as an associate judge for the International Wine and Spirit Competition, an examiner for the Wine Spirit Education Trust as well writing books.

We look forward to welcoming Sarah and exploring two regions of Spain – both for the first time.