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What’s Verdejo wine?
Verdejo, to not be confused with verdelho, is a grape from northern Spain traditionally used to make fortified wines. However within the Seventies, one producer made a crisp trendy dry white from it – a type of Spanish Sancerre. It was a revelation, delivering an explosion of fragrant, floral, fruity and nutty flavours, and is now thought of certainly one of Spain’s finest whites.
Verdejo is assumed to have come from North Africa, introduced over by Moorish conquerors within the eleventh century. It’s grown throughout Castile-Leon in central Spain, nevertheless it’s notably well-known for the wines it produces in Rueda. Initially, the grape was used to make a sherry-esque wine, however the Rioja producer Marqués de Riscal pioneered the fashionable fashion within the Seventies. To unleash these massive fragrant flavours, the grapes are harvested at night time to take care of freshness, protected against oxygen contact, then fermented at a low temperature. A wine labelled Rueda Verdejo should be a least 85% Verdejo. It’s typically blended with Sauvignon Blanc – in actual fact, the flavour of the grape is sort of a extra unique Sauvignon Blanc – and typically with Macabeo (also called Viura), a reasonably impartial Spanish grape.
What does Verdejo wine style like?
Verdejo has a grassy natural flavour not not like Sauvignon Blanc, however typically with notes of satsuma, lemon, fennel and almonds, and infrequently, a pronounced acidity. The old-school fortified fashion is a bit like sherry, however some producers at the moment are ageing it in oak barrels and stirring lees (the useless yeast cells), which builds texture and develops flavours of nuts and typically honeysuckle. Younger, crisp Verdejo tastes finest chilly, whereas richer examples must be served just a little hotter.
What dishes go effectively with Verdejo wine?
Verdejo pairs effectively with goat’s cheese, tomato and shellfish, and people massive fragrant sorts are an amazing companion for Vietnamese and Thai meals. The excessive acidity matches effectively with battered fish, because it cuts by means of the fats. Richer examples are an amazing substitute for white Burgundy, and go effectively with buttery dishes and poultry.
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