Spanish Cuisine and Wine

Our upcoming Spanish Wine dinner over Valentine’s Day weekend has finally inspired me to sit back down in front of the computer and write another post.

I have very fond memories of Spain. My husband and I went on holiday 6 years ago starting in Malaga in the Costa del Sol and wound our way up through Andalucía to Alicante and eventually on to Madrid on a self-guided driving tour through the back-roads of the region. We traveled 600 miles moving through tiny towns on an admittedly comedic navigational journey often with only our tiny guidebook map. Needless to say there was lots of last minute finger pointing and excited exclamations of “turn NOW!”

We stayed in coastal towns and although we were not focused on sampling the local wines as I was waddling with the expected arrival of our first child, the trip did leave a lasting impression with regards to the local cultures and cuisine of Southern Spain. First and foremost, the people we encountered were kind, welcoming and extremely friendly moving through their days with an effortless sense of style and seeming to savor every moment that passed. Their cuisine focused on fresh ingredients native to the area often with uncomplicated preparations celebrating one of my new favorite ideas: “the brilliance of simplicity.”

I have had the opportunity now to taste many Spanish wines and have become a true fan. There is an attention to detail and unpretentious desire to communicate the environmental qualities of the regions and the grapes native to that specific place that make these wines irresistible. Delicious, food-friendly, and elegant are words that often come to my mind when tasting Spanish wines.

It was this combination of excellent wines, simple yet delicious food perfect for pairing, and the undeniable passion of the Spanish people that led me to create the Valentine's Wine Dinner. Check back in the coming days to read more about the regional cuisines we will be serving and the wines that will be paired together to create a meal that hopefully will leave you celebrating “the brilliance of simplicity” too.

Here is a link to the menu to tempt you! http://theflyinghorse.com/uploaded/Flying_Horse_Spanish_Wine_Dinner_Menu.pdf