Charlie Arturaola travels the world exalting the wines of La Mancha. But unlike Don Quixote, the main character in the novel by Miguel de Cervantes, his impressions of Spain’s dry and vast Castilla-La Mancha region are real.“La Mancha is not only Spain’s largest winegrowing regions, but it is one of the largest winegrowing regions in the world,” Arturaola told a group of wine journalists,sommeliers and members of the wine industry.The world famous sommelier and wine educator wrapped up a nationwide tour with a stop in Dallas recently. Accompanied by 13 prize-winning family-owned wineries from La Mancha, Arturaola presented the facts about this emerging wine region in a wine tasting seminar titled “Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow: The 3 Faces of La Mancha.”“La Mancha Denominacion de Origen D.O. has a long history of growing wines that dates back to the Romans. Of course the Arabs were there. In fact,La Mancha came from the “al-mancha” which means dry lands in Arabic. But when Romans came,you know, where there were Romans there had to be wine,” said Arturaola.The first of seven wines tasted was a 2010 cherry red 100-percent Tempranillo. A muscular, full-bodied wine, the Bodegas Lopez Mercier was earthy but fruity on the nose.Bodegas Lopez Mercier, one of 280 wineries in La Mancha, produces this wine at the extraordinary retail price of $6.75 a bottle. This wine is “joven,” meaning young in Spanish, with an alcohol content of 13 percent.With purple highlights, this bright red Tempranillo was round and balanced. It had a long, pleasant finish. Interestingly, this wine had no sign of oak because of short maceration.The second wine tasted was a 2008 Crianza Tempranillo from Bodegas Casa Antonete. The classic purple red had earthy notes characteristic of La Mancha region. Aromas ran the gamut of dark cherries, such as blackberries, blueberries and currants.Suggested food pairings are Queso Manchego, La Mancha’s famous cheese, Pisto Manchego, braised mixed vegetables and Jamon Serrano, Spain’s exquisite ham.This rich, ruby red, with 14 percent alcohol content, retails for $8.99 a bottle. A product of mature vines, the Casa Antonete is available at Dallas-area liquor stores.“This wine is from 35 to 45-year-old vineyards. Crianza means it’s been aged 12 months in a bottle. It’s also been aged in American oak barrels. It’s not a Tempranillo, it’s a Cencibel,” said Arturaola, adding that the Tempranillo grape is called Cencibel in La Mancha.Bodegas Parra Jimenez 2008 Crianza, the third red wine featured, is a creamy organic with exhilarating aromas of rich wood, charcoal, dark chocolate and cherries. Sulfites are not usually added to these wines, except in the winery if necessary.This Crianza was aged 12 months in French oak and 12 months in the bottle. It is made with grapes picked later than those used to make young Tempranillo reds. The process means a soft- tannin wine. Parra Jimenez Crianza retails for about $10.99.“I’ve been asked why the wines of La Mancha Denominacion de Origen wines are so complex. And unless you taste them, you don’t know. The reason for their very complex nature is what I’ve been explaining on this tour,” said Arturaola, who has been tasting wines professionally for more than 30 years.“La Mancha is an hour south of Madrid. It’s an area of extreme climates. In the winter it’s very cold and in the summer it’s very hot. Annual rainfall is 12 to 16 inches. We have a lot of sunlight. The soil varies so much that we can grow a wide variety of grapes in this region,” he said.In fact, there are a number of grape varieties that do well in La Mancha. Some of those he named are Malbec, Torrontes, Garnacha, Cencibel (Tempranillo) Merlot and myriad other varieties. Consequently, La Mancha is positioning itself as the next wine region to watch.Casa Gualda’s 2009 Tempranillo is an award-winning red wine blend of Cencibel, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Considered a joven or young wine, this Tempranillo’s aromas of raspberry, licorice and tobacco dominate.Spice and vanilla notes combine to give this Casa Gualda a high tannin structure. It is strong and consuming on the palate. It has an alcohol content of 13 percent and retails for $9.99.The last of the red wine tastings was a 2008 Allozo 927 from Bodegas Centro Espanoles S.A. This red blend of 33 percent equal parts of Tempranillo, Merlot and Syrah is a dark cherry with purple highlights.Intense aromas of ripe dark fruit result in complex notes of blackberries, blue-berries, chocolate and the like. Soft and meaty on the palate, Allozo 927 was the most expensive wine tasted, retailing for $29.99.“Wine Number 927 is what I call the bull of the red wines we’ve tasted. Today in America the trend is fruit-forward. And this wine is that and more,” he said.“It reflects the altitude of the vineyards. It is a traditional wine, which means a little bit of oak and aged 18 months,” said Arturaola, the subject of a documentary film titled “The Way of Wine,” (El Camino del Vino) that won an award in 2010.One reason Arturaola began the wine tasting seminar with red wines, is because La Mancha was once known more for mediocre white wines. But all that has changed for the better.“If you go to La Mancha, you will see that everybody makes wine with such a passion. So in the last five years, it has made great strides in technology and the way it makes wine,” he said.Nevertheless, approximately 80 percent of La Mancha’s winegrowing region is covered with the Airen grape variety. The grape’s main asset, according to Arturaola, is its acidity.“I’m not your typical wine drinker. I’ve been pushing the Airen, which is typical of La Mancha, for years. Maybe it’s too acidy for some. But I think the virtue of Airen is its acidity.That said, the two final wines tasted were refreshingly light whites. A 2010 Los Galanes from Santa Catalina, one of the largest cooperatives in the region, is a straw-colored wine with shades of green.Made with 100 percent Airen, this wine has generous citrus notes, including palate-pleasing lemon and lime. Floral and fresh tasting, the Los Galanes is more on the nose than on the palate.Pairing suggestions include appetizers, rich dishes, white meats and shellfish. With an alcohol content of 12.5 percent, the Los Galanes retails for $7.99La Villa Real 2010 Macabeo from Bodegas La Remediadora is an intense yellow-green white. On the nose it’s like a breath of spring with aromas of pineapple, green apple, banana and herbs.Fruit-driven with a touch of Sauvignon Blanc, Arturaola said his dry white has an excellent chance of taking the world by storm. With an alcohol content of 12.5 percent, La Villa Real Macabeo retails for $8.99.“Again, the temperature and soil varies so much in this region that this is what makes these wines so complex. There is so much variety in this wonderful region, that I hope you come and visit,” said Arturaola.For more information on the wine region,go to www.lamanchawines.com For more information on Arturaola’s wine programs go to: www.charliewines.com
