Spanish Degustation Dinner

Think Spanish wine and, chances are, you're not going to think very long. In New Zealand, we usually drink wine from New Zealand and Australia. In South Africa, we drink South Africa, French and Australian. In Poland, we drink vodka.

And yet, Spain is the third largest wine producer in the world, after France and Italy. Did you know that? I didn't. Just one of the many things I learnt at last night's dinner, a lavish 6-course affair with Spain's cooking, matched with Spanish wine.

My favourite dish was probably a goat cheese croquette with Iberico de Bellota ham (made from free-ranging black pigs fed on a diet of acorns). I liked the Chardonnay matched with it, but my favourite wine of the evening was Papa Luna Garnacha / Shiraz. There's just something about Shiraz, no matter where it's made...

All of this at our local restaurant, an easy walk from the house. Next time, we'll leave the car at home, even if it rains. Five small glasses of wine may not put me over the legal driving limit, but I certainly felt the buzz!