This past week I had the pleasure of spending a few days in the beautiful town of Naples in southwest Florida with my colleague and friend Shayne Hebert. The purpose of our visit was work-related. (Actually we were filling in for a third colleague and friend Jim Greeley who – poor guy – had to go to Spain to taste great wines and wonderful food. It’s a tough job, and etc….) However, knowing Shayne as well as I do, I was also aware that at least a part of our visit would be dedicated to good food and wine. And so it was.

            The first evening we went to I M Tapas on 4^th Avenue North. We weren’t particularly hungry, but were looking for a light and delicious snack – quality rather than quantity. We asked if we could take a few tapas back to our hotel where we had a couple of bottles of wine waiting. Everyone at the restaurant was very kind and accommodating, and it wasn’t long before we were back at the hotel with a number of small boxes filled with culinary treasures.

            We began with a bottle of Carteres Tavel. This was only fitting because by Shayne’s count he and I drink about three-quarters of all the dry rosé that comes into Florida. And Tavel of course is one of France’s premier rosés – slightly weightier than many others but still extremely easy on the palette and a pleasure to imbibe. What a great aperitif it was and how well dry rosé pairs with so many foods!

            We opened each box as if it were a gift, which indeed it was. First – a variety of Spanish olives and marcona almonds in a sweet garlic sauté. The secret here – besides offering quality produce – was that the olives were slightly warmed. The marcona almonds – often called the queen of almonds – were rounder, softer, and slightly sweeter than other varieties – delicious.

            Next we had Barquarónes al ajillo – uncooked white anchovies seasoned with garlic. Anchovies are an extremely healthy food – packed with proteins and minerals that can reduce heart problems – but that wasn’t the reason we ordered two servings. We just knew they’d be mindblowingly tasty.

            With it we had some Jamon Serrano, 18 months cured and (my choice) Morcilla which is a delicious blood sausage. I was raised on blood sausage (aka black pudding or boudin noir) and was happy that Shayne was willing to try it and indeed enjoyed it. To finish we had asked our host to let us try an interesting and unusual Spanish cheese. What she offered truly fit the bill. Majorero (pronounced ma-ho-RER-o) is an unpasteurized white goat milk cheese from the island of Fuerteventura in the Canary Islands. It is a semi-firm cheese with milky, nutty flavors and a little spiciness as it is rubbed with pimento. Along with some fine conversation and a little more wine it was the conclusion of a very enjoyable evening.

            After another hard day’s toil Shayne and I decided to walk around town and find another restaurant for dinner. There are no shortages of fine restaurants in downtown Naples, but somehow we found our feet heading back to I M Tapas for another friendly greeting.

            We started with a glass of Castelo de Papa Godello which I fell in love with. Godello (pronounced go-DAY-o) is a white grape found in northwestern Spain, especially in the Valdeorras region of Galicia. It is also grown in Portugal under the name Gouveio. It has beautiful aromas of white peach, lemon and wild flowers and a pleasant minerality. The principal white grape from this area is Albariño which is beginning to have a true cult following now. Godello could be next. (Note to self: Don’t forget to mention to Brad, our Director of Wine, just how good Godello is!)

            Food-wise, we started with Isabel’s Salad – organic baby arugula tossed with Jamon Serrano, Majorero cheese, extra virgin olive oil, and raspberry compote. We followed this with artichoke hearts, stem in, filled with Serrano and Manchego in a garlic fume.

            Moving on to red wine I ordered a glass of G5 Vinos sin Ley, which was 100% Garnacha from 120 year old vines near Madrid. Vinos sin Ley means “wines without law”. They are the result of winemakers who want to make new wine that is value-oriented, driven by innovation, and using unconventional methods of winemaking. The result was a truly tasty surprise. Shayne meanwhile ordered a glass of Sao Coupage 2006 from Catalunya which also worked very well with the food. We had some Spanish sausage with a sweet relish, followed by D.O. Piquillo peppers stuffed with salt cod and drizzled with pepper and tomato coulis. Piquillo peppers are a variety of chili from northern Spain. They are sweet and spicy and high in fiber and Vitamin C. They also just melted in your mouth and as far as I’m concerned worked just as well as a dessert. We certainly didn’t need to follow it with anything, except perhaps more wine.

            Back at the hotel we opened a bottle of Chateau des Landes Lussac-St. Emilion 2009. A blend of 80% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 5% Cabernet Franc, it showed supple plum notes, excellent structure and ripe tannins and was certainly worth the $16.99 we paid for it.

Bill Stobbs, ABC Wine Supervisor