Thursday, June 14, 2007

Andalucia’s olive oil and wine

I was just online this morning, poking around a map of Spain. I stumbled across a coastal area on the south west, between Portugal and the mouth of the Mediterranean Sea called the Costa de la Luz. I didn’t pay much attention at first until I saw two things that caught my eye.

First the climate there is milder. Which is not really significant in itself but the milder temperatures do lend themselves to growing grapes. You may still think this information amounts to a hill of beans, but as I poked around further I realized why the author of the website chose to include such a small tid-bit of information. The unique climate in this region creates a unique and pleasing flavor to the wines and oils produced here.

I have heard in the past that Spain is known for its fine wines, but not being a connoisseur of wine myself, never paid much attention. I thought it was really interesting to note that not only is Spain known for wine, but is the third top producer in the world. The Jerez district by the Costa de la Luz is renown for sherry…there is even a nickname ‘the sherry triangle.’

I am much more interested in the other product abundant in the Costa de la Luz: olive oil. I cook almost exclusively with olive oil, because of the health benefits it offers. I am always looking for better tasting olive oils. I had no idea that Spanish olive oil was really a major market. Thank heaven for the internet. I now have a ton more options.

The author Pablo Conway has visited the Costa de la Luz on numerous where he has a property in the Andalucian village (pueblo) of Medina Sidonia

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