Can’t Get Enough!

Have you ever come across a food or drink that you couldn’t get enough of? You can’t stop thinking about how great it is, and now you want to fill your cabinets and/or refrigerator with it? I have recently come across Barcelino wine and I want a cellar full of it. I’m not a wine connoisseur, but I know what I like ... and I already have a few bottles for my bottle tree.

Barcelino Criado en Barrica 2010 is a Spanish wine made in the Catalunya region. Barcelona is the capital of Catalonia and the central location for the Catalan wine industry. Lucky for me, my in-laws live in Spain and are a ½ hour from the Mediterranean Sea and about 2-1/2 hours from Barcelona. After several visits there, I think I appreciate the wine more knowing where the grapes are grown. With the beauty of the Pyrenees Mountains, the Mediterranean Sea, and the lifestyle of the Catalan people, it’s not a surprise such a great wine was produced in this region.

I hadn’t come across this wine prior to my first visit to Barcelona. The wonderful attraction and beauty of Barcelona captured my attention. I love this wine, which has a burst of fruits and tapers off into a soft finish. The wine was a surprise much like its capital. The first time we walked through the Gothic quarters of Barcelona, we came upon Catalan dancing outside a church. We had no idea they were there until we went up the steps of the church. I love witnessing local traditions and/or activities.

Another wonderful thing about finding this wine in Europe is the price; I believe we pay around $3.99 Euros. Wine and beer are not that expensive in Germany, except when you’re eating out. I searched for Barcelino Criado en Barrica 2010 in the U.S. but I couldn’t find it. Maybe I didn’t search correctly because it would be a shame not to share this with the world.

What have you fallen in love with and just can’t get enough of?

Spain and wine,

Bea

A Wine with my Rhein, Please!

This past weekend, we needed to go to the U.S. Embassy in Frankfort so we decided to take a longer way home through the Middle Rhein Valley. We got up early and drove three hours for our morning appointment. Afterwards, we took a route along the Rhein and I couldn’t believe the luck of the day we had in store for us. The weather was gorgeous, we came across some great places AND enjoyed a glass of wine in this wine valley. The Rhein Valley is famous for wine, so we took advantage of it.

The first place we stopped at was Bingen—“ …the starting point for the Via Ausonia, a Roman military road” linking the town with Trier. It’s also known for the story of the Mouse Tower. In short, the story is about a cruel ruler who treated his people poorly and killed many of them by locking them in a barn and burning it down. Supposedly he commented about hearing the mice squeak. When he returned to his palace, he was plagued by mice who caught him and ate him alive. Let this be a lesson to us all—be nice.

Unfortunately, I didn’t know much about Bingen to get a picture of the tower, but here is a picture of a castle up on the hill.

Here are a few pictures that got me shaking my head and laughing. The first picture is of a church I took as we were driving toward it. The second one is the van that’s right in front of the church that has “Unfucking-Glaublich (believable)” on the side of it.

We didn’t stay in Bingen long and drove up the Rhein until we came across this adorable German town called Bacharach. Loved it! Here is the plaque that was on the castle wall. I interpreted it underneath through Google translation, so it might not be totally right.

You city of magic and magician

You city Brentano and the Loreley

You rabbi city, you ghetto town

You catch the dream, distant gaze

In nets made of mud, stone and forget

And tie in slate

The root of the vine

Here are some pictures by the Rhein and when we walked into town.

This is the oldest house in Bacharach, built in 1420.

We enjoyed a nice glass of wine at this restaurant.

This was a circle area that had grapes hanging from wires in the middle of the street.

These are the ruins of a church up on the hill. It was built in 1280. I took several pictures of it, but this one is the best. There is a long story behind this church, but I’ll leave that out. 

We came across another area in town that was set around a stream. I went a bit crazy with the pictures.

These pictures were taken overlooking the town of Bacharach. We walked up to the church ruins to get a better view.

I took these when we walked down into town.

Where there’s no Freedom There’s no Happiness

We left Bacharach and headed to Koblenz. On the way, I took a picture of this castle on an island and then of a town and castle on the other side of the Rhein.

My last picture is from Koblenz. These are part of the Berlin Wall.

I hope you enjoyed some wine while taking this trip with me. Have a great rest of week!

Rhein Valley and Wine,

Bea