Spain

Food and wine, recipes and cooking methods from Spain.

Garlic shrimp

Gambas al ajillo are very popular as tapas. The shrimp used for this recipe should not be excessively large. The kind of chili used for this in Spain is known as guindilla, a Spanish hot red chili of the thin and long varieties, usually dried.

The wine region of Jerez

Wine is produced in many areas of Spain. The hot sun and Mediterranean breezes make for some stellar Palomino grapes. But the capital of one type - sherry - has to be assigned to Jerez de la Frontera, a city in the Cadiz section of Andalucia. The very name means 'sherry', a derivative of the Arabic word for this sweet nectar.

Wine in Spain, the south

These robust, strong very sweet wines evolved into the three main varieties, sherry, Montilla and Malaga wines, that are still made in the region. The scorching Andalucian heat makes most grapes to over-ripen, but not in the cooler areas at higher altitudes. Some states are growing grapes and producing some impressive non fortified wines, both reds and whites, in the Andalucian heights.

Wine in Spain

Wine in Spain is ancient history, as Spain is the second oldest wine producing country in Western Europe. It also has the largest vine area of any country in the world, but many of them are in very dry and low producing areas so the Spanish wine output comes only in third place.

Sangria

Sangría can be prepared with cheap wine and taste good, but in sangrías as in everything, quatily pays off. You can create an astounding drink just by using decent quality wine.

Spain