Exploring Portuguese & Mexican Wines w/ NOSSA Imports (Part 2)

Ep 85

Are you ready to go beyond wine from Spain, France, and the United States? 

Dale Ott, sommelier turned importer of Mexican and Portuguese wines, is back on the podcast and she is giving us a deep dive into Mexican and Portuguese wines.

Dale is diving into the often overlooked but incredibly fascinating worlds of Mexican and Portuguese wines. She shares how Portuguese wines are reviving ancient winemaking traditions and how regions like Northern Baja and Valle de Parras are overcoming infrastructural challenges to produce exquisite, sustainably-grown wines. 

And Dales shares one of her go to producers in Mexico - JC Bravo, where they dry-farm grapes and are making waves with their sustainable practice and exquisite wines.

So, if you are ready to jump into these lesser known wine regions from Portugal and Mexico and discover ancient traditions, complex flavors, and hidden treasures from regions that are capturing international attention, then this episode is for you!

If you missed part 1 of my conversation with Dale, go back to episode 84 where we talk about the intricacies of importing Mexican and Portuguese wines, the dynamic factors impacting wine prices, the detailed journey from vineyard to your table, and the passionate efforts behind NOSSA imports. 

Episode Highlights:

• Portuguese wine regions and characteristics

• Quality and affordability of Portuguese wines

• Vino Verde’s acidity and age-improvement potential

• History of Mexican wine

• Varieties of Mexican wine

• Modern growth and experimentation in the Mexican wine industry

• Industry challenges and infrastructure in Mexico

• Future concerns for Mexican wine

• JC Bravo - dry-farmed grapes and native yeast fermentation

• JJ Amargito - Biodynamic and organic production

Transcript

0:09

Interested in learning about wine, but not sure where to start? You're in the right place. Welcome to the Cork and Fizz Guide to Wine Podcast. I'm your host, Haley Bullman, and I'm so glad you're here. I'm a wine enthusiast turned wine educator and founder of the Seattle based wine tasting business, Cork and Fizz. It is my goal to build your confidence in wine by making it approachable and lots of fun. You can expect to learn everything from how to describe your favorite wine to what to pair with dinner tonight and so much more. Whether you're a casual wine sipper or a total cork dork like myself, this podcast is for you. So grab yourself a glass and let's dive in. Hello, and welcome back to the cork and fizz guide to wine podcast. Today, you'll be hearing the second part of my interview with Dale Ott, a sommelier turned importer who specializes in Mexican and Portuguese wine. Now, if you haven't heard part 1, I highly recommend pausing this episode and going back and listening to episode 84 first. Then you can get the little double feature and you don't have to wait for anything in between. All right. Let's dive in. So I'm gonna this next part, I'm gonna be a little selfish because I know a little bit about Portuguese wine. I know next to nothing about Mexican wine, and you have so much knowledge. So I wanna take advantage of that and talk a little bit about Mexican wine. So what can you tell us about it? Any whether it be, like, where, you know, where do the wines come from in Mexico? What kind of wine are they making? What does the industry look like right now? I'd love a little crash course on Mexican wine. Yeah. So I think the the best way to answer that would be to give the sort of a brief history of what the production has been and sort of why the layout is the way that it is now. Really, we see the beginnings of wine production in Mexico in the early 1500 with the repartemiento. So this was when Spain was coming over and colonizing the country and colonizing the area and in creating new Spain. Mexico at the time was the most populous center on earth. So there were 25,000,000 people living in Mexico, and this is where this all started. At this time, Spain was very profoundly attached to the idea of humor theory. So balancing of their humors and regarding their identity, in order to be Spanish, white, and Christian, they had to drink wine, eat olive oil, and eat bread made from wheat. So again, very hard science. And so when when Spain came in and and colonized this area, for every conquistador that was in charge of a certain part of a certain area of land, they were required to plant a 100 grapevines for every indigenous person that they were in charge of. So this took off and it took off in a big way. This really started in central Mexico in what's called the Valle de Independencia. So this is around Guanajuato. This is sort of north of Mexico City. Queretaro is involved in this as well. And speed up, to the end of that century. And wine production in Mexico was booming. And it was so successful, in fact, that it made a lot of the Spanish ruling class pretty upset because it was cutting into Spanish exports. So after all this time and after sort of this this production of vidus vinifera specifically starting in in Mexico, King Philip the second, who we're not a huge fan of, mandated that every vine that wasn't being used for religious purposes be ripped out and destroyed. So we have this very old history, and then we also have this sort of century plus year gap in the middle until we come to the missionaries that began to create the the mission system in the late 1700. So at this time, you have this is when we're starting to look at the West Coast, and we're starting to look at Northern Baja, which right now is where about 80% of Mexico's total wine comes from. These Dominican missionaries mostly were establishing missions and vineyards up the west coast of California, starting in Baja, Baja, California, and moving their way up because at this time, obviously this wasn't Mexico and the United States. And really these people were the first people ever to bring Vitas vinifera wine production to what is now the state of California to what is now the US. So another piece of this is that Mexico brought wine production to us. This is our this is our beginnings. This is our past as well in the United States. At this point, again, most of that wine production in Mexico is happening in Northern Baja where a lot of those missionary systems were. Our producer, Bodegas de Santa Tomas, is the oldest vineyard and winery in Baja. Their their vineyards were established in 17/91. It's one of the oldest in North America, as a matter of fact. We do see a lot of wine production in Central Mexico as well as as well as the other border states. So Valle de Parras in Coahuila is the oldest vineyard and winery in North America. They were established in the late 1500 and still are are operating and in business. We see, again, a lot of wine production in in what was that Valle de Independencia. So in Queretaro Guanajuato, Hidalgo, we have we see very mountainous wines from, from central Mexico. We don't see much in the south that that crosses that humidity line and gets into jungle and grapes, grapes don't like jungle. So most of it is sort of middle, middle and up. Regarding what kinds of wines are being made, you know, most of what we see and most of what has really taken root, pun intended, is, is what the missionaries had in their pockets. So we see a lot of Spanish grapes. We see a fair smattering of Italian grapes. And in the last 100 years, specifically in Baja, given that it's such an international state, we do see a lot of international varietals. We see a lot of French. We see some Swiss varietals. We see I mean, kind of you name it and it's and people are working with it to see what it's gonna do. You know? So so that it's it's really fun right now. Like I said, it's it's this combination of this deep history and this deep antiquity while you also don't have the regulatory side of Appalachians happening. So people can figure out what's gonna work in modern era in these places, given that there are no native vidus vinifera grapes from Mexico. So it's crackling with energy. There's there's a lot of young people that are sort of getting the torch passed to them from their parents that really started this modern renaissance since about 30 years ago. And, yeah, it is growing very quickly. Northern Baja alone has 280 commercially operating vineyards and wineries at this point, and a lot of tourism infrastructure. It's it's quite a it's quite a destination. So, yeah, lots of lots of creativity, and and we're excited to see where all the chips fall. Yeah. That's so fun. And I know you talked about too. You're like, there are no, like, designated areas. Like, you wouldn't find, like, in in in America, we have ABAs, or in other countries, you know, they have, like, these designated regions. And we don't have those yet in Mexico, but you said it sounds like it's something that is it, like, the producers working together, government bodies, or who do you see kinda, like, leading that charge to get those designated areas in Mexico? I would definitely say it will be the producers. Unfortunately, one of the the complications of Mexican wine is the government has been very slow to move towards protecting, a lot of the resources that go into the wine regions. And we have seen a fair amount of prioritizing tourism infrastructure around the thing that the tourists are there for, which is a problem. You know, this is a high desert and it's it is fairly arid. Water is really, really important, and water regulations are not happening at all in Northern Baja. So this is something that we we are a little bit worried about the future of it. And because of this, the only vineyards that we typically work with in Mexico are dry farmed, specifically in Baja. At least dry farmed to a portion, so meaning that they only receive rainwater as irrigation. The vines are old enough to where their the roots have been able to to grow deep enough to reach the water table. There's not a lot of dry farming in Mexico, given in in this part of Mexico, given how recent this renaissance has been, it takes a long time for for vines to establish themselves in that fashion. But that is because of that, that has been a really interesting trend in Mexican winemaking and that sustainability is built in, not necessarily because it's cool or or, you know, because they're really aiming towards the market to make sure that they have that bullet point. It's because of necessity. Most of the facilities in in Northern Baja are gravity fed. They're not using additional power. A lot of them are doing rainwater catchment and and dry farming or or trying to get themselves to that point. So, yeah, it's it's interesting and the future is in flux, and we we are concerned. It's not gonna go anywhere, but I think it it does have the potential to drastically change if if the government doesn't decide to protect this very precious thing that we have going on. Yeah. Yeah. Absolutely. Just a quick reminder, if you are not on my mailing list yet, what are you waiting for? I would love for you to join. When you do, you'll get a free shopping guide that has 15 of my favorite wines under $15. Head to corkandfizz.com, scroll down to the bottom, and there'll be a little section where you can join the mailing list. I send out a weekly newsletter filled with wine tips, recommendations, special offers, and so much more. Now let's get back to the show. And I think we we talked about this a little bit yesterday too. I mentioned we, you joined us for the court crew tasting, and we were kind of talking about, like, I thought about it. I'm like, I just don't think there's very many resources out there about Mexican wine. You know, everything that you shared, I'm not gonna find that in, like, my go to is, like, you know, you can see it up there. The Wine Bible is one of my go tos for learning about wine, and then also I love WineFolly. I think they're a great website as well, and there's just, like, not a lot out there yet, and I know you mentioned you're like, yeah, we got this information by we were talking to historians, we were talking to this, and most of the articles, if you look up Mexican wine on Google, come from NOSA Imports because you guys are trying to get the word out there about that, and hopefully, hopefully it starts to catch on and we get more and more people, you know, talking about it. Even when I think about it, I'm like the wine bible, the newer edition now has such a bigger section on even New York wines and Washington wines because before 30 years ago, that wasn't really a thing. So, hopefully, we don't have to wait 30 years to see more on Mexican wine. Shouldn't have to. It's it is it is moving the needle. Yeah. You know, I have less and less people that come to wine festivals that are shocked that Mexico makes wine. It's I still get a few, but it's out there, you know, and more people have heard of Valle de Guadalupe. More people are younger generations are more interested in tasting wine from not necessarily the same places that their parents drink wine from. We're seeing a lot of changes that are indicating that the future's pretty bright. And, yeah, it's it was it was many years of archival research talking to to to people doing genotype research on different grape varietals to see how they have changed and and moved around the country and around around North America. Lots of historians, it's it's been a long ride, but we we have been able to fit together what's happened. And and before we had done that and and to credit a lot of people that have given us huge chunks of these stories, one of them is Pedro Poncellis. He's his dad was the 1st master sommelier in Mexico. He's a sommelier himself and is a winemaker in Valle, a very dear friend of ours and historian. He really has helped us put a lot of these pieces together to to create this an understanding and a cohesion to what what has happened in Mexico and why why it has this depth of history, and we're all just sort of starting to hear about these wines in in in the public here in the United States. So, yeah, it's it's been a wild ride. Alright. So this is probably gonna be I I always wanna ask these questions, but then everybody, whoever, like, either makes wine or, like, is a rad wine, always gets mad when I do this. This. So I'm not asking you to pick your favorite. But I'd love for you to talk a little bit, maybe pick out, you know, 2 or 3, maybe 4 of your wines that you import and tell us, specifically from Mexico, and just tell us a little bit more about them and and why you think they're special. Yeah. Oh, god. That is hard. You know, I would love to I think I mean, the one that I would love to talk about first is JC Bravo. So given again that Mexico is this very or Baja rather specifically is this very international area, there's actually not as many Mexican winemakers as you would think. There's a lot of folks from Spain, from Chile. There's Russians. There's Swiss. There's Italians. There's a lot of folks that are that are drawn to this area because it is such a bounty, both in in terms of food production of orchards, of of vegetables, of seafood, of all of these incredible culinary treasures that exist in this place and also in terms of wine. So JC Bravo is there's 3 subregions of the Valle de Guadalupe, and they are part of the sub region that's called the Aji del Porvenir. And Aji del is a is a collective farming system in in Mexico. So it's it's essentially a a communal village where everybody shares the farm and farming responsibilities. It was it came to be under Zapata during the revolution. Pretty cool setup, honestly. And in this area, Juan Carlos Bravo is is a winemaker and owner of the winery. And at the time, he was the first ever from the Valle de Guadalupe to be an owner and a head winemaker and be from the Valle de Guadalupe. So it's a pretty big deal. They are in this family. They're they have a 14 hectare vineyard, so, like, 32 acres. It's a 100% dry farmed. His father secured this land by working menial jobs in the United States for 30 years, sending back $10 at a time, $10 at a time, $10 at a time, secured this plot. He planted these vines. They grow 2 grapes. It's palomino as their white, which is the base grape for the majority of of sherry production in southern Spain, And then carignan, which is a Northern Spanish grape, fruit forward, velvety, beautiful grapes. Only 6 people touch any part of this process, and they all have the last name bravo. It's it's Juan Carlos. It's his sons, Thomas and and Juan Carlos junior. And then his daughters Alejandra and Carla and his nephew. So we're talking every part of the process only they touch. It's a 100% native yeast fermentation. There's 0 chemical additives. They literally touch every grape that goes into every bottle of wine. I've never seen anyone work as hard as this family. The winery is actually out of their home, so it's a very humble setup. And as a sommelier and as a wine professional, I think these are some of the most important wines that are coming out of Mexico. They are so deeply transportive drinking both of them. I don't know if you, if for, for whoever's listening, if, if they've seen ratatouille, when the food critic eats the ratatouille and he has this like zoom and he goes to that childhood memory, That's what it does to you. It takes you to his vineyard. It takes you to this permacultural, wonderful, beautiful place. It's speckled with all these different fruit orchards. There's pit figs and pomegranates and all kinds of citrus, and you get all of those things in the wines. They are truly some of the most elegant wines I've I've had the pleasure of experiencing. And this man, I wish we could as my husband says, we have no chill about Juan Carlos at all. He is he is one of truly the most special people that we have had the pleasure of working with and the whole family. So those those wines to me are Mexico. Those wines are the past, the present, and the future of Mexico. And those are the types of wines that and the types of people that we we really want to be partnering with. We we want to be telling these stories in in this profound of a fashion. On a little bit of a a total switch, another wine that I have never experienced anything like it before that we carry is called the JJ Amargito. And that one is from the oldest biodynamic and organic ranch in the Valle de Guadalupe. It's called Mogor Badan is the name of the ranch and it's owned by Natalia Badan. I would say that as far as personalities go and out of all of these people making wine at this point, she is probably in the top three most important people in the region, both in terms of the wine she produces, the the history that her family has sort of perpetuated. And her she is almost single handedly sort of the the sustainability enforcement in the Valle de Guadalupe. If Natalia hears about something that you're doing and she doesn't like that, she is she's gonna rally troops. You know? She is the protector and the the steward of the land that she's on, and she takes it very seriously. She's a very graceful, very elegant woman. And her son, Juan Cristobal, Juan Cree, he makes the. So it is truly an orange wine in the sense that it's actually made from fermented bitter blood oranges. That is the only thing that's in this wine, and then it's lightly fermented with an unaged grape brandy that is is as ethically made as possible. So it's it's native yeast ferments across the board. It ends up tasting, like, somewhere between Aperol and a vermouth. There's no herbs in it, you know, obviously, so it's not a vermouth. We enjoy it as sometimes over ice, sometimes chilled, sometimes in a champagne cocktail and a spritz. It's truly one of the most unique wines I've ever had in my life, and that also, you know, having that deep history, having that deep connection, and making something that again, as a as a global wine professional, I've never had anything like it in my life. That's that's pretty staggering. Yeah. No. I think that's so cool. I was gonna ask you about that one if you didn't. I know we talked about it last night, so I'm like, just gotta talk about the orange wine. But, yes, I think that's it goes back to, like, whenever I talk about wine, you know, whenever I do introductions to wine, I always tell people, you know, wine is fermented fruit juice, and, like, usually, we think of fermented grape juice. Technically, you can ferment any fruit. It's just that typically grapes just are more, you know, just end up doing better, when we do it, but it is such a cool idea to to make something very unique. And like you said, like, it can be enjoyed on its own, but then we can have some fun with it. It kinda goes back to, I had these great Colorado winemakers on here, and they were like, you know, I think, like, good wine should be used in cocktails more. Like, you you can make it fun. It doesn't always have to be, like, in this perfect, you know, the the cabernet sauvignon glass and at the, you know, come out of the wine fridge at the perfect temperature and enjoy it. Like, it doesn't have to be that. It can just be something fun. And like you said, the important thing is that it kinda transports you back to that place or gives you that feeling, and you really appreciate the people who made it. At least to me, I think that's that's really what's important. I couldn't agree more. You know, I something that we actively combat in wine world is is this part of wine world. You know, that's nobody likes that. Nobody the only people that like that, I think probably I'm sorry. They probably need to go to therapy. It's the exclusive restrictive part of wine, I think, is its greatest downfall. And wine again, wine is about connection. Let's be honest about it also. It's a very magical thing that we get. And also it's it's rotten grapes. You know, it's this is fermented fruit. And it at the end of the day, wine should be for everybody. It should not be restrictive. It should not be exclusive. Again, with with no so meaning hours, that's another sort of meaning that I have attached to that is wine is for all of us. And don't don't get me wrong, I am a very big fan of respecting the work and the art, the artistry, the, the science, the, the process that goes into wine making. And I love a white linen. I love a table side service. I love a good sommelier dance. You know, I, I love all those things. And when that starts to get more important than the wine itself, that's when we need to back up. So that's I I couldn't agree with you more. I think that's such a great way to put it. It's like, you can love it this way, but I think, yeah, make sure that the wine is still that's the important part because that's the thing that all the heart and the work went into went into making. Okay. So I know we've talked a lot about Mexican wines, and we're getting close to the end, but I wanna make sure Portugal gets a little shout out as well. So can you tell us kind of what's exciting about Portuguese wines right now? This podcast is sponsored by Vochill. When you're enjoying the glass of wine, temperature matters, and you don't need to be a wine expert to know this. You know this the minute you realize you forgot to put the bottle of wine in the fridge, and now you're stuck with lukewarm Sauvignon Blanc that is the opposite of refreshing. 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This podcast is sponsored by the Cork Crew Virtual Wine Club. Interested in trying new wines, but not sure where to start? Or maybe you've been listening to this podcast for a while, and you love the idea of tasting wine live with me. If that's you, come join my Court Crew virtual wine club, and you'll get to sip wine with me twice a month while I help you find new favorite wines. The Court Crew is not your ordinary wine club. This is a community of people who are passionate about exploring new flavors, learning about different wine styles, and having fun along the way. And the best part about this club? Purchasing the wine is completely optional. Plus, all events are recorded, and you have access to the full library of recordings as a court crew member. So you can always catch up if you can't make it live. Oh, and did I mention it's virtual, which means you get to do all of this from the comfort of your sofa in your PJs. No need to worry about driving in crappy traffic, finding a designated driver, or spending an arm and a leg on a taxi. Wanna give it a try without the commitment? You're in luck. Right now, I'm offering a free class pass to anybody who wants to try out the Court Crew Virtual Wine Tasting Club. With this pass, you'll be able to join a Court Crew event of your choosing. No strings attached. I don't need your credit card. I don't need you to sign up for anything. You'll be my guest. Simply head to corkandfizz.com/freeclasspass to get your class pass and be one step closer to becoming a member of the best wine tasting club around, the court crew. I can't wait to see you there. Now let's get back to the show. You know, in the past 20 years and almost even more in the past 10, we have just seen a huge boom of of American interest in Portugal. So we have this this expat affinity with this country in the same way that, you know, in the 19 sixties, Americans couldn't get enough of Italy. They were living their their white lotus dreams over there, and and we are seeing that in Portugal now as well. I will say the language is something that does create a bit of a barrier. Portuguese is a very challenging language to learn. It objectively is a harder language to learn than Italian, Spanish, French, most of the other romance languages. It has a different set of rules that make it quite quite complicated. And so I do think that the Portuguese language is a little bit of a boundary even though folks are loving Portugal, they love that it's an affordable European country, they can kinda live their their expat dreams there. I think that that has made the wine interest a little bit slower because people are there. They they visit it. They love these wines. And not only are they in Portuguese, but they're varietals that they've never heard of. So it can be this very intimidating world to walk into, especially given that you have these 250 native grape varietals. And some of them, because Portugal, like like all of Europe is extremely regionalized. Some of them have, like, 8 different names depending on what regions you're in. So it's there are master sommeliers in Portugal that don't know all the names for the grapes. So that's that is something that can be that can be intimidating to walk into. One thing that I helps, I think, everybody kind of put this in their brains because Italy can be the same way. We in Portugal are far more focused on region than we are on grape in the same way that Italy is, in the same way that France is, in the same way that Spain is. So this is very typical of European countries in this part of the world, and Portugal is no different. So I think when people get a little scared about the grape makeup, uh-uh, there's it's a very small country. It's like a quarter of the size of the state of California, focus on region, and that's gonna be that's gonna be your pathway forward. In this time of renaissance, in in really this past 15 years, we have had the joy of watching so many Portuguese wine producers heralding their extremely old traditions, and we're talking about wine production that started with the Tartessians before the Phoenicians, before the Romans, on the coast of Portugal, making wines in Amphora. In Portugal, these are called dahlias, big clay pots. Sometimes they're buried. Sometimes they're above ground. And we're seeing a lot of folks kind of revitalizing those ancient traditions and bringing them into the present and the future. So we have this incredible new and fresh perspective of these very regionalized producers looking for the very first time towards an export market. And how can how can Portuguese wines stand up against what the rest of the globe has to offer? And they're proving to stand up extremely well. And for the level of quality, for the interest, for the price points, they kinda can't be beat. Yeah. No. That's only that's one of my things when I always, like, tell people, like, you love California Cabernet? Like, go try a red blend, and, like, you'd probably be better at telling, like, where from, but, like, there are some amazing, powerful red wines coming out of Portugal, non fortified, so not like the port, that, like like you said, like,$20. You know? You don't have to spend $50 on a Napa Cabernet. You can try this one. And don't I love what you said too about, like, don't worry if all the varietals are, like, you can't pronounce them, you're overwhelmed, you never heard of them before. Don't don't worry about that. Like, kinda drink the wine like the Europeans do. They don't know what the grape is. That's the thing I learned recently. I've been talking to more people, international folks, and being, like, yeah, in France, it's not that we drink burgundy because we like Pinot Noir. We drink burgundy because we like burgundy, and it's that simple. Like, we don't need to know what the grapes are in it. Like, you can just enjoy the wine. Don't need to be a sommelier to enjoy a glass of wine. You don't need to be an expert. You can just enjoy the wine. Yeah. You know what? I will say for the sake of saying it, my favorite wines in Portugal tend to be the whites and the sparklings. I love don't get me wrong. I love Portuguese reds. The whole country has the maritime influence of the Atlantic. So talk about reds that go with sushi. Oh my god. Incredible complexity and depth of character. However, these whites, the white varietals that exist in this very extreme climate, the entire country is is literally the the the raging coast of the Atlantic Ocean, and you have these powerful, acidic, tannic, ageable white wine. Some of them are light and crisp and delicious, especially if we're talking about Vino Verde up in the north. And then you have some whites. Arito is is probably the most commonly grown and popular white grape in Portugal, and it's really your acidifier. It's sort of like the Meyer lemon in any wines, in any of the blends that you have. And you can age for over 10 years, and it gets better, more complex, deeper. So I I really encourage people to explore that that world of whites. It's something that's even less, you know, apparent to people when they're kind of jumping into the world of Portuguese wine, and it's sort of my favorite corner of it. Oh, I love that. I'm definitely I am I'm more of a white wine drinker myself too, so I'm definitely gonna have to explore that area. Well, I feel like we could talk forever about this topic. I it's so much fun, and you're so fun to talk to, but I don't wanna keep you too long. I do just wanna highlight, so I know folks can purchase so from 40 different states, so for most of the folks, they can purchase directly from your website. So I will put the link to that in the show notes. And then is there anything they can do if they wanna get those wines in wine shops? Like, is like, if they ask for it or bring it up with their wine shops, is that a good way for them to try to, like, get the wines out there more? That is awesome. And thank you for saying that. Now that that helps us a lot. You know? And I I think because the system is so convoluted, that doesn't necessarily occur. How would it occur to folks to just go in and ask for something? But that is the biggest that is the biggest way to ensure that you're gonna be able to get what you're actually looking for. Get your shop owners, get your restaurants, get your bars to start talking to their distributors to see what Mexican and Portuguese wines are available. If we're in that state, they can ask directly for Nosa imports. And there's there's other importers that are that are bringing in equally beautiful wines. So, yeah, as just asking is is, is a pretty easy way to to get the results you're looking for. Great. I love it. Yeah. That's like my, like, my little bonus to people. I'm like, actually, sometimes I just go to my wine shop and I go, hey. Can you get this wine? And they're, like, well, we don't have it now, but I can order it and have it for you in a week. I'm, like, perfect. Like, it's amazing what they can what they can do. Use them as your personal buyers. That's that's what wine shop owners are for. They are to be your personal buyers. Yeah. No. Perfect. Okay. Well, I always end every podcast with a quick little speed round. The idea being you don't have to, like we're not gonna, like, wrap and fire unless you want to. But the idea is just, like, don't think about it too long because some of the questions would be annoying in that way if you, like, had to, like, come up with, like, the best thing thing ever. So kind of, like, first thing that comes to mind is the idea. Alright. So first question is, what is your favorite wine at the moment? Oh, I would say I'm really enjoying Tempranillo from Queretaro. Oh, okay. And then that is in Mexico. Yes. Okay. Like, still learning. Great. Okay. This one is also probably gonna be hard with your love for the different regions. What is the favorite wine region you've ever visited? Oh, jeez. That's that's hard. That's very hard. I mean, my I have so much of my heart in sherry. I I love southern Spain and southern Portugal. Those are pretty magical, but Jerez, it's a it's a magical place. Oh, gosh. Okay. And how about a wine region you'd like to visit that you haven't yet? Oh, god. Any part of Georgia. I wanna go to Georgia so bad. The birthplace of wine, are you kidding? Ugh. Yeah. That's. Okay. How about, like, a favorite wine and food pairing? What is kind of like a go to? I mean, vinhaverde and sardines. It's it's hard to go wrong. I love it. And especially, like, every US person is like, what? Sardines? Like, trust me. Get, like, the good ones, and it is delicious. The first one time I had that in Spain when they, like, put that as an, like, part of the menu, I was like, They're like, try them. It's not the same thing as what you're used to. It's the canned fish game in Iberia is heaven. Yes. Okay. Last question. What is a wine that surprised you lately? Oh, I guess topical, not necessarily super lately, but Palomino's from Mexico. Being that it's the base grape of sherry, it's pretty rare to see those on fortified, and they have all of these incredible characteristics of sherry. They have this hazelnutty creaminess, zing of acidity. They pair with really unctuous flavors, things that are hard to pair wine with, like artichokes, anchovies, green beans. Palaminos are spectacular. So if you see 1, and I do have one on my website, they're one of my favorite food pairing wines on earth. Oh, I love that. That's so cool because that's what I love about sherry, but then sherry gets, like, so dry that sometimes I can't I'm just not quite there. I can only really drink the sweet sherry, but I like the smell of dry sherry. So now I'm, like, that's definitely a wine I need to I need to try. Perfect. Okay. Well, thank you again, Dale, so much for for joining us, talking to us about Mexican and Portuguese wine, and teaching us a little bit about importing wine into the US. This has just been a podcast stock full of information, and I I so appreciate you joining. Thank you. It's been my pleasure. I hope you enjoyed this episode of the cork and fizz guide to wine podcast. Be sure to check out all the wines that Dale has available on the online store at nosadash imports. Myshopify.com, and be sure to ask for Portuguese and Mexican wines at your favorite wine shops, restaurants, and bars. If you love this episode as much as I did, I'd love it if you could take a quick second, rate it, leave a review, and share it with a friend. Said this before, where you can just take a little screenshot of the episode that you're listening to, and either share it with your group chat or share it on social media, and let people know about this fun podcast. Next week's episode is a listener request episode. I love these. It's so fun to get to create something that you want to learn about. So, Sheila, this one is for you. We'll be doing a grape deep dive on a Spanish wine called txakoli, which is txakoli. It's gonna be a lot of fun. Thanks again for listening. And if you wanna learn more about wine, come follow me at quirkandfizz on Instagram. And if you're interested in exploring new wines and joining an incredible community of wine lovers, be sure to sign up for my virtual tasting club, the court crew. The court crew actually got to do a Q and A with Dale just before I recorded this podcast. So if you want the opportunity to actually talk to these winemakers, talk to these wine experts, the corkcrew is the place to be. You can come check out the first tasting totally for free. Just go to corkandfizz.com/freeclasspass. Cheers.