Posted on July 6, 2011 - by brooklynfermented

Señorio de P. Peciña Rioja Joven 2009 & Ossau-Iraty

Hermanos Peciña, Señorio de P. Peciña Joven 2009, DOCa Rioja (La Rioja, Spain), $12.⁹⁹/750ml – 95% Tempranillo, 3% Graciano, 2% Garnacha
Ossau-Iraty, Onetik cooperative (Pyrénées-Atlantiques, France), $28/lb. – unpasteurized sheep milk

With the exception of vines as far as the eye can see, the most common sight in Rioja, situated in north-central Spain’s upper Ebro River valley, is probably locals tucking into chulletillas (baby lamb chops grilled over vine cuttings) and cordero asado al horno de leña (leg of lamb roasted in wood-fired ovens) at lunchtime. And since Riojanos have been working the vine here for well over a thousand years, it makes sense that the earthy, cherry/raspberry-scented, Tempranillo-based reds they’ve been turning out for so long should match the flavors of the local diet. The felicitous Tempranillo-lamb combo extends to Rioja and sheep cheese as well; Rioja and Manchego are in fact a classic match. Here silky, sweet, and buttery Ossau-Iraty, a shepherd cheese from the western Pyrénées of France with an ancient pedigree, stands in for its Spanish cousin. Joven, Spanish for ‘young,’ is Rioja’s entry-level red category/age designation and spends less than a year in oak barrels, if it sees any time at all. Peciña’s exuberant, but still recognizably old-world Joven adds sweet tones to the cheese’s unmistakable meatiness, while simultaneously echoing, albeit subtlety, a decidedly umami savory character also apparent in the cheese.

Wine: Slope Cellars, 436 7th Avenue (14^th & 15^th), Brooklyn, NY. tel. (718) 369-7307

Cheese: Bklyn Larder, 228 Flatbush Ave. (Bergen & 6^th Ave.), Brooklyn, NY. tel. (718) 783-1250