What’s
that, mater and pater? You’re going on holiday to Spain? Excellent.
Could you pick up some aguardiente de orujo for me? I’ll
write it down for you. Spend up to 20 euros. Don’t worry what
brand, I’ve only had a couple before, so you’re almost certain to
get something new. Don’t go to too much trouble either though, eh?
Those
were the instructions I gave my parents on hearing of their upcoming
jaunt. What transpired was that my mum went to considerable lengths
that culminated in her getting the exact same brand I’d had before.
I knew it as soon as she called on her return, told me it was in a
brown bottle, and began giving me a blow by blow account of how she
had completed the task. I just knew it and the disappointment was so
strong that I couldn’t let her finish her story. It was difficult
apparently, she tried everywhere, no one had even heard of it, and
she finally found some in Duty Free on the way home.
Worse
than getting the first brand of aguardiente I’d ever tried, she
paid 4 times more for it as well. Oh well. I’ll be able to give it
a bit of a reappraisal at least.
What
is aguardiente de orujo? Well, it’s pomace brandy – like
the grappa that I keep banging on about, although this originates
from Spain rather than from Italy. This one is full-bodied, but not
as refined as my favourite varieties of white grappa. There’s
something weird about it though, that I didn’t notice last time; it
has for example, an aroma that is very reminiscent of baiju.
Mrs Cake says it smells like wee. I have to disagree with that, it
smells much nicer than that, but it is something I’d expect the
casual drinker would find objectionable.
It
is nicely sweet at the tip of the tongue, but further back, that
funky baiju quality comes through and dominates. The, just as you’re
deciding it has crossed the line into the area marked “unpleasant”,
that extra 2% alcohol kicks in to give you a sweet and reassuring
burn.
I
think you can really learn to love it though because, on return
visits my appreciation deepened and I’ve been enjoying it very much
– not chilled or over ice though, like I’ve read suggested at
classicspirits.co.uk and
again on RuaVieja’s website..
I like it as is and, having tried it chilled, room temperature is the
way I’ll continue. That has the added bonus of freeing up fridge
space, and not having to plan ahead every time I want a glass.
If
you’re an alcothusiast like I am, aguardiente de orujo adds another
dimension to trips to Spain. It makes a nice change, and it’s a
spirit that isn’t currently (at the time of writing) available via
your online retailers in the UK, so it’s something exotic but close
to home.
Perhaps
we can even say this is a benchmark – how much of an alcothusiast
you are depends on what you think of aguardiente, and whether, having
tried it, you’d buy another bottle. I would. Maybe you could start
by buying your first bottle.
Ok.
Thanks for stopping by again (assuming you did). I’m off to
Northern Italy again tomorrow – for a holiday, but also to stock up
on grappa for the year. Hopefully I’ll get to visit some
distilleries, too. So there won’t be a post next week, but I will
be back the week after. Enjoy your week and keep your booze strong.
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