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Newsletter June 2026
Dear Members, Welcome to your June newsletter. It feels as though summer has arrived with a wonderful bang, though we might remember that it is still only May and the weather can be a little fickle, even here in our beautiful corner of Spain. Looking Back: “What’s in a Label?” On May 21, we enjoyed a comprehensive presentation on wine labels by Sara and Neville Richardson titled, “What’s in a Label: How much does the packaging influence you?” Sara took us on a marvellous rollercoaster ride through the history and marketing of wine presentation. It was fascinating to learn that wines with labels were found in Tutankhamun’s tomb, with ancient…
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Tasting Report May 2026
CBWS Tasting held on 21/05/2026 at Maxim’s, Moraira, and attended by 81 members and guests. Sara and Neville Richardson introduced “What’s in a label?”. This tasting focused on the connection between the label on the outside and the wine inside the bottle. It asked how, if at all, the label influences our decision to purchase and our perception of the wine when drinking. Wine 1 Name and Vintage Joaquin Rebolledo Godello 2024, DO Valdeorras Price per bottle €10.16 Wine 1 Description Straw yellow with greenish reflections. Quality and intensity of primary aromas: apricot, peach and fennel, mineral and balsamic.Well structured and slightly fatty texture, good smoothness, well-balanced acidity and slightly…
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Trip Report May 2026
Costa Blanca Wine Society Wine Trip DO Vinos de Madrid – May 2026 (Further images can be found on our gallery page by clicking here) 34 Members joined the four-day Wine Trip to DO Madrid centred on the beautiful town of Aranjuez on the banks of the river Tajo. Our hotel was the NH Coleccion Palacio de Aranjuez with stunning views of the Royal Palace. Situated to the south of the Madrid Province it is divided into three sub-zones and we visited the largest zone: Arganda. The 2025 harvest in the area was slightly lower than usual but has been described as having “exceptional quality”. It is an area of…
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Newsletter May 2026
Dear Members, Welcome to your May newsletter. I hope you all had a wonderful Easter break, whether you spent it here in sunny Spain or travelled elsewhere. It’s lovely to feel the summer warmth finally starting to arrive. A Look Back at AprilWe had such a fantastic evening on April 16th. A huge thank you to Tony and Gro Salter for hosting “My Favourite Wine.” It was good to see five of our newest members share their top picks. While it was tough to choose just one, the room voted and Sylvie Vande Pitte’s choice—the Por Ti (Bodega Luzon, 2021)—won by a whisker! New Summer Social: Paella & Wine!For those of…
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Tasting Report April 2026
CBWS Tasting held on 16/04/2026 at The Club Nautico in Denia and attended by 73 members and guests. Tony Salter introduced the tasting format which was “My Favourite Wine”. Each of five presenters from the membership would present a wine and explain why they had chosen it. There would be a show ofhands at the end to decide which was the favourite wine of the audience. Tony then introduced each of the presenters as the wines were served. Wine 1 Name and Vintage Quintaluna – Bodega Ossian Vides y Vinos – 2023 V.T. Castilla y León100% Verdejo – 13.5% Price per bottle €15.40 Wine 1 Description Gro Salter presented this…
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Newsletter April 2026
Dear Members, Welcome to Spring, although Winter does seem to be clinging onto the weather. At the last tasting in February, we had the opportunity to buy the wines direct from the winery. Members spent 2300€, all the wines have arrived safely in Javea and have been collected from Tim Fawle. On 19 March we had an excellent presentation from Fergus & Joan Fitztpatrick on “Exploring Garnacha”. All the wines we tasted were 100% Garnacha, each wine from a different DO. The tasting report is available HERE. Our next wine tasting is on 16 April at the Denia Yacht Club, when Tony & Gro Salter will host what promises to…
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Tasting Report March 2026
Exploring Garnacha hosted by Joan and Fergus Fitzpatrick. The idea behind the evening was to explore the Garnacha grape across the spectrum of Blanco, Rosado and Tinto with expressions of the grape from different regions of Spain. The tasting was held at the Javea Golf Club and attended by 56 members and guests. Wine 1 Name and Vintage Nomes Garnatxa Blanca, D.O. Emporda 2024 Price per bottle €11.05 Wine 1 Description Pale yellow with some green reflections. In the nose it reminds of fresh fruits and displays some fine spicy notes. In the mouth it is well-balanced, fresh, enveloping. This is a complex, long-lasting wine, nice, with a marked varietal…
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Newsletter March 2026
Dear Members, At last, the signs of Spring arriving have started to appear, the yellow peril of pine pollen, the jonquils in the Jalon valley are nodding their yellow heads and the dawn chorus has started. Our third Tasting of 2026 is not far away and there are a couple of CBWS activities to tell you about. On 19 February we had an enthusiastic and very informative presentation and an interesting tasting from the owner of Acústic Cellars, DO Montsant, Albert Jane. This prestigious bodega presented 5 wines (2 whites and 3 reds) all of which have been rated by Peñin,Robert Parker and Tim Atkin at 90 to 93 points. The Tasting…
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Tasting Report February 2026
Our February Tasting was held in Los Amigos restaurant in Javea with a presentation by Acustic Cellar, and hosted by Tim Fawle. Acustic Celler was discovered when the 2022 Wine Trip visited the Montsant DO. The unique wine making of these excellent wines has achieved acclaim throughout Europe, and have gained high points by Guia Peñin, Robert Parker and many other International wine experts. It was a pleasure to welcome Albert Jane, the owner, to repeat a visit and present his wines with his daughter Paula. It was an excellent tasting where CBWS members were given the opportunity to purchase these high quality wines at favourable prices. Wine 1 Name…
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Newsletter February 2026
Dear Members, A very warm (and slightly belated!) Happy New Year to you all 🍾 I hope 2026 has started well and that your glasses have never been empty for too long. We’re delighted to tell you that our 2026 programme of events is now live on the website and promises a wonderful mix of tastings, locations, and wines. Highlights include a sparkling wine tasting from Spain — it’s been a few years since we last explored Cava, so bubbles will once again be firmly on the agenda. We also have two bodega presentations to look forward to: one later this month featuring wines from the DO Montsant, and another…