On a Tail Wind from Spain: Vinos del Viento
It is always exciting to welcome a new producer to our Direct Import portfolio. I truly think it’s this Direct Import program that makes K&L so unique. Our highly skilled Buyers pound the pavement all over the world to find the best under-the-radar wines and winemakers. And when they fall in love with a winery enough to put it in our DI program, you can be assured that they believe in it, and that they think the wines will make you a believer, too. We develop very special relationships with our DI producers, whom we work with vintage after vintage, and this one-on-one relationship allows us to bring you great pricing.
So we’re happy to introduce you to one of our latest: Spain’s Vinos del Viento led by Michael Cooper. If you noticed that Cooper is not a Spanish surname, you’re right—he’s a Santa Barbaran transplant who fell in love, first, with his wife, and then with her home country. And before he makes a wine, he has to fall in love with the vineyard, too: he seeks out high-altitude, old-vine, dry-farmed vineyards, sometimes housing 100+-year-old indigenous vine material. These are impressive expressions of Spain’s vine heritage, and they are affordable to boot.
I guess I’m talking a lot about love today, but I’ll embrace that. Wine is a labor of love, and anyone who is in the biz will tell you that it still makes their hearts go pitter pat.
Without further ado, meet Michael Cooper, and check out some of our newest wines!
OTT: How did you end up in Spain?
MC: I met my wife Rosario in Rome while I was there on a scholarship studying Italian. She is from Zaragoza, Spain and after we met, I couldn’t contemplate giving up on the relationship. I went back to California, worked four jobs and saved up money and packed my bags for Spain. I didn’t know what I would do there or how long I would be there, but that’s what life’s all about…love and risk.
OTT: How did you get started in the wine biz?
MC: Growing up in Santa Barbara you automatically become two things: somewhat wine knowledgeable and a partier (it’s true and whoever denies that…well…ghosts in the closet I guess). So I used to ask my dad for a sip of his Port after dinner, and when my parents asked me to go to the kitchen to pour them a glass of wine, I used to steal a sip here and there. I loved wine, it intrigued me. When I got to Spain, I made it more than just an interest, I dove head first into the wine scene. I tasted everything from everyone from everywhere. I created a database of regions and producers. Before making wine, I sold wine commercially. On the side in 2009, I got my first chance to play around with fermentations. My base for winemaking is a mix of trial and error, self-taught, WSET, and internships/stages at a couple of wineries.
OTT: Tell us about your wines. What makes them unique?
MC: That’s a tough question. I would say that the vineyards where the grapes come from and my palate and skills as a winemaker are what make them different. I am a vine-hunter and a perfectionist when it comes to seeking out the purest, most intense expressions of Garnacha and Carignan. I would say my wines are unique because you can taste the purity of these cepage, these varieties, from their source. All my wines are handmade, craft productions, fermented using the native yeasts from the vine at super reasonable prices. Wine is for drinking, for sharing, for having a good time. I do everything in my ability to make the wines ultra-reasonable for the price and to overcome expectations. Say what you will, but I want people to drink a glass of my wines and immediately shout “Damn that’s good!” Or simply and purely...“Yummy!”
OTT: Tell us about your vineyard sites and region. How do the river and the mountains play into your terroir?
MC: All the wines are influenced by the Ebro River Valley which runs from the Rioja Alavesa (more or less) down to the Mediterranean Sea. It’s not so much a river influence like say, the Mosel or the Rhône, but rather it’s a WIND influence (that’s why my wines are called Vinos del Viento). The wind channels down through the valley and keeps the vines cooler and healthy. It’s a constant in these areas. All the vineyards are at high altitudes and that also plays a huge role in the concentration of fruit and acidity. My lowest vineyard site is at 1800 feet above sea level. Also most of my vineyards are 35+ years old (some up to 99 years old) and that makes for lower yields, more concentrated grapes with more intense and more concentrated flavors.
OTT: What foods would you pair with them?
MC: Pairing is really dependent on every person’s palate, but I’m a huge fan of Chinese food and Chinese food is so challenging (without over generalizing) for pairing. Most people think…Asian food=Riesling and maybe Pinot Noir. I think Szechuan pepper and soy and I think Garnacha (Grenache). When I think peppers and citrus and cilantro and I think Carignan. All of my wines are on the high side of acidity and so they go great with thick sauces, because they cut straight through those umami, or rich sauces or textures, and refresh you. My Garnacha Blanca and my Garnacha Rosé go super well with fish like salmon. Forget about some creamy or fatigued Chardonnay or Viognier, try one of my crunchy, zippy wines to pair with fish or lobster.
OTT: Anything else the customers should know about them?
MC: The labels all feature original artwork by Jorge Gil Rodríguez and Amparo Santamarina.
Also your palate and your sensations of smell are definitely formed in your childhood and in your first experiences with wines, drinks, and sauces. My palate is definitely Californian, when I taste blind with my Spanish friends, I am made aware of that constantly. I think my wines are a lot of fun because they are what a Californian loves to drink with Spanish grapes.
Each wine is for a different vibe, a different moment, so the Garnacha Blanca is for that first glass of wine in the late afternoon/early evening when you start cooking or grilling, it’s laid back, juicy and fresh. It refreshes you.
My Garnacha Rosé is zippy and energetic and is perfect chilled by the poolside or for a picnic. It’s like drinking raspberries and peaches and it’s full of life. It’s amazing with sushi and it’s a wine to surprise someone with.
The Old Vines Garnacha is the youthful, floral, and playful side of Grenache. This is a great wine for drinking with friends, for Taco Tuesday, for watching the game on TV. It makes you salivate and invites you to sip it again and again.
The Cariñena Selección Especial is elevated. It’s a wine for drinking with music that moves you, for when you’re feeling poetic or want to dwell on the day and on life. Every sip shares something new with you.
Finally, the La Ermita de Santa Barbara single-vineyard Garnacha is for those moments when you want to give yourself a gift. You want to feel gooooood.
OTT: Ever think you’ll go back to Santa Barbara to make wine?
MC: Yes. Definitely. I go to Santa Barbara practically every August (Spanish vacation time).
It seems hard though, because the harvest and the fermentations coincide with Spain (northern hemisphere). I think if I do make wines in Santa Barbara, it will be with a killer partner or a killer team. There are so many gifted and amazing people in the area that I would love to make wines with. I actually think the most fun would be to make a wine each year with a different winery, a different winemaker that I honor and respect and that we sync together, a wine that we all feel is “simpatico” and truly shows our blend of influences and palates while at the same time is a pure expression of Santa Barbara County wines.
I always bring wines back to Spain with me, and, for me, sharing those wines with my Spanish friends is like sharing a slice of my life, a slice of California.
- Kate Soto