On April 6th 1812, the heavy howitzers had already breached the walls of Badajoz, the gateway fortress between Portugal and Spain and the Capital of the lower region of Extremadura. For quite some time, the ‘forlorn hope’ had been ready, and prepared, (wanting to gain promotion or die in the attempt) to pour into gaps battered through the walls. Yet, for some inexplicable reason, the British commanding officer, Arthur Wellesley, had delayed giving the order to attack, thus giving the defending garrison time to prepare booby traps, fire ditches, and erect cannon ramparts. The order was eventually given and the town captured on the 6th April. However, at a cost of the lives of some 3,500 British troops. As a reward for the courageous victors, the future Duke of Wellington allowed his men to go on a three day drunken orgy with the, now infamous, rape and pillage that followed. If you ever visit Extremadura to commemorate this battle, do not, as I did, make the mistake of referring to the event as a famous British victory – the people of this region have long memories. Never the less, you can enjoy, as we did, a ‘tinto’ from the same Extremadura vines that produced the red wine drank by Wellington and his soldiers nearly 200 years ago.  

As you probably know, Spanish wines usually come under the category of the Denominacion de Origen or D.O., and they have to comply with their regions strict regulation controls. However, there is another category of wine called V.T. (Vinos de Tierra) or Regional wines which is equivalent to the French Vins de Pais. For various reasons, mainly freedom and cost reduction, a group of bodegas may decide to leave their D.O, and create a V.T. This happened in Extremadura in 1990 where many well-established and successful wineries decided to market their products under the label of “Vino de la Tierra de Extremadura”. The D.O. of Ribera de Guadiana, around Badajoz, still continues today, yet minus some of its best bodegas. One such winery is that owned by the Luis Gurpegui Muga family, which has bodegas throughout Spain – Navarra, Rioja, Ribiera del Duero – as well as in Chile and South Africa. ‘5 Viñas’ is one of the brand names from their bodega in Extremadura, and it has been called “The miracle of Spanish wines” due to its good quality yet sold at the very modest price of 1.97€. But the wine we drank on the terraces of a tapas bar in Badajoz, overlooking the river Guadiana spanned by an impressive, granite bridge, is from the same winery, but even cheaper. At 1.35€ a bottle, the cosecha tinto that I am recommending is ‘El Hayedo’. This cherry red wine with an aroma of ripe fruit, thanks to the tempronilla and garnacha grape varieties, was great to accompany the meatballs  (albondigas) and stewed meat (estofado) that we ate that day.
 

  A su salud!