#txakoli

[rocamboleska]

Atardecer 🌅 en una copa de txakoli ..

[manicpanicpixienightmare]

I don’t know if I ever want a dog again

[elmaestrostan]

He’s fuming but keeps a lid on it, our respectful king ❤️

[momo-de-avis]

This was one of the best groups I ever had. I arrived slightly late after ending a fight with the bank and ended up having a blast with these guys. Also I think I formed a San Sebastián, Txakoli and Pintxos fan club

[the-coconut-asado]

PINTXOS-PERFECT

Believe it or not, there are one or two people out there who aren’t inspired by the idea of San Sebástian. 

The joy of choosing pintxos from the counter ? ‘Health and safety hazard.’ But everything’s fresh! ‘Don’t fancy it’. What about the delicious spider-crab tarts? ‘Don’t like crab’. Gateau Basque? ‘Now I do like cheesecake - but why no biscuit base?’ 

Thankfully I’ve only experienced this pintxos prejudice from a handful of people. For the rest of you: if you don’t yet know that San Sebástian is the culinary capital of Europe, with more Michelin starred restaurants per capita than anywhere else on the continent, then just tell me which rock you’ve been living under and I’ll send my people round. With delicious morsels of wild mushroom. I’m not a monster after all.

Then there are those who love San Sebástian, have visited it several times, but have only the vaguest recommendations of where to eat. Yes I know. Everywhere is good. But just telling me ‘it’s all about the pintxos’ (no shit Sherlock) isn’t really giving me much to go on. So, for those of you venturing to Spain’s most edible city for the first time, or just can’t remember where you ate last time, here are my top recommendations. 

First of all, get yourself on a good food tour. And we went on the best, thanks to a proper, detailed recommendation from my mate Mykayla at work. The first thing you learn about Eskerne, founder of  Discover San Sebastian is that she is more revered than the Mayor- and knows more about the history and gastronomy of the region than any mayor. She met us at the Hotel de Londres at 10.30 sharp and deposited us in the park over four hours later, sated and gasping for superlatives about the food we had eaten. This was a PhD in Pintxos - spider crab tartlets, mind-boggling asian-fusion scallops with samphire, wild mushrooms mixed with egg yolk, octopus on sauteed potato…On and on it went,  setting off many several taste bombs in my mouth. Do yourselves a favour and book her as soon as you have booked your flights. 

But you don’t just have to eat pintxos. My daughter found Bar El Kbzon  near the City’s surfing  beach. For my money the best of San Sebástian’s restaurants: cafe-informal with stunning views of the beach at sunset, and a menu we ended up ordering in its entirety:  best black pudding I’ve ever tasted, heavenly hake and pig’s ear on borlotti beans just three of the reasons to go back. The chef likes Thai food so there were some inspired flavours going on in all of these - plus he makes a mean pad thai if you fancy that. 

Great places to eat are not limited to the city centre. My cousin and her husband took us to Kako Jatetxea, a bistro with classical charm in a town called Astigarraga, just outside the city centre and famous for its cider houses (the main drink of the region along with Txakoli - more of this later). They had a lot going on in their menu but you can’t go wrong with their  surf and turf - a whole pan-fried turbot in a butter sauce and a mammoth rib of beef. 

Want to find that ultimate Gateau Basque? Eskerne  pointed us in the direction of La Viña and advised us to order just a half portion each. The aggressive rubbernecking required to get to the counter and get attention meant I forgot the Spanish for ‘half portion’ and emerged with the full three slices for each of us. It didn’t matter in the end as we demolished them all in a matter of minutes. We also forgot to order the Ximenez sherry to pour over the gateau - Mykayla says this is a must. 

And finally, for super fine dining head to Galerna Jan Edan. I usually prefer generous rustic food to a degustation menu but this one gave us a night to remember: imaginative creations with intense flavours from prawn, pork belly, hake and a strawberry and violet ice cream that over-stimulated my taste buds in the best possible way. All washed down by the region’s signature Txakoli wine (you say Txakoli, I say Chocoli, let’s just pour another glass and forget about it). 

There are hundreds upon hundreds of pintxos bars, restaurants, cafes and gelateria crammed into this petite, beautiful and dramatic-looking city. Don't say I didn't tell you - and try making these dishes to get you in the mood. 

Crab Tarts

I have done my best to recreate the flavours of the version I inhaled in Ganbera pintxos bar. And guaranteed no soggy bottom-pastry. Serves 4 as a starter. 

Ingredients:

250g ready-made shortcrust pastry (or make your own)

3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

225g white crab meat

Generous tbsp. brown crab meat

1 banana shallot, chopped finely

1 carrot, chopped finely

4 cloves garlic, chopped finely

250ml shellfish stock

60 ml cognac

3 medium tomatoes, skinned seeded and chopped

1 tsp chilli flakes

1 bunch parsley

25g fresh breadcrumbs, browned in a little oil and tossed with chopped parsley

Knob of butter

How to make.

Heat the oven to 200C. 

Roll out the pastry and cut 8 rounds to fill 8 individual tart cases. Pop the tins onto a baking sheet and bake blind for 10-12 minutes, remove from the oven and put on the side to cool in their tins. When cool, remove from the tins and place the pastry shells back  on the  baking sheet.

To make the filling. Heat 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil in a frying pan and saute the onions, carrot and chilli flakes for 10 minutes. Add the garlic and fry for another minute or so, then add the tomatoes, salt and pepper, cognac, shellfish stock and 200ml water. Bring to a simmer and continue to simmer until the sauce has reduced and you can drag your wooden spoon through it without the mixture closing up quickly.

Turn off the heat, add the crab meats and a bunch of chopped parsley. Cool the mix. 

Turn up the oven to 220C. Fill each of the tart shells with the crab mixture then top each tart with the breadcrumbs and a small knob of butter. Pop back into the oven for 6-8 minutes until crisp and hot. Serve immediately. 

Two Easy Peasy Pintxos

As a parting gift from our tour, Eskerne gave me a copy of Josema Azpeita an Ritxar Tolosa’s The Pintxo Trail. None of the recipes give proportions so I have done the hard work for you while adapting them slightly. Serves 2-3

Pintxos with cream cheese, honey and walnuts

For each person cut 3 slices of a baguette loaf at a diagonal and toast lightly and rub with a clove of garlic. Cool slightly then top with cream cheese with herbs (philly is fine), top with a couple of walnut halves and drizzle with honey.  Complete with a sprinkling of parsley and season. 

Esclavida (catalan vegetables) with anchovy

Heat the oven to 150C.Baste an  aubergine and a red pepper  in extra virgin olive oil, pop onto a baking tray and into the oven for 20 minutes. Remove and then skin the aubergine and red pepper and cut each into 4 slices. Toast the bread and rub with a clove of garlic. Drizzle the toast with olive oil and season. Place the broad strips of cooked vegetable on top and top with two marinated anchovies (buy these from the supermarket chiller cabinet, don’t use ones from a jar). Make a quick garlic dressing with olive oil, garlic and parsley and drizzle over the top. 

Gateau Basque

This version of La Viña’s classic is from Brat restaurant in London via Claire Ptak’s latest confection Love is a Pink Cake. A genius  addition of tapioca flour and cornflour gives a wonderful texture. Serves 6. 

Ingredients:

450g cream cheese

125g caster sugar

3 large eggs

250g double cream

1 tbsp. Crème fraiche

1 tbsp. Vanilla extract

1 tbsp. Tapioca flour

1 tbsp, cornflour

¼ tsp. Sea salt

How to make:

Preheat the oven to 230C. 

Line a 15cm round and 8cm deep cake tin with a single sheet of baking paper that comes up further than the sides of the tin  - this caters for the dramatic rise of the gateau. 

Whisk together the cream cheese and sugar, add the eggs one at a time and continue whisking between each addition until fully incorporated. 

In a separate bowl, mix together the remaining ingredients, then add to the cheese mixture and mix everything until smooth and well combined. 

Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and bake in the oven for 40 minutes until black on top, puffed but still has a little wobble. Cool for at least an hour until set, then serve at room temperature. 

This goes magically with some poached plums which you can make while the gateau is in the oven.

[protect-daniel-james]

Unai's facebook page is a goldmine for awkward and cute photos and videos - he really was like the clueless dad who posts everything haha (he stopped posting after coming to Arsenal) - but I found out that he was also posting the winners of his own little competition: #el11deUnai, where his followers were asked to guess the starting lineup for the next match (yeah that's exactly the type of game he would play) AND he actually then sent to the winners not only a signed shirt of the club he was in at the time, but also bottles of Txakoli wine 😭 and yes, I guess maybe he had some people working for him doing this, but I can actually clearly see him going through the answers of the people, wondering if maybe they chose "a better lineup" than him lol, and then signing the shirts and putting them together with the bottles of wine from his region.... 😭

(I guess this is what a date with him would look like lol)

[sanctobin]

Simplicity is the hardest thing to achieve.

Finally, a trip to the Basque Country wouldn’t be complete without a night out getting pissed on Txakoli wine and stuffing your face with pintxos. And while she gets wasted, Irene is rolling deep with three more Michelin-starred chefs: Dani López, Gorka Txapartegi, and Joxe Mari Arbelaitz.

[krolwojtek]

Atrakcje Kraju Basków

Kraj Basków, położony na północy Hiszpanii i południowo-zachodnim krańcu Francji, to region o unikalnej kulturze, języku i bogatej historii. Oferuje turystom niezwykłe atrakcje, które zachwycają zarówno miłośników sztuki i architektury, jak i osób szukających kontaktu z naturą. Jego różnorodność czyni go jednym z najbardziej fascynujących miejsc na mapie Europy.

Bilbao – nowoczesność w sercu tradycji Bilbao, stolica prowincji Vizcaya, jest jednym z najbardziej znanych miast Kraju Basków. To właśnie tutaj znajduje się słynne Muzeum Guggenheima, zaprojektowane przez Franka Gehry’ego, które stało się ikoną współczesnej architektury. Poza muzeum, miasto oferuje urokliwe stare miasto Casco Viejo z wąskimi uliczkami, licznymi barami serwującymi pintxos oraz gotycką katedrą św. Jakuba. Miłośnicy sztuki nowoczesnej mogą również odwiedzić Azkuna Zentroa – centrum kultury zlokalizowane w dawnym magazynie wina.

San Sebastián – raj dla smakoszy i miłośników plaż San Sebastián, zwany również Donostia, to jedno z najbardziej eleganckich miast regionu. Znajduje się tutaj piękna plaża La Concha, idealna zarówno do relaksu, jak i spacerów. W mieście odbywa się Międzynarodowy Festiwal Filmowy, który przyciąga gwiazdy z całego świata. Miłośnicy jedzenia nie mogą przegapić wizyty w jednej z licznych restauracji z gwiazdkami Michelin, takich jak Arzak czy Akelarre, oraz spróbowania lokalnych pintxos w barach rozsianych po całym mieście.

Vitoria-Gasteiz – stolica regionu i zielone miasto Vitoria-Gasteiz, administracyjna stolica Kraju Basków, to miasto mniej znane, ale pełne uroku. Sercem miasta jest średniowieczna dzielnica z katedrą Santa María oraz licznymi pałacami i placami. Vitoria słynie również z licznych parków i terenów zielonych, co czyni je idealnym miejscem na relaksujący spacer. Miasto zostało uznane Zieloną Stolicą Europy w 2012 roku, co potwierdza jego zaangażowanie w ekologię i zrównoważony rozwój.

Guggenheim i inne cuda architektury Jednym z głównych punktów wizyty w Kraju Basków jest zwiedzenie Muzeum Guggenheima w Bilbao. Jednak nie jest to jedyna architektoniczna atrakcja regionu. Warto odwiedzić most Zubizuri, zaprojektowany przez Santiago Calatravę, oraz futurystyczne Centrum Transportu Bizkaia. Połączenie nowoczesnej architektury z tradycyjną zabudową miast tworzy niezwykły kontrast, który z pewnością zachwyci każdego turystę.

Krajobrazy naturalne Kraju Basków Kraj Basków to również miejsce o niesamowitych walorach przyrodniczych. Wybrzeże regionu obfituje w malownicze plaże, klify i zatoki, a jedną z najpiękniejszych atrakcji jest San Juan de Gaztelugatxe – maleńka wysepka połączona z lądem kamiennym mostem. Wyspa, na której znajduje się kaplica, stała się popularna dzięki serialowi „Gra o tron”, gdzie posłużyła jako plan dla Smoczej Skały. Warto również wybrać się do rezerwatu biosfery Urdaibai, który oferuje możliwość obserwacji ptaków i odkrywania dzikiej przyrody.

Lokalna kultura i tradycje Kraj Basków to nie tylko piękne miejsca, ale także bogata kultura. Baskowie są dumni ze swojego unikalnego języka – euskara, oraz tradycyjnej kuchni, która łączy świeże owoce morza z lokalnymi specjałami, takimi jak txakoli – lekko musujące wino. Turyści mogą również uczestniczyć w licznych festiwalach, takich jak Tamborrada w San Sebastián czy Semana Grande w Bilbao, które przybliżają lokalne tradycje i muzykę.

[rocamboleska]

[manicpanicpixienightmare]

I want my dog :(

[elmaestrostan]

Next week! Txakoli him, dine him, set up a monthly Direct Debit for all my wages if it helps 🙏

[osteneroshark]

Il vino tradizionale dei Paesi Baschi riscoperto grazie ad alcuni pionieri. La modernità del Txakoli de Álava

Il vino tradizionale dei Paesi Baschi riscoperto grazie ad alcuni pionieri. La modernità del Txakoli de Álava - https://www.gamberorosso.it/notizie/txakoli-de-alava-paesi-baschi/

[portugalandspain]

May 21

Today we set off to explore the Basque Coast, beginning with a drive to Guernica. In 1937, the German Luftwaffe bombed Guernica nonstop for more than three hours, laying waste to almost all of it—a nightmare immortalized by Picasso in the famous painting that bears the town’s name. When we arrive, we’ll view Picasso’s famous “Guernica” mural. We continued on to a family-run winery, where we’ll learned about txakoli wine. The afternoon included a visit to the Guggenheim Museum and a stroll around town.

[clubmusicweb]

Bunbury debuta en el sector del vino con el txacolí Landázuri

El cantante zaragozano Bunbury ha ha dado a conocer el lanzamiento de ‘Landázuri’, un txacolí vizcaíno, que supone su irrupción en el sector del vino. El artista, cuyo nombre real es Enrique Ortiz de Landázuri Izarduy, se inicia en la viticultura como un homenaje a su herencia vasca. Relatando que “este txakoli es el resultado de la investigación, la pasión y el amor por el acto creativo, tanto…

[debtsunpaid]

thinkin about post-anima ondine and pre-jalla klavi.......star-crossed besties. they both have such hope for humanity and such a dreamer's perception of the world around them, and such different ways of using their hands to build their ideal future. they're both tired as fuck all the time because they love their work too much to moderate. they both love art and dancing and txakoli and think that holding true to your principles in the face of adversity is the most courageous thing a person can do.

cannot believe that one of them has to be annihilated for the other one to exist at all. who wrote that. (stealthily closing the google doc as i say this)

[hellobyeokgo]

Xarmant Txakoli 2021

第一次喝來自 Basque Country 的酒 此地為西班牙的自治區，西班牙語寫作 País Vasco 這區最大的城市為 Bilbao

這款酒用的葡萄為 Hondarrabi Zuri 是這個地區主要的白葡萄品種

這瓶酒 外觀上 顏色是澄清的淡黃色 聞起來 有淡淡的蛋黃味和一點水梨香 微氣泡 Brut 不甜感 一入口 溫柔的不刺激的酸味 襯著飽滿的成熟的水蜜桃香味

液體黏稠度低 隨後的味道 是苦苦的？！ 為什麼是苦的？ 尾韻是桃子跟苦味的混合 有趣 適合下班洗完澡不知道要喝什麼時 隨便開來喝的日常飲品

事後問來自 Basque 的同事 他說他不喜歡 Txakoli (唸作 掐口力) 的酒 他比較偏好 Verdejo 白酒

？！我只能說 Basque 出了個叛徒