Today finds us back in Spain and specifically in the DO Bierzo which is located in the worthwest of Spain in the province of León. It is located in a mountainous region but the area contains numerous small valleys and a   microclimate that is great for viticulture. It is from this region that Vinos de Arganza produces the Flavium Bierzo Crianza. To break down this name, Flavium is the wine label, Bierzo is the Region and Cianza is the specific style of wine which is governed by specific rules from the DO. In this case, a Crianza must be aged at least 6 months in oak and 18 months in the bottle.

For those of you wondering, the varietal of grape this wine is made from is Mencia. At one time it was thought that Mencia was an ancestor of the Cabernet Franc grape. Alas, DNA testing shows that it is not related to Cab Franc at all and that it is actually identical to an obscure Portuguese varietal. Or should I say that the Portuguese varietal is identical to it. In either case, this wine is made from 100% Mencia grapes.

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Today it is cold, well, cold for Virginia at least. We have a rather large (again, by Virginia standards) winter storm bearing down on us so that means stocking up on items designed to help me through the cold winter snow. I’ve got extra bottles of cognac, brandy and bourbon laid up and my wine rack is full. The only thing left to do is to load the beer fridge with…well…beer.

With that thought in mind, I’ve once again been sampling beers that I think would tend towards a more winterish theme. By that, I mean heavier beers with higher alcohol content. Also while I really like American IPAs, even the imperials and doubles, I find that those that come across very hoppy with what I like to call a “green” flavor, (piney or citrusy, not young) do not help me warm up that much during the cold weather. I like things darker and thicker during this time of the year. This includes the Belgian style ales.

With that thought in mind, I collected a dubbel and a tripel from Westmalle brewery in Belgium. These are traditional ales brewed by the monks of the Trappist Monastery of Westmalle. They are unfiltered ale and so have a layer of yeast at the bottom of the bottle. Now, let’s look a bit more closely at the dubbel.

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I am finally back from my family vacation in the Outer Banks. I had planned on posting this recipe while I was there, but you never know what you're going to get when working with other people's equipment and this was no exception. I was able to get the Jamaican Jerk Chicken . recipe up but it was quite the challenge and I didn't get the photo posted until I got back. You see, the biggest challenge wasn't the cooking but the Internet posting. For whatever reason, I had about a two hour window early in the morning when the wireless was working fine, but the rest of the time it was hinkey, very hinkey. That's why you get this recipe now but believe me when I tell you that it was worth the wait.

If ever you want to impress someone like family, friends or most importantly, a date, this is the recipe to do it with. This dessert is truly fit for the gods. In fact, this is nothing new, I'm sure that the ancient Mesopotamians had this one figured out. However, it is so simple and so good that you may want to keep it a secret. You'll look like a genius and you won't spend hours in the kitchen prepping and cleaning up afterwards. It is best, with the Black Mission Figs, but I've done it with Brown Turkey Figs and as the photo shows, the green Calimyrnas Figs. All of them turn out exceptionally well. Also, don't be turned off by goat cheese if you've never tried it. It has a little stronger taste than the milder cow's milk cheeses, but there are plenty (such as a sharp cheddar) that have a stronger flavor than the goat's milk cheese. For this recipe I used the Chevrie Goat Cheese.

Grilled Figs with Goat Cheese and Honey

1 dozen figs
4 oz goat cheese
1 lemon cut into wedges
honey
extra virgin olive oil

Thread the figs onto skewers and spray lightly with extra virgin olive oil. Cut the goat cheese into 12 slices and place two slices on each plate. Grill the figs over direct high heat for four minutes turning once. Place two figs on each plate and drizzle with honey. Serve with a lemon wedge. Makes six servings.