El Meson, with its eclectic menu of Cuban, Tex-Mex and Spanish items has been a staple in the Rice Village since the early 1980s. It’s also one of those hidden nuggets on the local dining landscape for its fairly expansive and interesting collection of wines from Spain, something good to know for the wine lover. As Eric Asimov in New York Times recently wrote, “No country has had its wine map filled in so intriguingly over the last 25 years as Spain. And perhaps no country has rewarded wine consumers more with a combination of value and enticement.”
There are numerous enticing wines from Spain well beyond the most famous names of Rioja and sherry on El Meson’s wine list, though you will be amply rewarded with choices from those areas, as I was on a recent visit.
With a taste for a reserve Rioja, when the restaurant was out of my first choice, Jessica Garcia, the daughter of proprietor Pedro Garcia, made a very nice selection from a Rioja producer with which I was unfamiliar. The wine was Ontañón Reserva 2005 that showed nice very enjoyable plum and cherry notes along with the refinement, subtle earthiness and a long-lasting taste that you would expect with a quality Rioja Reserva. For what it’s worth, the Wine Spectator awarded it 91 points. One of the benefits of Rioja – and El Meson – you can drink a wine with over a decade’s age on it for not whole lot. The wine was just $52, a bargain by restaurant standards for the quality.
El Meson
2425 University (near Morningside), 77005, (713) 522-9306
elmeson.com
There are numerous enticing wines from Spain well beyond the most famous names of Rioja and sherry on El Meson’s wine list, though you will be amply rewarded with choices from those areas, as I was on a recent visit.
With a taste for a reserve Rioja, when the restaurant was out of my first choice, Jessica Garcia, the daughter of proprietor Pedro Garcia, made a very nice selection from a Rioja producer with which I was unfamiliar. The wine was Ontañón Reserva 2005 that showed nice very enjoyable plum and cherry notes along with the refinement, subtle earthiness and a long-lasting taste that you would expect with a quality Rioja Reserva. For what it’s worth, the Wine Spectator awarded it 91 points. One of the benefits of Rioja – and El Meson – you can drink a wine with over a decade’s age on it for not whole lot. The wine was just $52, a bargain by restaurant standards for the quality.
El Meson
2425 University (near Morningside), 77005, (713) 522-9306
elmeson.com
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