“The best wine is one to enjoy and share, and everyone's taste is very personal”
Alberto Rodríguez, sommelier at En la Parra
Editorial note: an interview recovered from Winerim's archive, originally published on 29 November 2022. Roles, career history, awards, figures, relative dates and recommendations belong to that publication, not to a check of the current situation. Statements about Winerim are the interviewee's testimony at the time, not a guarantee of features or results.
If there is one thing that characterises the restaurant En la Parra, it is undoubtedly its meticulous selection of every product it offers. Perhaps that is why, through always seeking excellence in its ingredients, this restaurant has held a Michelin star since 2021. And this principle applies both to the kitchen and to its cellar, headed by Alberto Rodríguez, the restaurant's sommelier and front-of-house manager.
Alberto Rodríguez began his professional journey at the hospitality school in Gijón and specialised in the world of wine at the Escuela Española de Cata in Madrid. He continued his training at the Parador Escuela de León, which enabled him to work as sommelier at the Parador de San Marcos itself. Later he would make a professional leap to the restaurant Cocinandos (one Michelin star), which gave him the momentum to take on his most ambitious project: En la Parra, his own restaurant, where he shares the spotlight with chef Rocío Parra.
With his individual vision and pairings, Alberto Rodríguez has prepared a selection of more than 250 wines for his diners. In our Winerim Academy space, we talk with the sommelier to learn a little more about his career and work in the wine world and, of course, his experience with Winerim.
1. When did your interest in the world of wine begin?
Curiously enough, while studying pastry-making and baking at the Begoña hospitality school in Gijón. I think many of the smells you find in a bakery are present in certain wines, and discovering that was fascinating.
2. What qualities should a good sommelier have?
Humility, of course, above all else. As well as empathy and a tremendous ability to convey sensations.
3. What is the most unusual place where you have organised or attended a wine tasting?
Well, I could say that we organise really fun themed tastings at my restaurant, En La Parra. But if I had to choose a surprising one, it would be one organised for us by bodegas Castillo de Perelada in the rocky mountains of the Costa Brava, in Colera to be more precise. A special tasting with live music and views from on high.
4. What are the current trends in sommellerie?
I think the evolution of today's sommelier compared with a while ago is impressive. You never stop studying or learning, and thanks to new technologies, social media and so on, we have all the information within reach. I think the current trend is towards a fully trained sommelier who is up to date with every new development.
5. Tell us about your favourite wines: a white, a red, a rosé and a sparkling wine
Well, it is impossible to choose just one, so I will break it down by area. If I were to drink a white wine, I would look for freshness, acidity and wines with development in the bottle; I would choose Atlantic wines, Galician wines. For reds, I confess that Burgundy would be my first choice. I think the best reds in the world are made there, without question. For rosés, my homeland calls to me: I come from León, and I think the rosés made there with the Prieto Picudo variety are magnificent. And, much as I am sorry to say it, Champagne is indisputable for sparkling wine production. While acknowledging that our Catalan bubbles are very good, what they do in Champagne is unique.
“The basic rule for choosing a good wine is to let your tastes guide you, but take a chance on a less familiar region”
6. What should someone with little experience of wine look for when choosing one to accompany their meal? In other words, what basic rules should a diner know to choose a good wine?
Wine is there to be enjoyed, and sometimes ordering a more expensive wine from the list does not mean you will enjoy it more. Let your tastes guide you, but take a chance on a less familiar region.
7. Debunk a myth about wine and pairing it with food
What we need to set aside is the theory of white for fish and red for meat. I favour finding food-friendly wines to pair with dishes. For example, wines with controlled alcohol, low pH, where the terroir and the winemaker take the lead.
8. What requirements must a wine meet to be a good wine?
I insist: the best wine is one to enjoy and share, and everyone's taste is very personal. I look for wines that surprise me, that have edges, that evolve in the glass, wines made with personality, where you can see the region and the producer is not hidden.
9. Steps we should follow to taste wine at an amateur level
First observe the colour. Without lingering too long, bring the wine to your nose and smell it, try to pick out a couple of recognisable aromas, then drink it, savour it and confirm those aromas perceived on the nose to enjoy it much more.
10. The wine that has surprised you most recently
Camino de la tradición, D.O.Ca Rioja. It is not a typical Rioja; when I tasted it, I was fascinated.
11. The best value-for-money wine you have tasted
Ciclón, Rufete tinta, a wine from my area, Salamanca. Great wines at a very restrained price. Largely unknown gems.
“I love Winerim because it is like an extension of me in digital form.”
12. A traditional paper wine list or a digital wine list?
Both, but I acknowledge that the digital one helps us sommeliers enormously to keep it up to date with vintages, prices, varieties and so on.
13. How does Winerim help you in your work?
I love Winerim because it is like an extension of me in digital form. I have all my tasting notes recorded, and sometimes, when things get very busy and you do not have as much time as you would like to visit each table, it helps customers get a general idea of the wine. As well as vintage changes, recommendations and even users' favourites, which I love seeing.
14. Finally, a piece of advice for any wine lover
Uncork, taste, share.