A man comes into town... to eat and drink. Barcelona and Ronda.

Well, well and well. So far it seems most days are like this.

Church, Museum, Bar, Home.

Or Church, Bar, Castle, Museum, Park, Home.

Or Beach, Bar, Church, Bar, Home.

And last night it was Bar, Bar, Bar, Bar, Bar, Bar, Home. Next day Church.

And I suppose that is how I roll or rolled or am rolling. I am in Sevilla now after a whirlwind tour of Barcelona, Grenada, Malaga and a smaller town by the name of Ronda in which I stumbled upon a pretty suave sherry bar. (note picture above) The good time had at this wonderful establishment would have been just a bit better if I didn't have so many water spots on my glass. I am glad to report that it has been the only serious violation I have found concerning water spots thus far. I am not however suggesting in the least bit that all glasses have shined and sparkled but that a majority have been deemed sufficient and not required further inspection.

I was fortunate in Ronda to meet up with two of the shops regulars, Mark and Alena and their wonderful kids. Of course we took in a wine bar and the tapas were outstanding and the wines at about 3.50 a glass definitely delivered. Vino Blanco always hits the spot in Spain.

So I am going to back up a bit and take you on my word tour of Barcelona. The highlight of Barcelona was meeting up with a former customer, Erica and her husband Jonathan. Friday night, I was invited to a wine tasting for Ribera del Duero wines. The tasting was in Spanish but I was provided with a solid translation by Jonathan and even picked up a few words on my own.

So the hit of the night was the Alion 2005 (second label of Vega Sicilia) and the evenings wines were followed with a nice selection of cheeses, pan con tomato, some jamon serrano and blood sausage. Had a bandito not tried to lift my wallet at the subway stop a few hours prior to this nice event, I would have brought my camera and taken some nice photos of the event but I left it and my phone at home. It was a rookie traveling mistake.

Often I find in cooking that some of my favorite foods are simple. Pan con Tomate has certainly found beauty in its simplicity. It is easy to make... toasted bread, rubbed with garlic and fresh tomato then drizzled with olive oil and a bit of salt. Often one may then place a bit of cheese or sausage on top.

On Saturday, I found myself walking around a street by the name of Las Romblas in Barcelona and found their market after a stellar breakfast of Chocolate con Churros. Basically donuts and a warm seductively beautiful chocolate drink. Oh if Homer Simpson was a connoisseur of food he would eat and drink nothing else. (Thanks Amanda for the recommendation) A lively, massive market the kind that breathes life and teases your senses. The market was compartmentalized just as a store with sections for everything you could imagine. Now, at this point in my trip I had taken around 60 photos. In the two hours I wandered around in the market I took about 70 photos. Eventually, I will learn how to post them to the web as I hope to have captured a bit of that wonderful market and the intensity of thousands of people looking and buying with all their senses. If only I could have convinced one of them "Tu casa es mi casa". I am coming to dinner tonight... it's okay, I am an excellent guest and I'll bring the wine.

That evening I met Jonathan and Erica for dinner and had once again one of my favorite wines from Bierzo. The Corullon by Alvaro Palacios from the Mencia grape always delivers in a French Burgundy sort of way. Earth, animal scents, a bit of funk that wafts in and out and a smooth delivery down the pie hole.

That's it for today. I am going to start posting more as quite frankly I think that is the whole idea behind blogging.