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There are many appealing aspects in the world of wine - far too many to ever list. But for me, I love the fact that each bottle can transport you to a place or even a time in history without leave the comfort of your own home. To think that I can taste something that is much older than I am – that’s still alive and even improving – is just mindboggling.

I've spent the last few days traveling around Hong Kong, Beijing and Hainan Island in the South China Sea with my new cycling team, Champion System.  Along the way I’ve seen many different cultures and even though I haven’t had a drop of wine since I left the U.S., I’ve sampled nearly everything the culinary world has to offer here.

With my Thanksgiving trip to Spain still fresh in my memory, I’d like to revisit another one of my favorite dining spots with you.  Girona might be most famous for El Cellar de Can Roca, but there is another Michelin Star Chef, Pere Massana, that’s been cooking slightly under the radar for the past 25 years. 

Before I jump into my first blog for the Boulder Wine Merchant, I’d like to let you know a bit about myself.  What seems to keep defining me is the fact that over the last seven years I’ve been racing a bicycle professionally for a number of the top teams in the world.  Along the way I have built a second home with my wife, Courtney, in the northern Spanish city of Girona. Spending most of the year over in Europe has opened doors that I never knew existed, including those into the food and wine world.

Way back when I was in high school I had an eccentric history teacher who had spent a lot of time over seas before taking the job at my school. She had, what to me was, a very revolutionary belief. She thought the drinking age of 21 was ridiculous for fermented beverages, and she would often exclaim that "Wine and Beer are food!" She seemed legitimately perplexed by the law in the United States.