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Earlier this summer, our wine company took a group from Newcastle Wine School to Galicia for a few days of wine, food, culture and exploring. It was one of those trips where the place itself becomes every bit as important as the wine. Our guests loved Galicia. We loved it. The Albariño certainly helped, as did the seafood, but there is something about the landscape, the Atlantic, the people and that very strong Galician identity that stays with you. We came home already talking about going back. At around the same time, another old passion of mine had resurfaced. After years away from it, I started writing about football again for True Faith, the Newcastle United fanzine, beginning with a match report and travelogue from Newcastle’s recent friendly in Valencia. I used to write for fanzines years ago and I’d forgotten how much I enjoyed it – not just writing about what happens during the 90 minutes, but football, travel, places, people and all the stories that surround the game. Then Newcastle United signed Nico González. Born in A Coruña, Nico is the son of Deportivo de La Coruña legend Fran González, who himself comes from Carreira, near Ribeira on Galicia’s Atlantic coast. After our recent adventures in Galicia, that was enough to get my attention. So I started digging. And wine appeared. I found a lovely [La Voz de Galicia interview here with Fran] from a few years ago. After spells living in Barcelona and Manchester, he was asked what he missed about Galicia. His answer could almost have come from somebody on one of our tours. He talked about how much he loved heading into the centre of A Coruña around midday, having a beer, then a glass of wine, always accompanied by something to eat. Asked to choose a favourite drink, his answer was simple: a good wine or cava. And when asked who he’d most like to go for a few drinks with, it was his friends – but, importantly, accompanied by good tapas, something he reckoned Galicia does particularly well. Then I found an even better story. In another [La Voz de Galicia article here, this time from its Gastronomía y Vinos section], Fran chose one of his favourite places in A Coruña: Taberna O’Secreto. And that’s where the wine connection gets serious. The man behind O’Secreto is Xurxo Rivas, who was named Best Sommelier in Galicia at the Mágnum awards in 2019. His cellar at the time contained around 900 different wine references and his relationship with Fran went back to the glory days of the Superdépor. It wasn’t simply a footballer occasionally popping in for a glass of wine either. When Fran was living in Barcelona, Xurxo would send bottles to him. Fran would get some friends together, prepare a Galician seafood feast and open the wines Xurxo had recommended. Xurxo describes their relationship as having developed beyond that of customer and restaurateur into genuine friendship – and says Fran loves discovering new wines with friends and family. Now we’re talking. Suddenly all the pieces fitted together rather nicely. Newcastle. Football. Galicia. Wine. Seafood. Travel. Things I seem to spend rather a lot of my life talking and writing about anyway. And perhaps that’s why I’ve enjoyed returning to football writing. A football story doesn’t always have to be about formations, transfer fees and expected goals. Sometimes a new signing sends you off down a completely different road – in this case all the way back to Galicia, a place we and our Newcastle Wine School guests fell a little bit in love with this summer. So welcome to Newcastle, Nico. Or, after our recent adventures in your part of the world, perhaps we should say it properly: Benvido a Newcastle, Nico! And as for Galicia? We can’t wait to go back. Fancy discovering Galicia with us? Get in touch with Sense Experiences: Click here Tony Higgins Contact - tony.senseexperiences@yahoo.com tony.senseexperiences@yahoo.com)