Archive for the ‘Portuguese Wine’ Category
Quinta do Crasto Tinta Roriz 2003
Posted by Shea in $60+, Excellent, Portuguese Wine, Tempranillo on December 17th, 2009
Quinta do Crasto is one of the largest dry wine producers in Portugal. Fortunately, they are also one of the best. Situated in the Douro valley, where grapes for the famous port wines are grown, Quinta do Crasto has a massive range of wines extending from $20 bottlings produced at 450 000 bottles to single vineyard and single varietal bottlings coming in at a mere few thousand bottles. These wines are also hard to find in a lot of the United States, but fortunately here in BC the agency Seacove has a good relationship with Crasto and brings in their entire line of wines. These are the sort of wines to cut your teeth with in the land of dry Portuguese reds as they straddle the line between a modern international style and a more terroir driven approach. I’ve also tasted through almost their entire line of wines and am impressed with the distinctive characteristics of each of the high end bottlings.
At this summer’s Wine Blogger’s Conference the Portuguese wine growers association (or something like that) put on a tasting of Portuguese wines. This was exciting to a lot of bloggers because many had not tasted wines from Portugal at all before. However, we are lucky in the BC market in that we have a few excellent options, Crasto being one of them. And, I think the offerings from Crasto (and Niepoort for that matter) far outclass anything that was being poured at the event down in Sonoma this summer. For all you U.S. readers, there is a big world of portuguese wine that has yet to flow into the states.
However, all that said, I think there may be a bit of over-hype and over-excitement about Portuguese dry wines right now. Yes they are well made and usually good value, but not that many of them are truly distinctive. Other than a small handful of 5-10 top producers, there isn’t that much exciting going on, at least for me. I remain to be persuaded otherwise though, and bottles like this one promise that the region has incredible potential.
Tinta Roriz is another name for Tempranillo. On the nose of this wine I got bacon fat, plum, chocolate, smoke, and crushed dark berries. The palate was reminiscent of Ribera del Duero wines from Spain with smoke, bacon, chocolate, plume, black cherry and a soft licorice lacing. This isn’t surprising given that the Douro Valley is an extension of the same river that flows through Ribera in Spain. I am consistently impressed with how smooth and integrated Quinta do Crasto’s wines are, and this is no exception. And, while I wouldn’t necessarily say that this wine is elegant, I would call it velvety and soft with a very extended mouthfeel. Very distinctly tempranillo, this also brings in the richness and savory qualities of a really good syrah. Definitely worth picking up if you enjoy bigger old world wines a la Ribera del Duero.
Excellent
$70 at BCLDB
Quinta do Crasto Vinha Maria Teresa 2003
Posted by Shea in $60+, Douro Blend, Excellent, Portuguese Wine on October 10th, 2009
My day started blue – a nicely bruised toe from the first blunder in a chain of bad luck that would not abate for the entire day. We’ve all had rough days, blue or otherwise, and our common ability to get through them is a testament to human tenacity. But usually it is the comfort and kindness of another that truly allows us to prevail. Well, that and a nice bottle of wine.
After perhaps the worst day I had in a year I realized it was no longer appropriate to keep a very special bottle of Quinta Do Crasto Vinha Maria Teresa 2003 corked until the originally planned date. No, there is nothing like a really bad day to demand a really good wine – shared simply with comfort and sympathy from a loving partner.
The wine, by the way, was gorgeous. With a nose of big blue fruits that smelled like the earth, freshly crushed and perfectly ripened black plums, a sleek and sexy mocha infused espresso, and a bit of butterscotch drizzled on top of a sweet cherry pie, there was no doubt in my mind that the healing had begun. And, as I was feeling somewhat philosophical at the time, I was thinking of some of my favourite works of literature and of how arduous times can become paths towards an unexpected future.
Luckily, my next sip of this lush purple juice promised great things: a palate like a big plush blanket of stewed cherries, butterscotch and crushed blackberries dripped over river stones and intense, minerally earth. This wine was an impressive pairing of power and elegance with a nearly eternal finish. With the density and concentration of a port, but the light footed elegance of a Bordeaux, this symbolized precisely how I hope my future will play out: passion and grace. If all good wine and good company could accomplish this goal, we’d scarcely venture outside of the confines of our epicurean fantasies. All in all, a perfect curative for an awful day.
Excellent+
$135 at BCLDB
Graham’s Vintage Port 1997
Posted by Shea in $60+, Port, Portuguese Wine, Very Good on September 18th, 2009
I like how the portuguese ‘declare’ vintage years in the Douro valley for port. Not only does it guarantee a certain level of quality when you buy the ‘vintage’ labeled wines, but it also gives the wineries the opportunity to use declassified fruit in their ‘lower end’ blends in non-vintage years.
This, however, is a full blown vintage port from the excellent 1997 harvest. Unlike the 1980 Smith Woodhouse port I had a week or so before this, the Graham’s port is a big fruit ballbuster of a wine. The nose was big and chocolatey with blue and black fruits rushing over each other to dominate the aromas. The palate was quite caramel centric, and had wonderful full blueberry and blackberry with fantastic acid to balance the sweetness. I also got some cedar wood as the wine opened with air. In your face tasty, but not quite as elegant or complex as the Smith Woodhouse.
Very Good+
$60 / 375ml at BCLDB
Smith Woodhouse Vintage Port 1980
Posted by Shea in $40-$60, Excellent, Port, Portuguese Wine on September 3rd, 2009
1980, my birth year. I’m not sure I should be admitting that, but I suppose it’s still within a reasonable distance from the present. 1980 was, it seems, a pretty good year for port, and while I was saving this for some occasion or another, my recent experience with heat damage prompted a ‘what the hell’ pop open of this very intriguing bottle.
The nose was a little toasty, but also had currant, raisins, and dried cherry. While at first I thought the alcohol on the wine was a bit forward and unbalanced, with a little air everything seemed to settle into place and this turned out to be a very enjoyable experience. For those who haven’t tasted older vintage port, with time the youthful vigour and intensity gives way to subtle layering, moderate tannin and great delineated expression of flavours that, when young, are often lost in the density of the wine.
With this Smith Woodhouse I tasted cherry, blueberry, chocolate, wood, fig, strawberry, burnt caramel, bergamot, and cigar. The level of complexity was impressive and the fact that such distinct flavours expressed themselves to a moderate palate such as my own was quite exciting. I was also shocked by the level of juicyness in the port, despite its leathery and dried fruit character. Even compared to other older vintage ports, this was a special bottle, and not really over the top in terms of pricing. Port fans owe themselves a sip.
Excellent
$50 at BCLDB
CARM Grande Escolha 2003
Posted by Shea in $40-$60, Douro Blend, Excellent, Portuguese Wine on July 9th, 2009
Portuguese wine always goes unnoticed, and for no good reason at all. I’ve mentioned this before, but Douro dry reds can really be quite stunning and it’s a shame not too many people indulge in their power and finesse. This wine came from the hot 2003 vintage which produced many overly alcholic wines across Europe, but in Portugal both the ports and the dry reds of Douro faired very well indeed.
The nose on this gem was all balance straight on the attack: I got wood, cassis, and blackberry jam on top of nice grip and excellent concentration. While this is a full mouth-coating wine, it is also not over-extracted nor does it have pronounced glycerin. Indeed, there is even a slight salty side to this eminently drinkable wine. Pair it with a great goat or sheep’s milk cheese from Portugal or Spain and you will realize the unique approach that Portuguese wine brings to the fore.
Excellent
$40 at BCLDB (Purchased for $28 on sale)
Quinta do Infantado Vintage Port 1995
Posted by Shea in $20-$30, Excellent, Port, Portuguese Wine on January 12th, 2009
Another of the joys of California is that you can get smaller producers and older wines off the shelf for reasonable prices. I picked this bottle up at a great store called The Spanish Table, which, self-evidently, specializes in Spanish products.
Graham’s Malvedos Vintage Port 2001
Posted by Shea in $30-$40, Excellent, Port, Portuguese Wine on December 15th, 2008
My first introduction to port many years ago was, perhaps fortuitously, with a half bottle of the Graham’s 2000 Vintage Port, selected almost randomly. This was an absolutely stellar bottle and made me wonder why I hadn’t had port before. I later found out that 2000 was a brilliant vintage for port and that the Graham’s 2000 Vintage received 98 points from Wine Spectator. This port is still available today, but at $80 for a half bottle – $50 more than I paid.
Thus it was that I couldn’t resist picking up a bottle of this ‘lesser’ port from Graham’s in a year where a vintage was not declared. The Malvedos, however, is a single quinta port, meaning that it is made from a single vineyard, the grapes from which are normally used as the backbone of the regular vintage bottling. The single quinta ports come out when the weather wasn’t good enough to declare an official ‘vintage’ year. The price reflects this, but if this bottle is any indication, great values are to be had here.
The nose was grapey, chocolatey, and filled with sugared plums and dates. Very rich and a little boozy – but not ‘hot’. The palate was well tannined and full and introduced pepper and spice with figs and dates. With a texture that was rich, smooth and very beautiful in the mouth, a perfect sugar level, and a brilliant sumptuousness, Graham’s upheld their reputation in my mind for top level sweet wine: simply put, not many sweet wines taste this good. And, of course, this voluptuous liquid paired perfectly with chocolate (it went particularly well with a maple infused chocolate bar that was dappled with alder smoked salt from a lovely local chocolate maker).
Excellent
$32 for 375ml
Niepoort Redoma 2003
Posted by Shea in $40-$60, Portuguese Wine, Red Blends, Very Good on November 29th, 2008
Niepoort is best known as a family firm producing superb vintage ports. However, although this part of their operation has less breadth of recognition, they also produce some fantastic dry red blends from grapes grown in the Douro valley. I think Portugal is an exciting place for wine right now, although they are having some problems with marketing themselves as well as the other big European exporters. They are, nevertheless, worth seeking out for good quality and good value dry red wines.
This particular red blend was very rich and dark in the glass. Its nose of blueberry, plum and earth was powerful and yet restrained. A tasty earthy and blueberry tang fills the mouth as the wine progresses smoothly to a licorice and herb-like mid-palate and into a nice mid to long finish. While not terribly complex, I do think the Redoma strikes a good compromise between flavour, drinkability and length. It is, perhaps, a tad too expensive in this market, but I expect it is less than half price down south.
Very Good
$56 at BCLDB
Quinta do Crasto Touriga Nacionale 2001
Posted by Shea in $60+, Excellent, Portuguese Wine, Touriga Nacionale on November 7th, 2008
I’ve become quite fascinated with Portuguese dry reds in the past couple year after tasting a Quinta do Crasto old vine Douro blend from 2004. Over time I managed to pick up a fair sampling of Crasto’s more expensive bottlings on sale at the signature store in downtown Vancouver. The aging potential is still not the same as top french wines, but I like the fact that these wines can be consumed younger – I already have enough stuff waiting in the cellar as it is.
The nose on this Varietal wine (Touriga Nacionale) was rich in bacon fat and luscious dark fruit. The palate was incredibly silky with blueberry, chocolate, and dark berry compote. Round and port-like, this was also delicate with very fine tannin. Perhaps fading slightly now, this could have used a bit more grip, but the elegance and rich luscious fruity goodness was unmistakable. So, while this wine didn’t have a crazy bevy of complex layers nor a particularly long finish, it did have incredible purity of fruit. And, that is pretty enjoyable in itself.
Excellent
$80 ($54 on sale)
2004 Quinta do Crasto Douro Riserva Old Vines
Posted by Shea in $30-$40, Excellent, Portuguese Wine on December 3rd, 2007
I think Portuguese wine is really underrated and generally under the radar. Douro’s tend to be big and intense port-like dry red wines that can often be a great value. The BC LDB doesn’t carry that much of the higher end stuff so it was a nice treat to find this bottle at the Thurlow and Alberni location. The best way I can describe this is really intense and rich chocolatey and leathery flavours that had a good measure of dark berry fruit. However, the wine wasn’t jammy and I wouldn’t describe the fruit as ‘fresh’, but maybe more as ‘withered’. This was a great wine for the price and pretty much typifies the kind of wine making I love. On another note, I have a 2003 sitting around and I think this wine could be pretty interesting with a little age.
Excellent
$35 at BCLDB
