Wine Regions & Grapes
Sampling of Wineries
Acorn Andrea Oberto Atlas Peak Benziger Beringer Blandy's Bodega Navarro Correas Burgans Cantina Terlano Chimney Rock Chronicle Domaine Carneros Domaine de la Mordoree Dow's Dr. Loosen Emilio Lustau Fonseca Foxen Gaston Riviere Glen Ellen Hess Collection Innocent Bystander Kendall-Jackson Korbel La Caudrina Luna Vineyards Madeira Wine Company Martin Codax Masi Merryvale Mulderbosch Navarro Vineyards Pahlmeyer Roederer Estate Ruggeri Sawyer Cellars Sbragia Six Sigma Winery St. James Steltzner Vineyards Trinchero Winery Trione V. Sattui Winery William Fevre Wilson Winery
Category Archives: Portugal
Dow’s Porto
Dow’s, Porto, Quinta do Bomfim, Vintage 1996 The nose features brandied cherries, with a bit of prunes as well. In the mouth, the tannins have resolved yielding a silky yet warm dessert, with the beginning of some nuttiness. This is … Continue reading
Posted in Fortified dessert, Port, Portugal, Single Quinta Port, Tawny Port
Tagged Dow's
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Rare Wine Co. Malmsey Special Reserve
The Rare Wine Co., Madeira, Historic Series, New York Malmsey, Special Reserve nv The nose is smoky and dark, with brown sugar and more than a hint of the fortifying spirit. In the mouth, the pruny character is in full … Continue reading
Posted in Fortified dessert, Madeira, Malmsey, Malvasia, Portugal
Tagged Rare Wine Co.
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Blandy’s 5 Year Sercial
Blandy’s, Madeira, 5 Year Old, Sercial nv The nose features dried fruits and nuts, melding a sense of citrus and raisins with honey all wrapped into a nutty dessert. The complexity is great and always leads one down a garden … Continue reading
Posted in Aperitif, Madeira, Portugal, Sercial
Tagged Blandy's; Madeira Wine Company
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Dow’s Porto LBV 2004
Dow’s, Porto, Late Bottled Vintage 2004 Blackberries and prunes mark the nose with an appropriate sense of the fortifying spirit. In the mouth, chocolate combines with nuts and figs and brandy’s strength. Bottled in 2009 by Symington Family Estates in … Continue reading
Blandy 5 Year Bual
Blandy’s, Madeira, 5 Year Old, Bual nv Toffee meets raisins with a spriritous character in the nose. In the mouth the weight is there, with nuttiness, caramel and a lighter shade of residual sugar than you find with Blandy’s Malmsey. … Continue reading
Posted in Bual, Fortified dessert, Madeira, Portugal
Tagged Blandy's, Madeira Wine Company
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Blandy’s 5 Year Old Verdelho
Blandy’s, Madeira, 5 Year Old, Verdelho nv The flavor profile puts together the best of Amontillado from Spain with a splash of sweetness. You’ll find a woody, nutty essence with warmth and dried oranges. This is a weighty aperitif that … Continue reading
Posted in Aperitif, Madeira, Portugal, Verdelho
Tagged Blandy's, Madeira Wine Company
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Fonseca 20 Year Old Tawny
Fonseca, Porto, 20 Year Old, Tawny nv The nose features brown sugar and cinnamon infused into oranges cooked over an open flame. In the mouth it is caramel personified, with a healthy dose of brandy and an underlying sense of … Continue reading
Dow’s Vintage Porto 2007
Dow’s, Porto, Vintage 2007 This baby of a Port smells of sweet black fruits, oranges, candied berries, a notion of flowers and the spirit that fortified it. In the mouth it is dense yet already smoothing out, approachable with a … Continue reading
Niepoort Tawny 10
Niepoort, Porto, 10 Years Old, Tawny, nv Caramel and spirit entwined, with nuts and a nice thread of acidity. The RS is 106.3 grams per litre. Produced and bottled in Porto 20% $19.99 at Bottle Barn for a 375ml and … Continue reading
Posted in Fortified dessert, Port, Portugal, Tawny Port
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Dow’s Vintage 2003
Dow’s, Porto, Vintage 2003 Black fruits and brandy mark the nose, in the way that you would expect. In the mouth there is the trademark flavor that always reminds me of linzer torte. This is still a baby but a … Continue reading
Posted in Fortified dessert, Port, Portugal
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Graham’s Six Grapes
Graham’s, Porto, “Six Grapes”, Reserve nv The nose combines blackberry liqueur, raisins and a spiritous note. In the mouth you taste something akin to blackberry candy poured over a Tootsie Roll – chocolate and black fruit with a healthy shot … Continue reading
Posted in Fortified dessert, Port, Portugal, Touriga Nacional
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Famega Vinho Verde Branco 2008
Fâmega, Vinho Verde DOC, Vinho Branco 2008 This latest vintage is true to form, petillant, light-bodied and zippy. The latest bottling code is # 0905051for the bottle purchased on Jan. 27, 2010. The previous was # 0905049 when this post … Continue reading
Posted in Minho, Portugal, Vinho Verde
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Broadbent Malmsey 10
Broadbent, Madeira, 10 Years Old, Malmsey nv This Malmsey has floral notes, minerality and a sense of the fortification. The mouth features a combo of toffee, sweetness and a balance of cranberries and acidity. The more time spent with this … Continue reading
Posted in Fortified dessert, Madeira, Malvasia, Portugal
Tagged Broadbent, Vinhos Justino Henriques
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Dow’s 10 Year Tawny
Dow’s, Porto, 10 Year, Tawny nv The nose features caramel, toasted notes and quite a spiritous character. In the mouth the wine is lusciously sweet, the alcohol is integrated and the nuts and caramel carry a long time. Bottled by … Continue reading
Posted in Port, Portugal, Tawny Port
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Taylor Fladgate LBV 2003
Taylor Fladgate, Porto, Late Bottled Vintage 2003 The new release is available to us and it shows the characteristic pruny and stewed fruits in the nose. In the mouth there is a sense of the alcohol as well as chocolate … Continue reading
Posted in Port, Portugal
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Dow’s Boardroom Tawny
Dow’s, Porto, Boardroom, Reserve Tawny nv In the nose there is caramel and overt alcohol. In the mouth the same follows through though the often tolerated burn is a bit too much given the rather light concentration of flavor. Bottle … Continue reading
Posted in Fortified dessert, Port, Portugal, Tawny Port
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Alianca Vinho Verde Branco
Caves Allianca, Vinho Verde DOC, Branco When you smell this wine you get a sense that it is aging quickly and starting to tire. What is true to type about this wine is the petillance, light body and high acidity. … Continue reading
Posted in Portugal, Vinho Verde
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Quinta dos Quatro Ventos 2005
Quinta dos Quatro Ventos, Douro DOC 2005 The smell is a mix of black fruits, brambles and earth. In the mouth there is minerality and tart fruit, the acidity making this great with roasted meats. At the same time, there … Continue reading
Posted in Douro, Portugal, Tempranillo, Touriga Franca, Touriga Nacional
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Island wine from Portugal
Cossart Gordon Madeira 5 Years Old Malmsey nv This is a rich style of Madeira from the Malvasia grape, known as Malmsey. The nose features toffee and caramel with a healthy dose of toasted nuts. In the mouth, you taste … Continue reading
Posted in Fortified dessert, Madeira, Malvasia, Portugal
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Madeira my dear?
Cossart Gordon, Madeira, 5 Years Old, Bual nv This is a rich style of Madeira from the Bual grape, though not as sweet as Malmsey. P&B by the Madeira Wine Company in Funchal 19% $21.99 at Bottle Barn Cossart Gordon
Posted in Bual, Madeira, Portugal
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Port if you please
Taylor Fladgate, Porto, Late Bottled Vintage 2001 Dried fruits such as prunes are a common theme with noticeable alcohol – true to type and sometimes the wine seems to have the alcohol integrated even better than usual, though most are … Continue reading
Posted in Port, Portugal
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Blandy’s at the Decade
Blandy’s Madeira 10 Years Old Rich Malmsey nv Last tasting notes show great complexity though the 5 year is a pretty good value. Again the wine is complex, nutty and shaped by the acidity that we expect from Madeira. A … Continue reading
Posted in Madeira, Malvasia, Portugal
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Port Types Compared
Taylor Fladgate, Porto, Late Bottle Vintage 2000 Porty and pruny with a noticable sense of the fortifying spirit – true to type and sometimes the wine seems to have the alcohol integrated even better than usual. Bottled in 2006 in … Continue reading
Blandy’s 5 Year Malmsey
Blandy’s, Madeira, 5 Year Old, Malmsey nv This wine is quite consistent in displaying complexity, sweetness and balancing acidity. Again today’s bottle wraps caramel and butterscotch into a good value fortified dessert wine. For me it makes one of the … Continue reading
Tempted by Tempranillo
Tempranillo plays a key role in the Spanish region of Rioja and along the river Duero aka Douro on the other side of the border in Portugal. In the latter country Tempranillo goes by the name of Tinta Roriz or … Continue reading
Posted in California, Castilla y Leon, Douro, Paso Robles, Portugal, Spain, Tempranillo
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