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. I would break out the strongly flavored cheese, like Stilton with this wine for a [...]

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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 celebrates bold flavours and an underlying sense of the fortifying spirit. Verdelho is a style of [...]

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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 acidity taking the flavors for a lengthy ride down your palate.
This wine was aged in [...]

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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 silky character, very much so considering the youthful state of this wine. Lay this away [...]

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Soalheiro, Vinho Verde, Moncao, Alvarinho 2008 In the nose you’ll find lime and stones. In the mouth the lime really shows, with plenty of tart character, long acidity, good concentration and a bit of petillance – very refreshing. I know you’ve had many a lean Vinho Verde but this is not that. The grapes are [...]

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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 $37.99 for a 750ml bottle.
Niepoort Vinhos

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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 view of it at this point shows a nice integration of the fortifying spirit and [...]

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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 of spirit for warmth. The grapes behind this wine are Touriga Nacional, Touriga Francesca, Tinta [...]

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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 was originally written in July ‘09; Not an Alvarinho-only Vinho Verde as their are four [...]

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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 wine the more it grew on me – very nice. Produced & Bottled by Vinhos [...]

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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 Symington Family Estates in Oporto 20% $29.99 at Bottle Barn Dow’s

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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 and cherry flavors. The price has really moved down so that while this vintage is [...]

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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 by Symington Family Estates in Oporto 19.5% $22.49 at the Wine Merchant

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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. Thus it’s not as fresh and clean as the example from Famega, which is spot [...]

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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 is an integrated oaky richness and a sense of ripe tannins. The grapes are Tinta [...]

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Fâmega Vinho Verde Denominação de Origem Controlada Vinho Branco 2007 This is a personal favorite for lean white wine on a budget. There’s citrus in the nose and the petillance is quite palpable on this date, adding to the livliness.
Notes on the ‘06: Lean and green and pétillant – a great value example; petillance [...]

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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 all of that in a framework of acidity. There’s plenty of weight from the underlying alcohol [...]

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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

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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 not bothered by a little kick in their after-dinner beverage. Bottled in 2007 in Oporto, by [...]

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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 little spiritous to smell but the alcohol is integrated on the palate. Bring me some Rocquefort [...]

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Taylor Fladgate Porto Late Bottle Vintage 2000
Porty and pruny – w noticeable alcohol – true to type and sometimes the wine seems to have the alcohol integrated even better than usual. Bottled in 2006 in Oporto, by Taylor across in Vila Nova De Gaia. 20% $17.99 at Bottle Barn Taylor
Fonseca Porto 10 Year Old [...]

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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’s so good with Rocquefort. Produced and bottled by the Madeira Wine Company in Funchal 19% $23 for a full bottle [...]

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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 simply Roriz. This flight looks at Tempranillo in varying percentages from both countries [...]

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