En Sancerre i mængden

Aftenens vin

En hurtig lille post. Jeg samlede igår en ung flaske Sancerre fra Domaine De La Garenne op fra HJ Hansen vin. Der er desværre lidt langt imellem at jeg smager vine fra Loire, men da aftenens menu var inspireret af den lettere del af det franske cousine faldt valget på denne vin let.
God (stor) og liflig bouquet af med masser af frugt, æble, pære, med strejf af noget mere eksotisk som mango og Ananas. På toppen ligger en fin note af Stjerneanis. Smagen liflig og let krydret.  Jeg havde forventet lidt mere, men jeg er måske også mere til Chardonnay end Sauvignon blanc. Kort sagt: et straight godt glas hvid men huset er ikke en "forglem mig ej" oplevelse. 129 kr - 88P

The Puzzle of Portuguese wine

Illustration by Edel Rodriguez

Thats the title of a recent article featuring Portuguese wine and gastronomy in Wall Street Journal. Link to the full article about the international potential of Portuguese wines with comments here.

Sylvaner - not for the average consumer

Zellberg an Alsacian sylvaner with glass
sealing cap.

Three very different wines were tested last weekend, an amongst those were an Alsace Sylvaner, which is rather rare on the danish shelfs. Perhaps also for a reason, I will come back to that point.  We also tried a funky grape mix from Argentina which is worth seeking out as an alternative for a right bank Bordeaux. Finally we made tasted the 2007 Reserva vintage of the old Cartuxa monastry from Portugal.


Zellberg l'Hermitage 2008, Domaine Julien Meyer 
The wine is clear with an olive glance. The bouquet presents itself with two distictive notes, pear cider and oxidated sherry. Also a note of wet wood and a less charming egde of petrol or medicine cabinet.  The taste is very fruity with notes of pear peel.

This is clearly a wine for those who seek something different. Even the sealing is made with glass, something we have not seen in prestigious wines such as this. In conclusion, this wine may well be classified as an art'y wine and we are way off the main roads of winemaking. The bottle is found among the selected wines from the famous restaurants NOMA and RELÆ in Copenhagen. We acquired one bottle as a gift (DK price is 135kr). We found the wine hard to classify and although it has character, it did not score well amongst us. Points averaged at 78P.

Clos de los Siete 2008 

The wines of the evening

Notes of leather, black strawberries, moist cellar, vanilla. The taste is very smooth (almost designed) with notes of liquirice with a nice dry acidic finish.

It is clearly a wine for an international market, and the product does not appear unique upon first tasting. However, the wine is assembled with great mix bordeaux grapes and syrah placed on top of a main body consisting of Malbec. The label reads 56% malbec, 21% merlot, 10% Cabernet S. 11% Syrah and 2% petit verdot. The wine is made by Michel Rolland who has a long career in bordeaux wines, and he seem  to have had a clear finger print on right banked taste of this wine. The wine was bought for 160kr and we scored it 89P.

Cartuxa Reserva 2007
Power full nose of pine wood, tobacco leaves, coffe on a base of barnyard. The taste is smooth, restrained and notes of licorice.
It clearly plays with its muscles in the glass but upon drinking it is beautifully restrained. We are not dealing with a ribena bomb, but a wine of high authentic class. Available in Denmark via the Portuguese wine cellar for 237kr. 91P

Bairrada simple and different

The Portuguese wine region Bairrada lies in the shade of the prestigeous regions counting Duero, Dão and Alentejo. However, a little research may well be rewarded. I came across a simple and cheap Campolargo product "Faro" (eng: sniff) - with no details given of grapes. I am sure the bottle is a result of a local mix.

Campolargo Faro 2008
is slight pale red with a bouquet of red cherries, strawberries, spices and brown sugar. The taste fruitdriven with taste of  "kirsch" and a dry finish with a touch of almond essence.

I quite like this, as it stands out of the "bulk taste" you experience among similiar priced wines in Douro or Alentejo. The wine was bought for 5Eur.  

Portuguese old style, new style and freestyle



Viniportugal at Praça do Comércio

I started my long awaited Lisbon journey off with a flu, but came out on the other side this morning and was able to explore downtown again. Besides scouting out at a few garrafeiras, I also visited viniportugal in Praça do Comércio. At Viniportugal anyone is welcome to try wines for free, all they ask is your feedback. Featured regions in this month were Lisbon, Alentejo and Dão. Here are my notes on a handfull of wines that I tried..  

Quinta do Boiçao 2007

Arinto in great hands

100% Arinto

Nose of exotic fruits, flowers and nuts. Taste is light and fresh with notes of applejuice, yet finalize with notes of something creamy/nutty that lasts (+30sec). This is a great wine and I had no idea that Arinto could be this good. Quinta do Boição also produces reds and this appears to be a producer to look out for. 88P

Sarmentu 2008

Alfrocheiro, T.roriz (Tempranillo) & Jaen (Mencia)

Nose of dark red berries, leather and a piff of “sourness”. The taste is rounded and well structured. To me this wine represent a perhaps modern, but anonymous style. 84P

Quinta da Fata classic 06

Touriga Nacional, Alfrocheiro preto, T.roriz  & Jaen (Mencia)

Bouquet of red cherries, savory notes on a base of wet soil. The wine has a great structure, and while the bouquet weighs heavy in the glass, the wine is simply feather light. It reminded me somewhat of a Northern Bourgogne wine. I have been following Quinta da Fata for some years, and I keep wondering why this wine/brand is not doing better on the national and international markets. Quinta da Fata is even hard to find in Lisbon. It's old Dão wine at its best and 'a-dont-miss´wine in my book. 90P (sells at 7Eur at Viniportugal)

Two great reds and one forgettable

Quinta da Fata Reserva 2007

Touriga Nacional (50%), Alfrocheiro preto (15%), T.roriz (10%), Jaen (10%) & Trincadeira (10%)

Red cherries, leather, salted meat, and notes of barnyard. The taste is somewhat sweeter than the classic 2006 vintage. the taste is rounded and elegant. Please also read another review of this great and quite unknown wine on the Catavino site. 91P (sells at 9 Eur at Viniportugal)

Campolargo Dão 2007

Touriga Nacional, Alfrocheiro, T.roriz (Tempranillo) & Pinot noir

Bouquet of strawberries, blood, wet stones, flinty, and barnyard/wild ferment.

Taste is well balanced. A new note came on the aftertaste that I did not pin down…till next time. However, Mario Campolargo has certainly made a flagship among Dão wines with this particular wine. It bows for Bourgogne, and I love it. 92P

- anders

Off to Lisbon

Happy New Year. I am only one day away from Lisbon and tryouts of new Portuguese wines. 
Unfortunately I have not pre-ordered bottles, but with some luck I may still get my hands of interesting bottles. For instances new Niepoorts Projects (Curios about Bastado 08'), new 'vinho verdes' or to see whether Richard Maysons Pedra Alma from Qta. do Centro has been released. 


So a new Lisbon Report 2011 awaits on the site.