Friday 30 January 2009

50 Great Wines of Portugal - a super tasting and great wines!

Last Wednesday I went to the 2009 version of the "50 Great Wines of Portugal" tasting. This year the wines were selected by Jamie Goode (http://www.wineanorak.com).

Every year this tasting proves to be one of my favourites but this year, not only did more of the wines (14) I sell appear, but one of the wines I import made the grade. That wine is Quinta de San Jose Tinto 2005.

João Brito e Cunha is the winemaker and one of the well-known generation of Portuguese oenologists. In addition to his own wines, he is responsible for the Douro table wine project for Churchill Estates. Jamie Goode said this about the wine, "I like the style [the winemaker is] aiming for: freshness and elegance rather than power."

Decanter also gave the wine 4 stars and named it one of the top Portuguese reds under £20 - They said, "Sun-baked blackberries and earthy, savoury notes. Plenty of perfume and minerals - a complex and expansive nose. Soft, sweet concentration. Fine balance and elegance. Liquorice and black plums. Lovely mineral length. Excellent."

It's a good value at £17.54. You can find it at http://www.ultimatewines.co.uk.