Wine & Spirits - Winter 2017 - 124

100 BEST BUYS OF THE YEAR
222733

92 | Quinta da Lixa

P O RT U G A L
BAIRRADA
219781

93 | Vadio

$20

2015 Bairrada Vinho Branca ^ Luis Petrão,
who, until recently, was the winemaker at
Esporão in Alentejo, started this project with
his father, Dinis, at his family's vineyards in
Bairrada. He has quickly entered into the top
ranks of a region beginning to reclaim its former glory, not just for reds from the persnickety baga grape, but especially for long-lived
whites. Mostly old-vine cerceal, this elegant
wine captures the limestone in which it grows
in a focused and concentrated scent of seashells. A smaller portion of bical, fermented
in old oak barrels, lends a caramelized note
of richness, pointing up the sweetness of
the fruit as it expands over the wine's crisp
coastal freshness. Built to cellar. (W&S 8/17) §
Grape2Glass, Newark, NJ

VINHO VERDE
222730

94 | Anselmo Mendes

$20

2016 Vinho Verde Alvarinho Contacto ^
Anselmo Mendes focuses this wine on vines
close to the Río Minho, where the soils are
pebbly and deep. He destems the grapes and
allows them to macerate for a short time with
their skins, then clarifies the juice before fermentation. That skin contact builds texture
and grip in the wine, and brings in the flavor of fruit skin-peach fuzz and Granny
Smith apple peel. Overall, this feels like a
classical alvarinho in 2016, long on scents of
smoky almonds and lemon pith, spicy, cool
and refreshing. It will age with grace. (W&S
8/17) § Grape2Glass, Newark, NJ
219932

94 | Soalheiro

$22

2015 Vinho Verde Monção e Melgaço Granit Mineral Selection Alvarinho ^ This is the
first vintage of Granit, a selection from vineyards at elevations above 500 feet. It shows
beautiful ripeness-brother-and-sister-team
Luís and Maria João Cerdeira harvest these
higher-altitude vines last, late in September,
and point up the mineral expression with
extended aging on the fine lees. What they've
created is a romantic seaside wine, packed
with Atlantic deliciousness, its scents of white
roses, toasted nut and dripping-ripe peaches
toned by something akin to the flavor of percebes, the local gooseneck barnacles, only
paler. You can breathe the sea in the end of
the wine. This will gain in complexity as it
ages, though if you open it now, it will elevate
a whole roasted fish into a memorable meal.
(W&S 8/17) § Wine In-Motion USA, Union, NJ
124

WINE & SPIRITS

$13

2016 Vinho Verde Aromas das Castas
Alvarinho-Trajadura ^ At one point in our
tasting cycle, our panel tasted a dozen 2016
Vinho Verdes and recommended three of
them; all three were made by Quinta da
Lixa, and all overdelivered at their price.
This one is richly fruited, with notes of fresh
peach and deeper tones of papaya. It's dry
and flinty, a little briskness added by some
CO2, refreshing and just dressy enough for a
summer wedding. (W&S 8/17) § Grape2Glass,
Newark, NJ

persimmon-like scents and tannins that have
the grit of stone-ground chocolate, this is
compellingly drinkable and delicious. Stock
up for the holidays. (W&S 12/16) § Premium
Port Wines, San Francisco, CA
215343

94 | Fonseca

$25

2013 Dão ^ If you like the bright, floral rusticity of a great cru Beaujolais, check out this
sunny Dão. It smells of red roses and tastes
like rock, even as it's infused with the presence of rich black fruit to keep the texture
generous. A chewy young Dão, this is built
for cured meats. (W&S 4/17) § Domaine Select
Wine Estates, NY

2011 Porto LBV ^ David Guimaraens blends
this wine from Fonseca Vintage lots that do
not make the final cut, along with wines
initially designated for LBV. He bottles the
wine unfined and unfiltered, intending it to
be decanted. His 2011 is remarkable: It has
the succulent fruit depths of the Fonseca
style, and the intensity of a Vintage-level
wine. You could quibble and say the tannins
are not Vintage quality, with some rhubarblike astringency, or the wine is too big and
powerful for an LBV. But you're not likely
to find many LBVs with this full-on ripeness,
extraordinary lusciousness and complex flavor length. It's one of several outstanding
LBVs from the 2011 vintage, which we covered in depth in our December 2016 issue.
(W&S 2/17) § Kobrand, Purchase, NY

DOURO RED

S O U T H A F RI C A

DAO RED
219417

91 | Alvaro Castro

$15

CHENIN BLANC
120330

93 | Terre Brulée

217350

90 | Ramos Pinto

$15

2014 Douro Duas Quintas ^ Spicy schist
notes greet you when you first smell this
wine, the gentle warmth of sun on stone that
captures this wine's fruit at a fine moment of
ripeness. Designed as an estate blend from a
warmer schist site near the river and a cooler,
high-elevation granitic vineyard, this vintage
of Duas Quintas is impressive for its jasminescented purple fruit and lasting spice. Pour
it with spicy braised pork. (W&S 4/17) § Maisons Marques & Domaines USA, Oakland, CA

PORTO

SAUVIGNON BLANC

217263

94 | Dow's

$25

2011 Porto LBV ^ This offers more immediate
pleasures than the vintage Dow's declared in
2011-it comes across as an idealized LBV
rather than a baby Vintage. Formidable in
its black density and red spice, fragrant with

BUYING GUIDE 2018

$16

2016 Swartland Tania & Vincent Carême
Le Blanc Chenin Blanc ^ Vincent Carême has
earned two Top 100 awards from W&S, based
on the wines he makes at his family's estate
in Vouvray. His wife is from South Africa, and
together they started this project in Swartland, working with 40-year-old dry-farmed
bush vines growing on decomposed granite.
He ferments the wine without added yeasts
and ages it in a combination of stainless
steel and 500-liter French oak barrels (half
of them new). This is an exciting wine, not
only for the freshness of its chenin expression-bathed in scents of chamomile flowers, tart orange, lemongrass and herbs-but
also for its price, which is astonishing considering how much depth of flavor the wine
has on offer. Grape-skin tannins add to the
richness of the texture, while brisk acidity
keeps it tight, focusing its juicy flavors to
match fresh goat cheese. (W&S 6/17) § Cape
Classics, NY
120157

90 | Durbanville Hills

$15

2016 Durbanville Sauvignon Blanc ^ Based
in the coastal hills north of Capetown, this
winery is a joint venture between Distell and
nine growers in Tygerberg, including some

http://www.mmdusa.net/Ramos-Pinto/index

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wine & Spirits - Winter 2017