Wine & Spirits - August 2018 - 65

YEAR'S BEST VINHO VERDES
Our blind panels tasted 104 new-release Vinho Verde wines over the past 12 months. Joshua Greene, our critic for Portugal, rated 20 as
exceptional (90+) and 13 as Best Buys. Find a complete list of wines tasted and all reviews at wineandspiritsmagazine.com.

230309

93 | Quintas de Melgaço

$45

93 | Anselmo Mendes

$40

2017 Vinho Verde QM Vinhas Velhas
Alvarinho ^ This is a single-parcel alvarinho,
selected from vines at least 20 years old. This
wine's jasmine scents and pale grapefruit tension give it a coolness and layered fruit complexity that lasts. The leesy savor makes the
minerality feel textural, as if the wine were
carved from stone. Powerful and youthful,
this will age with grace, or decant it now for
roast monkfish with morels. § M Imports, Fairfield, CT
231310
2016 Vinho Verde Expressões ^ More cushioned than most alvarinhos, this wine develops its elegance in 400-liter French oak barrels, where it ferments and then ages for nine
months on its lees. It's supple, with tangy citrus notes tightening around the minerality-
there's no blunt leesiness here, more a fine
edge of talc. This is a satisfying and satiating
Atlantic white, especially with a grilled whole
sea bass. § Aidil Wines & Liquors, Newark, NJ
230151

93 | Reguengo de Melgaço $21

2016 Vinho Verde Monção e Melgaço
Alvarinho ^ This starts off as varietally correct alvarinho-a selection from vines averaging 20 years old, grown on gravelly granitic
sands. It keeps getting better over the course
of a day, its pale pink grapefruit and buttery
peach flavors turning racy, then gracious, an
earthy Atlantic wine that's not particularly
powerful, but has flavor depth. § Kysela Père
et Fils, Winchester, VA
226348

93 | Soalheiro

$29

2016 Vinho Verde Primeiras Vinhas
Alvarinho ^ Maria João and Luis Cerdeira are
the brother-and-sister team who farm these
vines their father planted in 1974. Most of
this wine ferments in stainless steel at low
temperatures, with 15 percent of the blend
in neutral oak barrels. Its notes of crisp pear
and fresh, toasty lees brought executive editor Tara Q. Thomas a vivid and immediate
sensation of summer sun on a rocky coastal
hillside with thyme blossoms and plenty of
fresh air. The concentration and intensity
of the flavor suggest the wine has a long life
ahead. § Wine In-Motion USA, Union, NJ
231517

92 | Aphros

$16

2016 Vinho Verde Loureiro ^ Youthful and
substantial, this is a meaty loureiro that gains
its texture and creamy, almost tannic power
through some maceration with the skins
before fermentation. The flavors are broad
and open, with high tones of peach over
umami-rich bass notes. The savory structure
set the panel on a food riff...white sausages
with morels and ramps...a savory egg custard
with bacalhão and new potatoes... § Michael
Skurnik Wines, NY

231124

92 | Giroflé

$19

2017 Vinho Verde Loureiro ^ João Matos
makes this plump and fragrant loureiro
from vines grown in the Tamega river valley,
which he describes as a warm transition zone
between Vinho Verde and Douro region. It's
rich with ripe citrus flavors of grapefruit and
lime, layered with umami notes of smoke and
seashells. As powerful and substantial as the
wine may be, it's also mouthwatering, targeted at raw shellfish or saba sashimi. § Misa
Imports, Dallas, TX
226344

92 | Soalheiro

$56

2016 Vinho Verde Quinta de Soalheiro
Reserva Alvarinho ^ The Cerdeiras farm
their estate vines organically, using a selection of fruit from those plots in Melgaço for
this Reserva, fermented and aged in French
oak. Everything is fresh about this wine, from
the brisk oceanic character to the fruit scents
of orange zest and ripe cantaloupe. The oak
influence adds richness in notes of butter
and cedary warmth. Give this cellar time to
integrate, then serve it with charcuterie and
chunks of rosemary-olive focaccia. § Wine InMotion USA, Union, NJ
231518

91 | Aphros

$19

91 | Aveleda

$10

91 | Quinta da Lixa

$16

91 | Anselmo Mendes

$15

91 | Anselmo Mendes

$20

2015 Vinho Verde Daphne ^ This is a biodynamically grown loureiro, allowed some
skin contact before settling in stainless-steel
tanks, then fermented in a combination of
those tanks and barrels, some French oak,
some chestnut. If you like pale, salty, stony
whites, you could spend some time just
smelling this wine. The follow-through is
more subdued, still youthful, a relatively
broad and sturdy Vinho Verde hinting at
mineral notes and quiet peach flavors. Pour
it alongside nettle pasta tossed with pine nuts
and lemon zest. § Michael Skurnik Wines, NY
231134
2017 Vinho Verde Quinta da Aveleda
(Best Buy) ^ Amazing: Fresh white refreshment for $10. Buy a case and you'll have a
savory, salty Atlantic white to drink all summer long. Right now, it's delicate, with filigreed lemon-lime flavors offering fruit depth
before signing off in a crisp, clean finish. Chill
it as an early-evening aperitif, a brunch wine
for bacalhão fritters or pike quenelles, or a
picnic wine for ventresca tuna salad. § Aveleda,
Pawtucket, RI
230611
2017 Vinho Verde Pouco Comum Alva-
rinho (Best Buy) ^ This estate-grown alvarinho is bold and leesy, almost tannic in its
smoky mineral complexity. Completely dry,
it offers scents of mandarin orange and lemongrass to cut through crisp salmon-skin
sushi. § Grape2Glass, Newark, NJ
230616
2017 Vinho Verde Passaros Loureiro ^ While
the texture of this wine is rich and lush, the
acidity keeps it tightly focused, with notes of
mint and bay leaf. It's clean and refreshing,
substantial enough to serve with a lemony
chicken fricassee. § Grape2Glass, Newark, NJ
230615
2017 Vinho Verde Contacto ^ Anselmo
Mendes blends this alvarinho from grapes
grown close to the Minho on granitic soils
over alluvial pebbles. He allows the grapes
to macerate with their skins and later, post
fermentation, he ages it for at least four
WINE & SPIRITS

AUGUST 2018

65
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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wine & Spirits - August 2018
