Reguengos Alentejo Garrafeura Dos Sócios 2014

 

This wine is from Alentejo, Portugal, and made from 65% Alicante Bouschet, 20% Touriga Nacional and 15% Tinta Caiada. It was aged in French and American oak, new and used. On the nose it's got some very interesting maple syrup. There's also notes of maraschino cherries, cinnamon, bell pepper, black licorice, and eucalyptus. Very chalky tannin; looooong lasting finish. Hardy and gorgeous! ($48)

Listen to Mike and Joey taste this wine on Grapes & Capes Episode 14: Eleanor Rigby:

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Cartuxa Évora Tinto 2016

This wine is from Alentejo, Portugal, using 40% Aragonez (Tempranillo), 40% Alicante Bouschet, and 20% Trincadeira. The vines are over 30 years old and the wine spent 12 months in French oak. It's got a great earthiness to it with notes of plum skin, blackberries, cocoa powder, tobacco, and vanilla. Nice tart acidity brings the dark fruit into more red on the finish. Very nice! ($25)

Listen to Mike and Joey taste this wine on Grapes & Capes Episode 14: Eleanor Rigby:

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Grapes & Capes Episode #14: Eleanor Rigby

Joey and Mike drink two wines from Alentejo, Portugal (provided by CPalate.com) while talking about Wandavision, Amazing Spider-Man 57 (2021), and Future State: The Dark Detective #1 (2021).

Listen on Anchor / Apple / Google / Spotify

Breaker / Overcast / Pocket Casts / Radio Public / RSS

*** Help Support the Podcast ***

- Wandavision

- Mandalorian is like a video game

- Cutting the fat off of tv shows

- UnitedSommeliersFoundation.org

- Cartuxa Évora 2016

- The history of wine in Alentejo

- Why old vines produce better quality grapes

- String cheese vs fancy food pairings

- Amazing Spider-Man #57 (Legacy #858)

- Is Peter Parker retiring?

- Reguengos Garrafeira dos Socios 2014

- Future State: The Dark Detective #1

- DC's Future State

- Generations Shattered

- All the lonely people

- Back in Time

- Dark Detective Backup: No Future Past

- Joey keeps calling Luke Fox Lucius

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Fonseca BIN No. 27 Port

Honestly I love port all year round but it really does pair especially well with the holiday season. Fonseca is most known for their Vintage Port but their BIN 27 is their, for a lack of a better word, "introductory" non-vintage Ruby Port and it's consistently one of the best deals for the category that you can find almost anywhere. It's a deep dark crimson red with a full body, a lush mouthfeel, and a nice balance of sweetness and acidity. There's aromas and flavors of raisins, plums, blackberries, and licorice. Then the long lasting and sweet finish adds a bit of chocolate to the mix. Delicious and a great deal for a $21 port.

The bottle used was supplied free of charge for the purpose of this unpaid review. To have your wine reviewed follow this link.

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Wine Quickie: Casa Santos Lima Portugal Red Blend 2017

So I brought this wine home to see if we should carry it at work. It's a red blend of unnamed native Portuguese grapes and it'll run you about $8. There's lots of jammy plums and black cherries all over the nose and palate, along with fine black table pepper, vanilla, and olives. It's medium bodied with a nicely rich mouthfeel, soft tannins, and a bright acidity. It's not bad for the price, although you can do better, and the label would be sure to attract attention.

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Wine Reviews: Best of Winter 2018/19!

Today is the first day of Spring, so here's the best wines that I reviewed for this Winter season!

#5. Corvezzo Terre di Marca Rosé "Sur lie" Frizzante

Region: Veneto, Italy
Review Release: December 23rd, 2018

I freaking love this. I love its personality. It's so very interesting on the nose and so fun and thirst quenching on the palate. That tart acidity on the finish is just begging for some food, too. Suddenly I really want fish tacos to pair with this. Unfortunately it doesn't look like this is available in United States right now, but it's sold for roughly $13 in the European Union. So I'm running with that. And I'm giving a damn good score.

READ THE FULL REVIEW / WATCH THE YOUTUBE VIDEO

QUALITY VS PRICE RATING

Price: $23

Rating: 4.5/5 = Recommended / Highly Recommended(what does that mean?)

#4. Emilio Hidalgo Fino Sherry

Region: Jerez, Spain
Review Release: February 1st, 2019 (Wine Pick of the Month)

This is 100% Palamino. The color of the wine is a golden yellow. Caramel leads the charge of aromas, followed by dried apricots, prunes, brown sugar, and almonds. Fantastic nose. On the palate it's a lighter bodied Sherry, as it should be, with a nice salinity to its mouthfeel and bright acidity. There's flavors of apricots, almonds, Greek olives, and yeast. It feels and tastes so good on the finish that there's no rush to take another sip. Which is a good thing because it has a 15% ABV. Take your time and enjoy.

READ THE FULL REVIEW

QUALITY VS PRICE RATING

Price: $16

Rating: 4.5/5 = Recommended / Highly Recommended (what does that mean?)

#3. Ventisquero "Grey" Glacier Garnacha Cariñena Mataro 2017

Region: Colchagua Valley, Chile
Review Release: January 17th, 2019

The wine is purple in color. On the nose there's aromas of cherries, strawberry jelly, black olives, cinnamon, and burnt toast. The nose is freakin' awesome. In the mouth it's light to medium bodied with a slippery mouthfeel, a pep to its acidity, and sweet tannins. It's got a smokey and savory profile surrounding fruity flavors of cherries and strawberries, and spice flavors of vanilla and cinnamon. Then it finishes savory with flavors of tangy strawberries and gritty leather.

This is absolutely delicious and I couldn't recommend it more for a $20 Grenache blend. The way the savoriness of the midpalate and finish plays with the flavors really make this wine highly enjoyable, and I can't wait to try it with some cheese. With that said, it gets a perfect score in price vs. quality.

READ THE FULL REVIEW / WATCH THE YOUTUBE VIDEO

QUALITY VS PRICE RATING

Price: $20

Rating: 5/5 = Highly Recommended (what does that mean?)

#2. Casa Agricola Santos Jorge Herdade dos Machados Reserva 2012

Region: Alentejo, Portugal
Review Release: March 1st, 2019 (Wine Pick of the Month)

The wine is a dark and inky ruby red in color. The nose is stellar with aromas of black cherries, rose pedals, cloves, vanilla and cracked pepper. True to previous vintages, it’s bold and hedonistic in the mouth with big dark fruit, rosemary and cedar. The tannin is soft but the ethanol shows its strength on the minty, cleansing finish.

Outstanding. Just outstanding. Pair with beef stew, pot roast, or barbecue.

READ THE FULL REVIEW / WATCH THE YOUTUBE VIDEO

QUALITY VS PRICE RATING

Price: $16

Rating: 5/5 = Highly Recommended (what does that mean?)

#1. Matchbook Estate Bottled Petite Sirah 2016

Region:  Dunnigan Hills, California
Review Release: January 3rd, 2019

The color of the wine is a gorgeous ruby red. There's aromas of plums, vanilla, black pepper, and bay leaf. On the palate it's medium to full bodied with a rich mouthfeel that becomes a cloud of lushness when swirled around in the mouth. The tannins are both sweet and grippy, and the acidity is present but takes a seat in the back. There's flavors of blackberries, red apple, black pepper, and vanilla. Then it finishes juicy with the tannins tightening their grip.

For $17 this is a freakin' dream, and a run-away perfect score for a $20 Petite Sirah. The Giguiere's did a hell of a job with this one. It's an absolute joy to drink!

READ THE FULL REVIEW / WATCH THE YOUTUBE VIDEO

QUALITY VS PRICE RATING

Price: $17

Rating: 5/5 = Highly Recommended (what does that mean?)

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Wine Quickie: Monte Velho Tinto 2015

It's been awhile since I've had this inexpensive gem from Alentejo, Portugal. It's 40% Aragonez (Tempranillo), 35% Trincadeira (Tinta Amarela), 20% Touriga Nacional, and 5% Syrah. The color of the wine is ruby red. On the palate it's medium bodied with soft tannin and a nicely balanced acidity. It features blueberries, black cherries, cranberries, earth, and caramel. It finishes with cranberries, black pepper, and far more silky smooth than it should for $8. It's still one hell of a deal.

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March Wine Pick: Casa Agricola Santos Jorge Herdade dos Machados Reserva 2012

My wine pick this month is the current vintage of one of my favorite wines of all time. I've been loving this stuff since the 2007 vintage and now we're up to the 2012 (for what’s at least available in Massachusetts). I'm tellin' ya, I could just smell this stuff all night and be content. It really has one of those noses. And I'm not crazy, because every regular customer that I've sold it to agrees. This is awesome juice.

With its vineyards planted in the late 1800's, Herdade dos Machados is one of the oldest privately owned wineries in the southern Portugal region of Alentejo, where half of the countries cork trees are located. Their 2012 Reserva is a red blend from the native grapes of Aragonez (AKA Tempranillo), Trincadeira, Alfrocheiro and Castelao.

The wine is a dark and inky ruby red in color. The nose is stellar with aromas of black cherries, rose pedals, cloves, vanilla and cracked pepper. True to previous vintages, it’s bold and hedonistic in the mouth with big dark fruit, rosemary and cedar. The tannin is soft but the ethanol shows its strength on the minty, cleansing finish.

Outstanding. Just outstanding. Pair with beef stew, pot roast, or barbecue.

QUALITY VS PRICE RATING

Price: $16

Rating: 5/5 = Highly Recommended (what does that mean?)

The bottle used was purchased by myself for the purpose of this review. To have your wine reviewed follow this link.

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July Wine Pick: Pavão Vinho Verde Branco

This WINE PICK of the month was written for the Luke's of Cape Cod website.

If Dionysus, the Greek god of wine, collaborated with the Horae, the Greek goddesses of the seasons, to create a wine specifically for summer they'd inevitably end up with the Branco (white) version of Vinho Verde from Portugal. Light, uncomplicated, quaffable, and refreshing with a touch of effervescence. It is the epitome of what we call a "porch pounder".

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February Wine Pick: Noval Black Porto

This WINE PICK of the month was written for the Luke's of Cape Cod website.

Nothing warms you up in the cold of February like a glass of port. The sweet Portuguese red wine fortified with brandy is the perfect thing to sip between evening snow shovelings.

My wine pick of the month is produced by one of the oldest and famous porthouses around, Quinta do Noval. Since their registration in 1715, they've been well respected and have earned a reputation for innovation.

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February Wine Pick: Sandeman Fine Rich Madeira

This WINE PICK of the month was written for the Luke's of Cape Cod website.

I always like to make my February wine pick a fortified one because that's the month where we get most of our snow here on Cape Cod. Fortified wine is strengthened with spirits, usually brandy, so it'll keep you warm and toasty between shovelings.

Madeira is a Portuguese island far out in the Atlantic, west of the Strait of Gibraltar. Their wines were like any other until it became a popular stop for sailors, so they fortified it to slow down spoilage on long journeys. At some point somebody left a barrel on deck in the sun for too long and noticed that, when exposed to heat, the fortified wines of Madeira got even better. The style became standard. Madeira became, basically, a slow-baked fortified wine. It was America's favorite wine at the time of our revolution.

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November Wine Pick: Casa Agricola Santos Jorge 2007 Herdade dos Machados Reserva

This WINE PICK of the month was written for the Luke's of Cape Cod website.

The wines of Portugal, outside of Port, don't get their due and it's time that they should. On the label of my wine pick you'll see that two places in the country are named: Alantejo and Moura. Alantejo is a rather large portion of southern Portugal and is famous for their cork oak forests. Moura is within southeastern Alantejo, bordering Spain.

The 2007 Herdade dos Machados is a red blend from the native grapes of Aragonez (AKA Tempranillo), Trincadeira, Alfrocheiro and Castelao. It's been awarded wine competition silver medals in France and Germany, and received 91 points from Wine Enthusiast.

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Madeira should be your Independence Day beverage

I know most people say you should drink Zinfandel on July 4th because it's uniquely American but that's simply untrue. Zinfandel is the son of the Croatian grape Crljenak Kaštelanski and also has a sister known as Primitivo in Italy. What you should do is get yourself a bottle of Madeira to celebrate this Independence Day.

Madeira is the wine that the forefathers drank more than any other. The price and the tax for the wines of France, Porto from Portugal and Sherry from Spain was sky high. Ever the cost-cutters, it was time to find some different options. There was this little island named Madeira, far out in the Atlantic, west of the Straight of Gibraltar and is today property of Portugal, that was more than willing to send them their fortified wine on the cheap. America gobbled it up.

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