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Month: February 2020

Wine of the Week

Infantado’s organic ruby

I have just come back from the Simplesmente Vinho fair in Porto, where João Roseira is chief organizer. This year I chose to visit some wineries of the Douro valley after the fair, Roseira’s own Quinta do Infantado among them. While João has handed down the enology responsibilities to 6h generation, his nephew Álvaro, he is still in charge of viticulture.

João Roseira

Infantado has a long history; and celebrated their first 200 years in 2016. Yet they are in many ways in the avant-garde. They were the first producer to break the monopoly of the négociants in Vila Nova de Gaia, by starting to bottle in the Douro valley in 1979 and export directly from there in 1986.

They have 46 hectares in the Covas de Douro, 4 km from Pinhão. 12 of these are organically grown, the rest is sustainable viticulture. This ruby is sourced from three vineyards called Pousado, Barreiro and Serra Douro, that cover 6 hectares on schist soil at an altitude of 250-350 meters. It is made from grape varieties touriga franca, tinta roriz and touriga nacional, as well as an old field blend that makes up 5%. There are three vintages blended together here, 2016, ’17 and ’18.

Álvaro Roseira, 6th generation with an impressive range

At Infantado the ports ferment longer than usual, so at an earlier stage there is less residual sugar and more alcohol. Therefore less addition is needed, and the brandy is added gradually. Consecuently the ports tend to have a natural appearance, and both sugar and alcohol are nicely balanced with the fruit. This is also the case with their Reserva Ruby. It has around 50 grams of residual sugar, and carries the term “meio-seco” (medium dry) on the label. Also unlikely for a ruby, it was bottled unfiltered.

Reserva Ruby (Quinta do Infantado)

Deep red, violet edge. Smells of blackcurrant and blackberry with plums, with notes of eucalyptus and aromatic herbs and flowers. It’s fresh for a port, nicely balanced, showing both elegance and refinement.

Price: Medium

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Wine bars and restaurants and Wine of the Week

Uivo Moscatel at Folias de Baco

Tiago Sampaio is the driving force behind the Folias de Baco project. The name is mainly associated with his winery. But there is also a wine bar with that name in the center of Porto. Tiago delivers the wine, in fact they only serve his wines. I went there during the Simplesmente Vinho wine fair, together with my friend and colleague wine writer Paul Op ten Berg, a former sommelier from Den Haag.


André, Mariana and Carlos

They serve delicious small dishes, mainly torricado, with toppings of choice. Torricado is a Portuguese form of bruschetta, toasted over charcoal, soaked in olive oil, with garlic and salt). They also have set menus, under the “Flavours of Douro” designation, and a vegetarian option too.

Studying the back label
Paul takes a closer look at the back label

I will come back to my visit to the producer. Today I just want to bring your attention to an extraordinary wine that can stand as a prime example of the new wave of Douro wines that are coming now; low alcohol, fresh acidity, high energy.

It’s made mostly from the moscatel galego grape, a local version of the muscat à petit grains. It originates in the family’s high altitude schist soils in Alijó. The 2019 had just arrived in the bar when it was served us.

Uivo Moscatel Galego Branco 2019 (Folias de Baco, Tiago Sampaio)

Yellow colour. Aromas of white flowers, peach and lemon-balm, but also with some minerality. It’s dry, with a lovely integrated natural acidity, and pure flavours all the way. This is a vibrant high-energy wine. Truly inspiring.

Price: Medium

Food: We had it with the Douro plate that included toast, olives, cheeses and charcuterie, but should go to a variety of salads, fish and shellfish and much more

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Wine of the Week

Brezo for Bierzo

Bordeaux native Grégory Pérez is the driving force behind Mengoba in Bierzo. He is found by the river Cúa, in the municipality of Espanillo, where he makes brilliant terroir-focused whites and reds from steep vineyards.

Brezo is a second label for the wines that he makes as a négociant, still following the same principles.

This wine is made from mostly mencía, but with some 15% alicante bouschet. It’s made from vines planted in 1985, 550 meters above sea level. The soils are clay with some sand. The grapes were destemmed and crushed, followed by a traditional vinification with pumpovers. It was then raised in steel, only lightly fined and filtered, and it comes with a low alcohol (12,5%).

Brezo 2018 (Mengoba, Gregory Pérez)

Dark cherry colour. Young blueberry, violets and dark fruit aroma. Juicy, round, delicious, with natural, integrated acidity.

Price: Low

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Wine of the Week

Limestone rocks

No, this is not just a slick heading, but actually the name of the wine. For so much loves Rheinhessen producer Wittman this type of soil that they decided to name a wine after it.

I bought it in a tax-free shop at a ridiculously low price. And in the wine is in fact bottled specifically for the Heinemann group, that’s responsible for the selection of most airports in northern Europe. It reminds me of some of their more basic dry rieslings though, but more about this and this brilliant winery at a later occasion.

Limestone Rocks Riesling Trocken 2018 (Weingut Wittman)

Light yellow. Young, fruity aroma of yellow apples, flowers, and a stony minerality. Young, slender, but with good concentration, slightly spritzy riesling style, and am elegant acidity dancing on the tongue.

Price: Low

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