Recommendation: Recommended as a buy.
Winery/Producer: F. Quinta do Vale Meao, Portugal.
Grape Variety:Blend: Touriga Franca 35%, Touriga National25%, Tinta Roriz 25%, Sonusao 5%, Tinta Amatela 5% and Tino cao 5%.
Geographic Origin:Douro, Portugal.
Vintage: 2008.
Price: $25
Purchased From: Total Wine; Greensboro, North Carolina
Pared With: 1st Tasting: Pork roast, sweet potatoes and green beans.
2nd Tasting: Grilled Pork and basmati rice.
3rd Tasting (09/29/13): Sirloin steak stew, garlic mashed potatoes and Caesar salad.
Tasting:
He said: 1st Tasting: Very dark purple/red color. Earthy and dark berry bouquet that carries through into the taste. Intense, tart, dark fruit taste that goes into a long dry finish with continuing fruit flavor and spice. There is lots of flavor and acid, but it’s pretty much balanced. This is a very nice wine but at $25 I’m not going to rush out to buy more. We will see how the second bottle does before making a recommendation.
2nd Tasting: Almost over whelming, rich full-body taste and a long fruit finish. On this tasting I would say it’s rich and delicious. Lots of zest and packed with fruit.
3rd Tasting: (09/29/13) After the second tasting I bought more of this wine, and we’re glad we did. It was outstanding with the sirloin steak stew, I would say much better than the pork. This is not a passive wine and it really goes well with the strong flavor of the beef.
She said: 1st Tasting: Flavorful bouquet followed by full bodied dark berry taste. Dry, moderately acidic and with firm tannins which is the best feature of the wine. Delicious long finish. Nice wine but over priced at $25.
2nd Tasting: If I had to come up with one word to describe this wine I would say flavorful. And you can not believe how much flavor permeated every part of this wine. the bouquet and flavor over whelmed the senses so that we saved a significant portion to savor after the meal. Full bodied with firm long-lasting tannins, this wine was superb. Although over budget as a bargain wine it was sheer delight and I strongly recommend it. It’s just my kind of wine!!!
3rd Tasting: (09/29/13) Outstanding from start to finish. What a pleasure to savor a fragrant bouquet followed by a dry full bodied wine with firm tannins that lasted into a long finish. My stew seemed very humble compared to the elegance of the wine but the wine was not snooty and accommodated the stew beautifully. It even gracefully accompanied the salad. Smooth and full of flavor I loved this wine and would love to try it with different dinners.
Comments: The first and second tasting meals were very similar; however, we both had very different opinions between the two tastings. Without question, the second tasting was clearly a good wine for the price. And, in the end we liked this wine very much and would recommend it.
Bar code: 031259033051