Entering The World Of Warre’s Port

Exploring the sweet pleasures of Port wine. 

When I had the opportunity to sample four different styles of Warre’s Port, I leaped at the opportunity – and then contacted my friend Arthur Barham of Merlot2Muscadine. Arthur is notorious for his love of Port and he readily agreed to host a tasting event. Not only that, but he prepared an over-the-top charcuterie board to accompany the Port.

Keep up with the latest. Follow us on Instagram!

Warre’s was founded in 1670 and was the first British Port company established in Portugal. Port is a wine from the Douro Valley of Portugal. The name Port Wine is protected. Just like Champagne can only come from the Champagne region of France, Port only comes from Douro Valley in Portugal. Other wineries can make “port-style” wine, just not Port.

England and Portugal have a long history as trading partners. When conflict with France resulted in a ban on French wine in the 17th century, Portugal was there to fill the void. To withstand the long voyage on sailing ships, the wines were fortified with brandy. This not only preserved the wine but stopped the fermentation process, resulting in a higher concentration of sugar along with higher alcohol content.

Charcuterie courtesy of Merlot2Muscadine

Port Wine Perfected Through Centuries Of Tradition

Port is made primarily from a half-dozen red grapes, most of which are not very familiar to us. One that we do know well is Tinta Roriz, better known as Tempranillo. Touriga Nacional is also a well-known Portuguese grape. There are different grapes for white Port.

Port tasting crew

Traditionally, the grapes were harvested and then crushed by foot in low open stone troughs. This continues today to a certain extent. After a short fermentation, the wine is fortified with a neutral grape alcohol to 19% to 22% ABV.

Never Miss A Beat – Follow Vino-Sphere On Facebook

The wine is then put in barrels where it stays for the winter. Traditionally, the barrels were then transported downriver in fancy flat-bottomed boats to the city of Oporto. These days the activities have shifted across the river to Vila Nova de Gaia and transport is mostly by truck. Ports are generally sweet, high in alcohol, and rich in complex flavors and aromas.  

We sampled four wines, paired with especially chosen charcuterie and treats (thanks, Arthur). It was a fortuitous opportunity to taste four different styles of Port. This was also my first experience with Port pipes, small glass drinking vessels with a delicate glass straw. As you sip through the straw the wine is beautifully aerated, accentuating the beautiful richness and savory notes of the Port. It only whets my appetite to try some of the upper-tier vintage Ports. Here are the wines and pairings:

Port pipes and Warre's Port

Warre’s Fine White Port, NV

Pairing: Gruyere and Yorkshire Wensleydale cheeses, almonds, lemon Girl Scout cookies, and dried apricots.

White Port is much rarer than red Port and is made in sweet or off-dry styles. The Warre’s white is in a medium-dry style. We served it with a nice chill as a kickoff to the tasting. It is light straw-colored with a crisp aroma – quite a contrast to the savory flavor profile of traditional Port. On the palate, it is nice and smooth with a bit of a kick from the 19% ABV. There is a floral flavor, perhaps lilac, leading to a tangy, tart finish. A great pairing with Gruyere and the lemon cookie.

Warre’s King’s Tawny Port, NV

Pairing: Chocolate hazelnut biscotti, chocolate caramel with sea salt, smoked cheddar, and Manchego cheeses.

I moved this wine up in the tasting order after learning that it was a young Tawny and less robust than the ruby Port we would taste. Ruby port is the simplest of Ports and a Tawny Port is one that is aged long enough to oxidize to produce a golden brown color and richer flavors. This is a light, elegant Port that is soft and creamy on the tongue. It has the aroma of youthful fruit and a mellow body achieved through oak aging. Smoked cheddar was a triumphant pairing.

Warre’s Heritage Ruby Port, NV

Pairing: Smoky blue and blueberry goat cheeses, chocolate chip cookies.

The Heritage Ruby Port was the most robust of the three we had tasted so far. This was a deep red in color with a robust, sweet fruity flavor. The wine is stored for up to three years in oak vats before being blended, filtered and bottled. It has a classic Port flavor that inspired our group to try different food pairings, including putting the smoky blue cheese on top of the chocolate chip cookie. Hey, it worked. This is a rich wine that won over our tasting group.

Warre’s Warrior Finest Reserve Port

Pairing: Chocolate truffles, Fig Newtons, walnuts, blackberries.

Reserve Tawny reflects the true style of Port and this wine was the shining star of the tasting. Warrior is the oldest brand of Port in the world, having been shipped continuously since the 1750s. Warre’s head winemaker, Charles Symington, selects the best lots of wine to be matured for this reserve wine. It has a classic taste with full-bodied richness and balance. Reserve Tawny must be aged in oak for at least seven years. The opulent flavor includes layers of ripe plums and cherries with a hint of pepper on the back end. The finish is long and lingering. While the other Ports we tasted were each 19% ABV, this went a step further at 20% ABV.

Port-Style Wines From North Carolina

We also sampled the Port Hanover red dessert wine from Hanover Park Vineyard and Wiseman’s View Dessert-Style Noiret from Linville Falls Winery, both from North Carolina. While it was interesting to see what dessert wine is produced in our home state, they are not on the same level as the true Ports we enjoyed.

Warre’s Port wine that we sampled is all reasonably priced, ranging from $16 for the Heritage Ruby and the King’s Tawny to $18 for the Warrior. Warre’s has an extensive line of Port, including vintage Port, some of which are priced at $90.

Special thanks to Arthur for hosting the event (and providing the delicious food pairings) and to Brant, David, and John for joining the tasting adventure and contributing to the fun afternoon.

Full disclosure: The Port was received as a marketing sample

Sensational Picks For Your National Rosé Day Celebration

Rosé is a joyful wine in eye-catching jewel tones with delicate flavors that marry well with food. Here are three picks to celebrate with during National Rosé Day on June 12.

Rosé ’Round The World

We’re not sure why, but rosé just makes us happy. Perhaps it is the pink hue, or the fact that it is usually cracked open on happy occasions, but we’re thankful for this wine – especially when the thermometer and humidity start to climb.

All red wines gain their color from juice contact with the grape skins. This is why you occasionally will see a “white” Pinot Noir or Merlot – the juice is pressed and isn’t allowed extended contact with the grape skins. For a red wine, this contact, also known as maceration, can last weeks or months in order to obtain the deep colors winemakers seek. Rosé is a different story. The grapes will remain in contact with the skins for a matter or hours – just until the the hue and flavor hit the winemaker’s target.

In the last decade there has been a revolution in rosé. Quality dry rosé is trending and is erasing the memories of the dreadful sweet, one-note rosé wines from past decades. The quality-price ratio is better than ever, too. You can garner a quality rosé for less than $15 and go completely classy with premium bottles under $30.

Here are three rosé wines, from three different corners of the world, that we are pleased to recommend.

Alma Negra NV Brut Nature Rosé, Mendoza

This wine comes from two high-altitude vineyards in Argentina, one at 3,600 feet and the other at 4,200. We’ve had this wine twice and have been impressed each time. As a sparkling wine, it instantly creates a festive atmosphere. Two of the best types of food wines are sparkling wine and rosé. This wine combines them both!

Alma Negra means “dark soul” and the label features a mysterious, shadowy mask. The wine is a unique blend of Malbec and Pinot Noir.  It’s produced by Ernesto Catena Vineyards. Catena is a legendary name in Argentine wine, and that makes the $16.99 price a real steal. The taste has flowing strawberry with lime and crisp acidity. We enjoyed the Alma Negra with an artfully prepared charcuterie tray and it was fun to taste the different appetizers with a glass of the bubbly. This is a wine that begs you to fill just one more glass.

Mateus 2020 Dry Rosé, Portugal

When we say Mateus is an old favorite, that’s no lie. This Portuguese wine practically invented the category of rosé more than 75 years ago. Mateus was created by Fernando van Zeller Guedes in 1942 and became a craze in the US and Britain. At one point it was the best-selling wine in the US.

Mateus is back with an elegant new bottle shape and label. Inside the wine is crafted with Baga and Shiraz grapes and the flavor is appealing to today’s consumers, who want dry wine.

There is just a touch of sweetness and the wine has a bit more body than Provence rosé, which is fine by us. It has a lively flavor highlighted with red berries. At $12.99 this is a great buy that will keep the party on the patio going all night long.

Tablas Creek 2020 Patelin de Tablas Rosé, Paso Robles

There’s no sense beating around the bush. The Patelin de Tablas is quite simply one of our most favorite rosé wines. We dig all wines from Tablas Creek, which has championed Rhone varieties in California and imported vines from Château de Beaucastel in France to start their estate. The rosé shows the same thoughtful winemaking and respect to the grapes as their full range of wines.

The Patelin rosé is a blend of 74% Grenache, 20% Mourvèdre, and 6% Counoise. Grapes for are sourced from three Paso Robles appellations. Two are rich in limestone: the warmer, higher elevation Adelaida District near Tablas Creek and the moderate, hilly El Pomar to our south-east.

We had to up our food game to find the right pairing. Our master chef (the Green Dragon) prepared a delicious Shrimp and Langoustine Lobster Linguine for the occasion. This rosé is a real gem. Peachy copper in color, the flavors are delicate and ride on fresh minerality with moderate acidity. The flavors are tart strawberry with orange zest accented with grapefruit. The finish lingers -- a standout pairing with our linguini!

It’s time to uncork some rosé for #nationalroséday on Saturday, June 12. If you miss it, don’t despair. These fine wines can be enjoyed any day of the year!

Full disclosure: These wines were received as a marketing sample.

Mateus 2019 Dry Rosé Reimagines A Classic

Guess who’s back? Mateus reinvents itself as the world embraces dry rosé.

A Pink Icon

In a world that is awash in blush wines, Mateus holds a unique place. This Portuguese wine practically invented the category of rosé more than 75 years ago.

Never Miss A Beat – Follow Vino-Sphere On Facebook

Mateus was created by Fernando van Zeller Guedes in 1942. A pink, sweet and slightly fizzy, it was targeted at the Brazilian market, but soon became the craze in the US and Britain. At one point it was the best-selling wine in the US.

Around the world, Mateus was wildly popular in the early ‘70s. Fans included Queen Elizabeth, Jimi Hendrix and even Saddam Hussein. At the end of the decade, Mateus accounted for more than 40% of Portugal’s wine export sales.

Bottling Success

Helping propel Mateus to success was its unique bottle. The dark green bottle echoed the shape of water flasks carried by Portuguese soldiers in World War I. The label carried an illustration of the Palace of Mateus.

Keep up with the latest. Follow us on Instagram!

I know the bottle well! As a college student striving to impress a date, I bought a bottle of Mateus for a romantic evening. At the time, my taste really ran toward draft beer. On reflection, I probably would’ve been better off with a six pack of Stroh’s beer. (It would take years for my wine palate to evolve!)

Times change – just like my taste in beverages. It isn’t quite accurate to say that Mateus is back. It never went away, but while the world was engulfed with a growing flood of dry rosé, Mateus was largely forgotten in the US.

Mateus is considered the crown jewel of the Sogrape wine portfolio and it determined the time was ripe to rejuvenate the brand. Mateus is in more than 120 markets globally and 20 million bottles are sold annually. It’s new look is certain to capture new fans.

A New Classic?

The term “new classic” may seem an oxymoron, but it fits Mateus. The producers have taken a brilliant approach. First, they lost the dark green glass in order to showcase the beautiful pink jewel tones of the wine. For us, part of the delight with rosé is drinking it in visually.

The second move was to retain the shape of the bottle, but tweak it into a flowing design that is both unique yet harkens to the original bottle. The package is completed with a contemporary label that shrinks the Palace of Mateus and uses stylish silver.

Inside the bottle, the product has changed too. The wine is made with Baga and Shiraz grapes and the residual sugar is lower than in the past, in sync with today’s tastes. We opened a bottle of the 2019 release and found it to be an enjoyable sipper. The wine is a touch heavier than Provence rosé, but that’s fine with us. There are flavor notes of red berries and it is lively – although no frizzante. At $12.99 SRP, this is a good choice for weekends on the patio or to take on a socially-distant visit with friends.

Full disclaimer – This wine was received as a marketing sample.

Pick Six! Some Top Picks To Celebrate National White Wine Day

Quench your summer thirst with these top white wines that won’t pinch your wallet.

Exploring Refreshing Alternatives

The North Carolina summer can try the hardiest soul. With daily highs in the mid-90s and heat indexes in the triple digits the heat is sweltering.

Keep up with the latest. Follow us on Instagram!

Thankfully relief can be found in icily chilled white wine – and there’s no better time to pop open a bottle than right now. National White Wine Day is August 3.

Here’s a refreshing half-dozen picks to tide you over through the summer heat. Many are grapes you may not have yet tried, but all are below $25 – so these wines are refreshing in more ways than one.

Gradis’ciutta Ribolla Gialla 2018 (SRP $21.99)

Ribolla Gialla is a new grape for us. The grape is an ancient European variety that can be traced back to the 13th century and made a comeback in the 19th century. Notes of nuts and apples with creamy texture. No one in our group had tasted this grape before, but it became a favorite. An Italian patio champion!

Umani Ronchi Vellodoro Pecorino 2019 (SRP $16.99)

Italy’s Pecorino is known as the “grape of the sheep” for the presence of this grape in sheep grazing territory. This is a dry wine with soft fruit, good acidity and herbal notes. This is perfect with fish, cheeses and pasta. A steal at $17.

Never Miss A Beat – Follow Vino-Sphere On Facebook

Gradis’ciutta Friulano 2018 (SRP $21.99)

Friulano is the grape in the famed white wines of Italy’s Friuli region. Also known as Sauvignon Vert, this wine has notes of peach and apples and a rounded finish with some savory notes for interest. One sip transports you to the sun-dappled countryside of Italy!

Umani Ronchi Villa Bianchi Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi 2018 (SRP $16.99)

Verdicchio means “little green one” and the grapes are straw colored with green tinges. This is an elegant wine with citrus and minerality and a bit more body than you might expect. It gets brief aging in stainless steel to preserve its fresh flavors.

Azevedo Loureiro e Alvarinho Vinho Verde 2019

Vinho Verde, from Portugal, is know for its amazing refreshment as well as its sub-$10 pricing. Azevedo checks all the boxes. With 70% Loureiro and 30% Alvarinho, this is a fresh, easy-drinking bottle we enjoyed with a patio meal. Citrus and tropical fruit highlight this tasty treat. Vinho Verde is a nice alternative to rosé.

Barone Montalto Pinot Grigio 2019 (SRP $12)

This is a light and lilting wine with elegant flavors of orange blossom and pear. Grapes for this Sicilian wine benefit from a Mediterranean climate and clay soil. We loved the flowing lime highlights with clean, fresh flavors. A perfect wine for pizza or fish. This can be an everyday sipper throughout the summer. 

As we close, here are a couple of thoughts about summer white wine. First, you must make sure the wine is properly chilled. You won’t be able to do so if you put the wine the fridge an hour before guests arrive. Put your wine in the fridge the day before. Your red wines, if being served outside, will also benefit from a slight chill.

If you are entertaining guests outside, don’t bring the chilled wine out until you guests have arrived. That summer heat will melt the ice and warm up the wine in no time. If you are serving appetizers, do so a little bit at a time. No one wants to eat shrimp that’s been sitting out in the sun for three hours.

Cheers and keep it cool!

Full disclosure: These wines were received as marketing samples.

Silk & Spice 2018 Red Blend, Portugal

From Portugal’s Spice Route comes an exotic wine with robust flavors.

Wine Tasting In A Pandemic

Wine tasting with friends is sure different than it used to be. In days gone by, before COVID-19, friends would arrive, we’d share appetizers or a meal while carrying on conversations, giving hugs and handshakes and sharing plenty of wine.

Never Miss A Beat – Follow Vino-Sphere On Facebook

Now a wine tasting involves methods previously reserved for handling radioactive materials. When our friends stopped by the other night, we had chairs on the patio spaced out for social distancing and disinfectant wipes and hand sanitizer strategically located. Filling a wine glass meant placing the glass on a table between us, then I’d fill it up and retreat before our guests grabbed their glass. Sharing food? That involved tongs, individually wrapped food and elaborate maneuvers.

Of course, the evening with our friends was worth all the safety procedures. Everyone needs to be safe these days, not only for their own sake but for the sake of others. The wine we tasted certainly justified the effort.

Enjoying The Indigenous Grapes

We uncorked the 2018 Silk & Spice Red by Sogrape Vinhos from Portugal. The Spice Route was created by Portuguese explorers in the 15th century to bring exotic spices like clove and nutmeg to the Western world. This wine aims to capture the mystery and flavors of that famed trading route.

Keep up with the latest. Follow us on Instagram!

Silk & Spice is a blend of indigenous grapes: 40% Touriga Nacional, 30% Alicante Bouchet, and 30% Baga. For whatever reason, I thought we’d be sipping a light-bodied red. I was therefore surprised by my first sip of deep, silky wine. This wine would do well with a nice steak or a big cheeseburger. Have I mentioned I’ve really been craving a cheeseburger lately?

The flavors are intense and the body is lush. There are rich extracted notes of raspberry and leather. The fruit is bold and there are pleasing vanilla highlights. The finish is long and lingering. The wine is finished in stainless steel to keep the brightness.

This is a wine to drink now, although it could age for up to five years. You can find Silk & Spice for less than $15, quite a bargain.

After finishing the bottle of Silk & Spice, I resolved to drink more wine from Portugal. We already enjoy wines from Spain, but we’re eager to seek out vinho from its Iberian Peninsula neighbor.

Full disclosure: We received this wine as a marketing sample.

Vinho Verde Wines Hit Perfect Note For Light Refreshment

Seeking a wine that keeps things light and breezy? Look no further than Portugal.

Keep It Mellow

Cheer is in short supply these days. As our nation wrestles with COVID-19 and its terrible toll, we don’t need one more thing to drag us down. That includes the wine we drink.

Never Miss A Beat – Follow Vino-Sphere On Facebook

The weather in North Carolina has turned decidedly warmer, so it’s time for us to recalibrate our palates. Bring out the chilled whites and rosé!

A wine that’s sure to fit the season and bring a smile to your eyes is Vinho Verde. Vinho Verde is made in the northwest corner of Portugal, and is a category of young wines that are typically low in alcohol and have a spritz of effervescence. Drink them while they are young – there’s no aging required with these fresh-tasting wines.

The Vegan Table

We recently had the chance to taste through four bottles from Portugal: three the traditional Vinho Verde wines and one Alvarinho. To help with our tasting adventure, we drafted our daughter Rachel, a vegan baker and chef, to create a pairing meal.

Keep up with the latest. Follow us on Instagram!

For our wines we selected the 2018 Casal de Ventozela and an Alvarinho from Quinta da Calçada. The meal was a vegan delight. The opener was cucumbers in homemade sweet Thai chili sauce. For our entree we savored a Thai yellow coconut curry with brown rice. We finished with chocolate chia pudding with fresh fruits. Oh yes, we had a dessert shooter with pineapple juice, crème de cacao and mango habanero vodka.

The Casal de Ventozela delighted us from the very start. In the glass the wine gushed in a welcome display of bubbles. Vinho Verde isn’t a traditional sparkling wine, but instead is frizzante – light bubbles that greet you and tickle your tongue, but then fade. There are light notes of citrus and melon, just perfect for our Thai-themed meal.

Our second bottle was the Quinta da Calçada Terroir. The Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal) is the very best location for Albariño, or Alvarinho as it is known in Portugal. Quinta da Calçada has been producing wine since 1917, making it one of the oldest producers in the Vinho Verde region. This wine has outstanding minerality, a medium-full body with notes of peach and lemon with a touch of salinity.

The Seafood Table

For our second pair of wines, we moved our meal outside and switched our focus to seafood. It was a gorgeous evening on the patio that later turned into a romantic night under the stars. The Green Dragon prepared cedar plank salmon and shrimp with roasted asparagus and rice. Our meal began with the Manuel Costa & Filhos Melodia Rosé. This is an enticing wine made with Espadeiro and Touriga Nacional grapes. Whereas the other wines painted their canvas with citrus and tree fruit, the rosé was a bright bouquet of red cherries and strawberries. The acidity makes this a great food wine and it blended seamlessly with our shrimp and salmon.

As our evening continued we opened the Encosta do Xisto Vinho Verde. Xisto refers to the local shale, which is made from a mixture of mud, clay and tiny quartz and calcite fragments. This is a dry wine with the pleasing initial fizz. Flavor notes include green apples and peach.

Portuguese wines not only taste delicious, the price is easy to digest too. Many Vino Verde wines are available at prices $10 and below. Enjoy these fresh wines to give your morale a boost and your next meal some zip.

Full disclosure: These wines were received as marketing samples.

Does Port Wine Only Come From Portugal?

The answer to this question seemed like a no-brainer to me. You can have Port-style wines, but only wine from Portugal can be called Port.
At our Open That Bottle Night festivities, Jack, one of our guests, opined that any wine could be called Port and the real Port was labeled “Porto.” I quickly asserted that only wine produced in Portugal could be called Port.
Seemingly within seconds our friend Chuck had Wikipedia on his smart phone and delivered this nugget of info: “Under European Union Protected Designation of Origin guidelines, only the product from Portugal may be labeled as port or Porto. In the United States, wines labeled ‘port’ may come from anywhere in the world…” Was my mind muddled by wine? Was I completely off target?
To backtrack, Port is a fortified wine that has been made in the Douro region of Portugal for centuries. The name comes from the fact that these wines were shipped out of the port city of Oporto, which is the largest city in Portugal after Lisbon. It’s an extraordinary wine and a superb pairing with dessert and cigars.
However, and this may shock you, the internet is not always correct! Not only did the European Union move to protect designated wine regions abroad, but in September 2005 signed a trade agreement with the US concerning the use of “port” (and other such terms) in wine labeling.
The US agreed to prohibit the use of 16 semi-generic names on wine labels, such as chablis, Champagne, port, sherry and chianti. Names, such as chablis, burgundy, port and champagne, called semi-generics, have been in use on wine labels in the U.S. since the 1800s. U.S. winemakers had been legally permitted to use a group of 16 specific semi-generic terms on labels if accompanied by an adjacent appellation of origin.
The September 2005 trade agreement allowed for the continued use of these terms on existing brands (but not new brands). So some “port” has been grandfathered in.
As a conscientious wine consumer, I support the wine regions who are trying to protect against the misuse of names by producers trying to benefit from illegitimate connections to certain regions. Rogue wineries from Germany to China have even put “Napa” on their labels. That’s not cool.
If you see a Port from Bulgaria or a Champagne from Arkansas, think twice.

Technorati Tags: wine,Port,Porto,Portugal

Photo Credit: Fareham Wine via Compfight cc

Herdade do Rocim 2009 Ohlo de Mocho Reserva, Portugal

A birthday is a time for great surprises. We had one recently when helping the Cabinator celebrate his birthday. Glorious T had stopped by Walt Churchill’s Market in Maumee earlier in the day during their weekly wine tasting.
Catarina Vieira, owner and winemaker of Herdade do Rocim was there and charmed GT with her Herdade do Rocim Ohlo de Mocho Reserva. She bought a bottle, had it autographed by Catarina and popped it that evening as we toasted the birthday boy.
Portugal makes some great red wines. I’m not a fan of fortified wines, so I don’t fully appreciate Port. But the Touriga Nacional grape makes some expressive wines – and at a “still undiscovered” price.
The Ohlo de Mocho Reserve is a blend of Syrah, Touriga Nacional and Alicante Bouschet. The wine is aged for 12 months in a combination of French (80%) and American (20%) oak. It is from Alentejano, Portugal.
This deep, dark wine is a melodious red with wafts of perfumed aroma. It is well constructed with loads of dark fruit balanced with vanilla and oak. It’s a great red without following the typical flavor profile of Cabernet Sauvignon – a winning wine.

Related articles

• Top 10 Portuguese Wines by Essência do Vinho (andrerib.com)
• Wines of Portugal: London tasting (thedrinksbusiness.com)
• How to choose a good rosé wine (denverpost.com)

Jose Maria Da Fonseca 2006 Periquita

Periquita is considered the national wine of Portugal. It's a blend of mostly Castelão Frances grapes, which thrives in southern Portugal, plus Trincadeira and Tempranillo. This European gem is from the Terras do Sado region in the southwestern part of the country.

It has been around for more than 150 years, being created by Jose Maria da Fonseca in 1850. This namesake company has become synonomous with this highly regarded wine.

We selected this bottle for an Indian Summer evening around the firepit on the patio. This is a wine with a full bouquet that is rich and spicy but a medium body. The flavors are red berries and cigar box. The tannins are soft and it provides a nicely balanced drink with an enjoyable finish of medium duration.

The firepit crowd loved this wine, especially with some nice chocolate (not too dark). Even the weather conditions were cooperating with us -- no wind to blow the smoke in our eyes.

The Portugese have a good thing going. I picked this wine up at Churchill's for only $12, but it drinks like a wine two or three times the cost. Rated **** of *****.

Related articles

• 2009 Chateau Pey La Tour (canadianwineguy.com)
• On the Hunt! (20somethingwinesnob.blogspot.com)
• Tempranillos al Mundo Debuts in New York City (prnewswire.com)