Wine Blog from The International Wine of the Month Club

Exceptional Red and White Portuguese Wines: Still in Need of Discovery

September 15, 2022 by Don Lahey

Despite centuries of producing some of the world’s most sought after wines, most notably Port and Madeira, the trove of excellent unfortified Portuguese red and white wines remains relatively undiscovered on this side of the Atlantic. True, Portuguese rosés enjoyed a good run in the late 1960s and 1970s, and the present penchant for Vinho Verde seems to have established some credibility as a fun summertime wine, but neither rosé nor Vinho Verde truly represent the breadth of fine red and white Portuguese wines. Affordable, food friendly, and full of flavor, there is much to discover in this new age of oenological exploration, beginning in the north of Portugal in the valley of the Douro and extending south to Dão, Alentejo, Lisboa, and the Algarve. All produce many contemporary and traditional red and white wines of quality and individuality.

The Douro may be best known for producing Port, but fine unfortified reds and elegant world-class white wines also emanate from the Douro. Quinta do Noval and Quinta Nova de Nossa Senhora do Carmo are two splendid Port producers who also make superb unfortified red and white wines. Quinta Nova’s Pomares line are especially gratifying and provide worthy companions to any well prepared meal. Val Moreira is another exceptional Douro property and winery.

Moving south one discovers a plethora of small estates in Portugal’s Dão that continue to push the envelope in terms of quality and style with traditional Portuguese grape varieties: Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, Jaen, and Encruzado to name a few. Taboadella’s red wines are smooth and flavorful, while the estate’s Encruzado Reserva is a white wine that is every bit the equal of fine white Burgundy. Owned by the Amorim family who gained fame as cork purveyors, Taboadella is an ancient property that has emerged as a cutting edge producer in all respects.

The wine country around Lisbon is enjoying a renaissance, too, with such purveyors as San Sebastião turning out a wealth of tasty and affordable wines from traditional and international grape varieties. Moving further down the Iberian Peninsula, Alentejo, deep in the heart of Portugal and off the beaten tourist track, is home to the highly acclaimed Herdade Aldeia de Cima estate among others. And then there is the Algarve, home to a growing number of little viticultural jewels as well as fabulous beaches, caves, and nightlife. Isn’t it time to discover the splendid wines of sunny Portugal? Enjoy!

Shiraz (shee-raz)

August 15, 2022 by Don Lahey

Shiraz is the name given to the Syrah grape in Australia and South Africa and likely a bastardization of either Heraz, a river and region of ancient Persia (present day Iran), or Herat, a former Persian city now in Afghanistan, where Shiraz was once thought to have originated. However, recent DNA testing indicates southern France, always considered to be Syrah’s spiritual home, to be the true origin of the grape. Shiraz/Syrah remains immensely popular in Provence and along the steep banks of the swift-moving Rhône River, where it is responsible in all or part for many of the greatest red wines of France – Hermitage and Châteauneuf-du-Pape specifically.

Most of the Shiraz vines planted in Australia, where Shiraz is one of the most planted red wine grapes, trace their ancestry back to France, though some evidence suggests that Syrah arrived in Australia from France via South Africa. Such a circuitous route points to the likelihood that the dark skinned Syrah grape variety departed France before the twin plagues of oidium and phylloxera that occurred in the last half of the 19th century and that the Syrah vines that arrived in Australia stem from older clones of the varietal than those found presently throughout most of southern France and California. Furthermore, as France recovered from the devastation, new clones of old favorite grape varieties such as Syrah were often replanted in the vineyards. For these reasons some consider Shiraz to be a distinct clone of the Syrah varietal and entitled to its own name. However, for all intents and purposes, the two names and grapes are synonymous.

Both Australia and South Africa produce many of the planet’s greatest Shiraz wines. Tried and true Australian and South African purveyors such as Chapel Hill, DeMorgenzon, Nugan, Penfolds, Reyneke, Tait, and others continuously fashion world-class Shiraz and at prices many of us can still afford.

Summertime Wines

July 15, 2022 by Don Lahey

“What’s a great summertime wine”? The answer really depends on many factors, but in an ideal world it would be the wine in your glass and mine. That’s at least the way it should be, but how to find the best summertime wines rests on personal preference, accompaniments, companions, and of course the temperature at which the wine is consumed, to mention just a few variables.

For summertime wines, white wine and rosé come to most people’s minds by default, with Chardonnay still front and center simply because it remains the planet’s most ubiquitous white varietal, but there are so many other great summertime wines from which to choose. Sauvignon Blanc with its crisp herbal edge and refreshing acidity gets two thumbs up, and there is a lot more to Sauvignon Blanc than New Zealand’s grapefruit bombs. Chile and South Africa turn out splendid Sauvignon Blancs in a myriad of styles. France, the home of Sauvignon Blanc, also fashions wonderful white wines. Sancerre and the Loire Valley are notable for their Sauvignon Blancs, while Bordeaux offers a dizzying array of pleasurable summertime drinking with white wines, from 100% Sauvignon Blanc to blends containing Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc, Sauvignon Gris and Muscadelle. Chenin Blanc also deserves serious consideration as a summertime favorite. Vouvray Sec, the quintessential dry Chenin Blanc from France’s Loire Valley, makes a wonderful warm weather companion. Racauderie Gautier and Vigneau-Chevreau are two reliable high quality Vouvray producers, though South Africa also fashions first rate Chenin Blanc. All are delicious with a moderate chill.

Increasingly, my go to summertime wines include beautiful crisp Italian white wines such as the 3 V’s: Verdicchio, Vermentino, and Vernaccia di San Gimignano. Colpaola’s Verdicchio di Matelica, Le Colonne’s Vermentino Costa Toscana, and Fontaleoni’s Vernaccia di San Gimignano will all be in my glass this summer because there is no smoke and mirrors, only fresh natural flavors that quench the thirst, please the palate, and refresh the soul. And what would summer be like without an invigorating glass of Provençal rosé? Not a very good summer at all I think, so I will pour myself a glass of the 2021 Le Provençal Cotes de Provence Rosé while I fire up the grill. It will then be time to open a good red, cooled to about 60° F. California Zinfandel, Italian Primitivo, and a host of Mediterranean reds, cooled to 58-60° F, also make great summertime wines with almost anything that comes from the grill. Sequum’s Napa Valley Zinfandel from California and Masserie Pizari’s Salento Rosso Primitivo from Southern Italy will certainly be on my summertime wine list. What’s on your summertime wine list? Enjoy!

Mencia: Spain’s Ancient and Illustrious Red Varietal

June 16, 2022 by Don Lahey

Spain has long been associated with great red wines, particularly the red wines of Rioja and Ribera del Duero from the iconic Tempranillo varietal, so much that other equally exciting indigenous varietals such as Garnacha, Prieto Picudo and most especially Mencia have had to take a back seat or, worse, have been ignored until the last several years.

Mencia is a premium red Spanish grape varietal found primarily in the Bierzo, Ribeira Sacra, and Valdeorras appellations of northern Spain. Although the Mencia varietal was once considered by enologists to be the direct ancestor and precursor of Cabernet Franc, recent DNA testing has shown that this is not the case. Mencia and Cabernet Franc share some common characteristics, but not the same ancestry. It is now widely believed that Mencia and Portugal’s Jaen de Dão (Jaen for short) grape variety are one and the same, yet not everyone agrees. What we do know, however, is that Mencia is an ancient varietal that has been around for millennia. Bierzo’s original plantings of Mencia likely date to the earliest Roman settlers in Bierzo, who cultivated the varietal two thousand years ago in what remains one of Europe’s most isolated wine regions. It is the grape’s isolation and not any inferior quality that has caused it to be overlooked outside its ancestral home.

Bierzo, Ribeira Sacra, and Valdeorras are remote areas, the latter two in Galicia, Spain’s cool, windswept province astride the Atlantic. Certainly, it is the very isolation of the region that has allowed Mencia to survive and even thrive. Moreover, the average age of the hillside vines in these appellations can be quite old, which lends itself to the production of high quality wines. Consequently, the wonderfully fruity, spicy, and wholly intriguing Mencia varietal has recently been discovered, or rather re-discovered, by modern legions of wine drinkers. They are no doubt intrigued by this unique viticultural entity we call Mencia, whose many attributes are accentuated by organic farming, low vineyard yields, and modern winemaking techniques practiced by its finest purveyors whose emphasis is on quality rather than quantity. Since the 1990s Mencia has steadily grown in popularity to the point where there are now more than 20,000 acres of Mencia vines being cultivated in Spain. Altos de Losada, Peza do Rei, and Casal Novo are three consistent producers of Mencia whose wines are always worth seeking out.

Carmenère: Chile’s Emblematic Wine and the World’s Best Red Wine Value

May 19, 2022 by Don Lahey

Carmenère is Chile’s emblematic grape variety, yet it rarely receives the recognition it deserves. Of all South American wines, Carmenère clearly stands out as the most distinctive and enjoyable, especially when consumed in the first five years of life, which is when the vast majority of all wines are consumed. Even more impressive, well-made Carmenères age gracefully to perfection for up to a decade or more in bottle. Increasingly, critics and writers sing the praises of Carmenère, especially from top producers such as Casa Silva, Casas del Bosque, Carmen, and Errazuriz, and everytime I serve a Carmenère at a tasting or share it with friends, it’s a hit with red wine drinkers, both young and old. When asked why they don’t drink more Carmenère, the usual retorts still sound something like these: “I didn’t know what it was” or “I never had one before, so I was afraid to try it.” Adam should have exercised a bit more caution when handed the apple, but when it comes to wine, let’s be a little more adventuresome, even audacious!

So why hasn’t Carmenère taken the wine world by storm? For one, Carmenère is close to being the missing link of Bordeaux varietals, and it has only been since the 1980’s that DNA testing ascertained that Chile’s distinctive red grape is indeed Carmenère. Carmenère’s origins go back many centuries, and it is still one of the six legal red Bordeaux grape varietals for Classified Bordeaux. Carmenère, like Malbec, figured prominently in Bordeaux until the advent of phylloxera in the 19^th century. However, post phylloxera, the prolific, earlier ripening Merlot became Bordeaux’s dominant varietal followed by Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. Brought to Chile in the 19^th century before the dreaded vine disease, phylloxera, Carmenère was mistaken for a clone of Merlot until the 1980s. This surely accounts for Carmenère languishing for so long in relative obscurity, though it’s hard to believe that one of Bordeaux’s six legal red grape varietals could be misidentified for so long, but then the truth is nearly always stranger than fiction. Political and economic instability in Chile until the 1990’s is another reason Carmenère is a relative late comer to our shores. Lastly, some of the first Carmenère wines sent to the US were under-ripe and not at all indicative of what this premium grape is capable of being.

So, what does Carmenère have going for it? Plenty! Let’s start with Carmenère’s deep purple color, followed by a hedonistic aroma: savory red and black fruit flavors, deft touches of bell pepper, black pepper, dark chocolate, coffee and spice. But best of all, Carmenère’s tannins are smoother than those of Cabernet and its other Bordeaux compatriots. Most of all, people enjoy it, especially after it’s had a few minutes to breathe. The only caveat with Carmenère is this: never judge a Carmenère on first sip. Any good Carmenère needs at least a few minutes of aeration to undergo metamorphosis and blossom in the glass. Yet, one doesn’t have to wait years to enjoy this varietal. Just allow Carmenère a little time in the glass to collect itself, and enjoy!

Burgundy: Where Dirt is Destiny

April 18, 2022 by Don Lahey

Burgundy is a wine as well as a place. In fact, it is many wines and many distinct locales, all of which were once part of the ancient duchy of Burgundy. Situated several hundred kilometers southwest of Paris, Burgundy is hallowed ground to serious lovers of the vine. From its golden hillsides, whose center slopes are so aptly named the Côte d’Or, flow France’s most expensive and profound wines. Names such as Romanée Conti, Chambertin, Clos de Vougeot, and Le Montrachet, among others, have been delighting serious wine aficionados for centuries. Yet, there is much more to Burgundy and its wines than a few illustrious names. For starters, Burgundy is the ancestral of home of two of the world’s most revered grape varieties – Pinot Noir and Chardonnay

Clearly, Burgundy is much more than a single wine or one great vineyard: it is a special place, a land almost entirely devoted to wine in one fashion or another. However, what remains surprising to many wine drinkers is that Burgundy is both red and white wine, the best of which come exclusively from Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, respectively. With a growing number of exceptions, the finest Burgundies emanate from the region’s hallowed core, the Côte d’Or, which begins on the fabled Côte de Nuits, just to the south of Dijon, and flows all the way south to Santenay at the tip of the Côte de Beaune. The Premier and Grand Cru wines from these illustrious hillsides are worth their weight in gold, but increasingly the wines from the gentle slopes outside the privileged climats are creating the most attention and providing great drinking pleasure, including those on the Côte Chalonnaise and in the Mâconnais south of the Côte d’Or – all Burgundy and increasingly worth their weight in gold. Salut!

Cahors, Malbec, and a Return to Glory

March 15, 2022 by Don Lahey

Cahors was once the world’s most sought after wine, and Malbec the source of Cahors’ rise to fame and legendary reputation. Malbec is a premier red grape variety indigenous to southwest France. Reputed to have originated in Cahors, Malbec has since Roman times played the starring role in the deeply colored wines from Cahors, a small wine region above the river Lot whose wine earned the name, the “Black Wine” of France, no doubt on account of the wine’s impenetrable color and robust flavor. Cahors and the mighty Malbec varietal graced the tables of medieval kings and queens and was found in palaces around the world. Until the phylloxera epidemic ravaged the vineyards of Cahors in the late 19^th century, as it did throughout Europe, Cahors was for centuries a wine of legend and lore.

Bordeaux also claims Malbec as an original son where it remains one of the original legal red wine grapes of red Bordeaux along with Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Carmenère, Merlot and Petit Verdot. In Bordeaux, Malbec is often referred to as Cot or Pressac. While Malbec rarely flies on its own any longer in Bordeaux with very few 100% varietal bottlings, Malbec still plays a supporting role in Bordeaux, where it adds color and body to many Bordeaux red wines.

In Cahors, Malbec still reigns supreme, but it is only since the last quarter of the 20^th century that wines of Cahors have begun to reclaim their former place among the world’s finest wines. By law Cahors must contain a minimum of 70% Malbec, though the finest versions are often 90%. Tannat and Merlot are the appellation’s other legal grape varieties. Much of Cahors’ resurgence is due the tremendous investment and revitalization of vineyards, which have once again climbed back up the steep terraces above the river Lot. Thanks to the luxury brand Cartier, the erudite Georges Vigouroux, and many others, Cahors is returning to its former glory. Although not as rustic nor deeply colored as in days of yore, contemporary Cahors retains great color and robust flavor plus the added finesse of the finest red Bordeaux. In the future, Cahors may again be more synonymous with Malbec than neighboring Bordeaux or Argentina, where the latter now cultivates 70% of the world’s Malbec. But there is no need to wait to enjoy the truly fine wines of Cahors. They are again here and now.

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