RWC/Barbeito Tasting: Any Impressions?
Posted: Sun Oct 14, 2012 9:48 am
Did anyone go to either the SF or Seattle RWC/Barbeito tastings in early Oct., and if so, do you have any impressions of the wines?
Was in San Fran.
Nice room at Piperade, but it got noisy from the main dining area as there was only a curtain seperating the two. The room was quite dark making it hard to examine the appearance of the wines.
Simple food, but very good quality.
Unfortunately Mannie was ill so could not participate. I don't know if he went to Seattle. That left Ricardo to do all the talking, along with his wines.
Started with a Hungarian petillent wine, dry but very aromatic. I liked it.
The first Madeira was the VB lotte 3. I liked this a lot. First time I've had the 3rd version, and it's my favorite. Drier than lotte 2. 60% Verdelho, 40% Boal. It leaned closer to the Verdelho side, as opposed to lotte 2 which was more Boal.
2000 Canteiro Single Harvest, medium dry. This was my least favorite of the night. 100% Negra Mole. Very citric in style.
1996 Verdelho Canteiro Cask 119 b+e. Very rich, sweet for Verdelho but had a good dose of acidity which made me like it.
1997 Canteiro Cask 113 b+c, medium sweet. Very Boal-like, good balance. Another Colheita winner.
Rare Wine Co. Historic Series Baltimore Rainwater bottled 2011. Ricardo stated that this blend was based on tasting a small vial of 1825 Rainwater which Mannie sent him. This particular wine is based on Verdelhos dating from 1995 to 2005. First time I've tasted this. This is the richest and most intense "Rainwater" which I've ever had. Dark, rich, long finish. The Verdelho really shows. Very good.
Lee Family Stratford Hall Special Reserve. A new Rare Wine Co. Historic series blend. Based on a historic wine. A blend of Verdelho, Boal, Malvasia, Negra Mole both yound and old wines. Dark and rich. Caramel and lemons. Quite concentrated and long. If this comes up for sale, I'll get some.
Porto Moniz Verdelho Special Reserve bottled 2011. A Historic series wine released this past year. From the Favilla Vieira family and the north coast vinyard in the town of Porto Moniz. 1976 fruit. Somewhat closed, could use a decanting. A proper Verdelho, off dry with lots of acidity. Long. I'm glad I have some of this.
The Wanderer, another Historic series wine, but never commercially released there being only 60 bottles produced. 100% Negra Mole from wines 50 to 60 years in cask. Dark and rich. Between Verdelho and Boal. Beautiful flavors and balance. Terrific stuff. I would love to get some if it ever became available, but given the low production, it'll only be a dream.
1982 Boal bottled 2007. Hazy. Apparently these particular bottles we originally sent to Europe, then regained by the Rare Wine Co. and brought back to the states. Proper Boal. Very, very nice. I like this a lot.
1982 Boal bottled 2012. The same wine as the above, placed in demijohns in 2007, but Ricardo felt it could due with more cask age, so he put it into small (400 liter) casks, gave them almost 100 liters of headspace, and placed them in the hottest part of the lodge. They lost 8% of volume/year to the "angels share." Smokier and richer than the 2007 bottling. Much more intense. I need to get some of this.
Benjamin Franklin Historic Series, bottled 2010. A blend of Boal, Malvasia, Negra Mole. Some of the Malvasia was over 50 years old. Dark and rich. Boal-like. Good balance and very long. Excellent. Needs more air. Again, I'm glad I have some.
1863 Boal (Barbieto Family reserve) bottled March 2010. Purchased by Ricardo's grandfather when he started the company. Very dark. Mature, rich, smoky, and spicy. Lots of caramel. Very, very intense but balanced by very high acidity. Lots of toffee and citrus on the finish. Terrific, terrific stuff. One of my top Boals.
Porto Moniz Malvasia Special Reserve bottled 2011. Another rare Historic series wine also from the Favilla Viera family and Porto Moniz in 1976. Dark and rich. A real Malvasia. Complex, smoky, and intense. Another wine I wish I had access to.
1950 Malvasia Favilla Vieira. From the south side of the island in Camara de Lobos. Brilliant dark, tawny with a glowing gold-green rim. Very rich, very complex, very intense. Not particularly sweet and lots and lots of acidity. I love this. I have some of the 1920, but need some of this as well.
1926 Malvasia (Vasoncelos Family, Ricardo's grandmother's family) Closed, needs more air time. Rich and spicy. Again, not particularly sweet for Malvasia, but I like this style.
1918 Malvasia, from the stock of Mario Barbeito Vasconcelos. Bottled from demijohn 3-4 weeks ago. only 18 bottles in total. Dark, rich, and spicy. I guess my notes are all sounding the same! Rich and sweet with beautiful balance. This is also terrific stuff and I wish it were commercially available.
New Orleans Special Reserve bottled 2006. The legendary first bottling containing 25% Terrantez. The remainder being Malvasia, Verdelho, and Negra Mole. I've had this a couple times before and this is as good as I remember. Real Terrantez character. Lovely balance. Only a few bottles left, and they are reserved for tastings such as this.
Barbieto Terrantez Reserve. bottled 2000. Basicly, the Terrantez used in the inital New Orleans. None left, so none used in the second New Orleans bottling. Approximately 25 years in cask. On the sweeter side for Terrantez with a nutty, sweet, smoky aroma and flavor. Very long. I have a couple bottles of this and joked with Ricardo that to replicate the original New Orleans Reserve, I should add some of this to the newer bottling. Ricardo responded that in tastings such as these, he is always thinking about blending, how to improve things, ect. He then added a generous splash of the Terrantez into the original New Orleans blend. Deeper and richer was the pronouncement.
1885 Malvasia (Barbeito Family reserve) Dark with a tawny rim. Very intense and sweet. Rich and concentrated. Very, very long. One of my top Malvasias.
