Multi: Quinta do Javali and others
Posted: Thu Aug 03, 2006 10:16 pm
Today in Montreal, with a few people from the wine and restaurant business, Alain Bélanger, renowned sommelier and newly co-owner of a wine agency business, poured us some sample of Portuguese wines he will offer to the Quebec market in the months to come. It was a first for me with all of these wines and I was really impressed by most of them. The prices indicated are in Canadian dollar and represent an approximation of the expected retail price due to Quebec’s SAQ regulation.
Herdade Praço do Conde, Alentejano Vinho Regional
Branco 2005: Really light color, pale straw with green tones, pleasant nose of citrus fruits and bee wax. The mouth is very acidic with green fruits notes like unripe apple and pear, showing some nice glycerine and citrus note on the finish. This wine should retail around 13$. 13/20
http://www.frederickblais.com/vindouro/ ... G_6933.jpg
Tinto 2004: I like the nose, an easy to like nose, lots of red very ripe almost compote fruits like plums and cherries, good depth with spices and hint of vanilla supporting the fruit. Still on the palate the fruit is obvious, tannins are bold, a bit dry on the finish, some creamy grilled wood flavours coating the mouth on the finish. A Really good wine that should retail around 15$. 15.5/20
http://www.frederickblais.com/vindouro/ ... G_6934.jpg
Reserva Tinto 2004 : This wine is showing a much darker color than the previous clear ruby one. You can smell and taste that this wine is really more concentrated, but right now it is more restrained both on the nose and palate. It is showing ripe dark fruits and noble new woods tones on the nose. On the mouth the wine is really dense, full of ripe fruits like red currant and cherries, lots of oak but not unpleasant, tannins are bold and really present leading to a powerful finish. The mass of fruit is really holding well the tannins right now in this young effort, giving them a few years to soften the wine should really turn well. 16/20
http://www.frederickblais.com/vindouro/ ... G_6935.jpg
Quinta do Javali, Douro DOC
Tinto Reserva 2004 : Dark inky color with a purple rim, this wine is showing a classic bouquet of a Douro wine dominated by Tinta Roriz: very floral, mineral, ripe and fresh black currant and plums and a nice touch of dark chocolate. The mouth is concentrated, packed with boasting and intense dark fruits flavours, you can almost chew this wine, tannins are bold and nicely polished, long finish on plums and licorice. With time this wine was really gaining more complexity on the nose with complex spices getting in. 16.5/20+ It should retail around 30-35$, great QPR as the Douro are getting us used to!
http://www.frederickblais.com/vindouro/ ... G_6936.jpg
Tinto Grande Eschola 2004 : Just as the Herdade Praço do Conde reserve tinto, this wine is really in a dumb phase. You can taste and smell the potential in the wine but right now you don’t get as much fun tasting it as with the Reserva. Again a very chocolaty floral nose with sweet beets flavours. On the palate the wine is really too tannic right now, completely drying the mouth and leading us to a green finish. Still a hugely concentrated and not over the top wine, hopefully like so much other Douro red I’ve tasted in their prime youth that shared that tannic structure and some greenness on the finale, it could turn to be a pure fruit bomb in 3-4 years. 15/20+
http://www.frederickblais.com/vindouro/ ... G_6937.jpg
Jorge Moereira, Douro DOC
Poeira 2003: This is really a nice wine. It was really contrasting with the Jovali ones as this wine is all about perfect maturity and finesse. Ample nose of ripe field berries intermixed with some plums, nice intensity! The palate is really smooth and ripe, perfectly balanced, packed with field berry flavours, mineral and gently fine grained tannins leading to a long finale. Top of the class! 17/20+ Should retail between 50 and 60$
http://www.frederickblais.com/vindouro/ ... G_6938.jpg
Quinta do Javali, Porto DOC
Late Bottled Vintage 2001: Something notable about this LBV is that it is aged for 2 years, of the required minimum of 4, in stainless steel vats helping it to keep all this fruit and freshness. Unexpected nose of marinade and lavender flavours dominating the first nose upon opening this wine. A few hours later is was gone and the typical dark concentrated fruity style for the traditional LBV were back. Elegant mouth, finely grained tannins coating the mouth gives us a rich texture, pure and ripe black fruits, long finish on liquorice and chocolate. One really good LBV I was offered to taste recently. 16/20+ Should retail around 25$
http://www.frederickblais.com/vindouro/ ... G_6939.jpg
Tawny 10 years old: A bit iodize upon opening, it then quickly disappeared showing a really nice fresh and complex nose of sweet praline, creamy vanilla, candied figs and grilled almonds. Smooth and fresh mouth, very sweet but since it is not densely concentrated and it is balanced with fine acidity, the sweetness is not giving us a dull tawny. Again this Javali is a great effort offering us a very complex Port, very nutty, praline with candied figs and the finish is all about grilled almonds and caramel. Very nice! 16.5/20+ Should retail around 40$
http://www.frederickblais.com/vindouro/ ... G_6940.jpg
Herdade Praço do Conde, Alentejano Vinho Regional
Branco 2005: Really light color, pale straw with green tones, pleasant nose of citrus fruits and bee wax. The mouth is very acidic with green fruits notes like unripe apple and pear, showing some nice glycerine and citrus note on the finish. This wine should retail around 13$. 13/20
http://www.frederickblais.com/vindouro/ ... G_6933.jpg
Tinto 2004: I like the nose, an easy to like nose, lots of red very ripe almost compote fruits like plums and cherries, good depth with spices and hint of vanilla supporting the fruit. Still on the palate the fruit is obvious, tannins are bold, a bit dry on the finish, some creamy grilled wood flavours coating the mouth on the finish. A Really good wine that should retail around 15$. 15.5/20
http://www.frederickblais.com/vindouro/ ... G_6934.jpg
Reserva Tinto 2004 : This wine is showing a much darker color than the previous clear ruby one. You can smell and taste that this wine is really more concentrated, but right now it is more restrained both on the nose and palate. It is showing ripe dark fruits and noble new woods tones on the nose. On the mouth the wine is really dense, full of ripe fruits like red currant and cherries, lots of oak but not unpleasant, tannins are bold and really present leading to a powerful finish. The mass of fruit is really holding well the tannins right now in this young effort, giving them a few years to soften the wine should really turn well. 16/20
http://www.frederickblais.com/vindouro/ ... G_6935.jpg
Quinta do Javali, Douro DOC
Tinto Reserva 2004 : Dark inky color with a purple rim, this wine is showing a classic bouquet of a Douro wine dominated by Tinta Roriz: very floral, mineral, ripe and fresh black currant and plums and a nice touch of dark chocolate. The mouth is concentrated, packed with boasting and intense dark fruits flavours, you can almost chew this wine, tannins are bold and nicely polished, long finish on plums and licorice. With time this wine was really gaining more complexity on the nose with complex spices getting in. 16.5/20+ It should retail around 30-35$, great QPR as the Douro are getting us used to!
http://www.frederickblais.com/vindouro/ ... G_6936.jpg
Tinto Grande Eschola 2004 : Just as the Herdade Praço do Conde reserve tinto, this wine is really in a dumb phase. You can taste and smell the potential in the wine but right now you don’t get as much fun tasting it as with the Reserva. Again a very chocolaty floral nose with sweet beets flavours. On the palate the wine is really too tannic right now, completely drying the mouth and leading us to a green finish. Still a hugely concentrated and not over the top wine, hopefully like so much other Douro red I’ve tasted in their prime youth that shared that tannic structure and some greenness on the finale, it could turn to be a pure fruit bomb in 3-4 years. 15/20+
http://www.frederickblais.com/vindouro/ ... G_6937.jpg
Jorge Moereira, Douro DOC
Poeira 2003: This is really a nice wine. It was really contrasting with the Jovali ones as this wine is all about perfect maturity and finesse. Ample nose of ripe field berries intermixed with some plums, nice intensity! The palate is really smooth and ripe, perfectly balanced, packed with field berry flavours, mineral and gently fine grained tannins leading to a long finale. Top of the class! 17/20+ Should retail between 50 and 60$
http://www.frederickblais.com/vindouro/ ... G_6938.jpg
Quinta do Javali, Porto DOC
Late Bottled Vintage 2001: Something notable about this LBV is that it is aged for 2 years, of the required minimum of 4, in stainless steel vats helping it to keep all this fruit and freshness. Unexpected nose of marinade and lavender flavours dominating the first nose upon opening this wine. A few hours later is was gone and the typical dark concentrated fruity style for the traditional LBV were back. Elegant mouth, finely grained tannins coating the mouth gives us a rich texture, pure and ripe black fruits, long finish on liquorice and chocolate. One really good LBV I was offered to taste recently. 16/20+ Should retail around 25$
http://www.frederickblais.com/vindouro/ ... G_6939.jpg
Tawny 10 years old: A bit iodize upon opening, it then quickly disappeared showing a really nice fresh and complex nose of sweet praline, creamy vanilla, candied figs and grilled almonds. Smooth and fresh mouth, very sweet but since it is not densely concentrated and it is balanced with fine acidity, the sweetness is not giving us a dull tawny. Again this Javali is a great effort offering us a very complex Port, very nutty, praline with candied figs and the finish is all about grilled almonds and caramel. Very nice! 16.5/20+ Should retail around 40$
http://www.frederickblais.com/vindouro/ ... G_6940.jpg
