The Connoisseur - March 2025
March madness is upon us. The white rabbit is checking his watch. The tea party is set. The red queen has lost her head. At least there’s one thing you can rely on: The Wine Fellas’ monthly delivery!
We’re sticking with a winter theme with some hearty reds and unctuous white wines. Great for dressing up as the Mad Hatter or Alice in Wonderland for your Carneval party.
As always, wine descriptions below, and if you run out, you can order more from The Cellar.
Don’t forget, you can look up past boxes in The Archive.
Cinética, Loureiro/Arinto Reserva Branco
[grape/vintage] Loureiro, Arinto / 2023
[region] Vinho Verde
Pairs well with grilled bacalhau with a side of new potatoes drizzled in green olive oil, a medium-spiced curry or truffle risotto.
Check it out in The Cellar.
Antítese, Alicante Boushcet/Merlot
[grape/vintage] Alicante Bouschet, Merlot / 2016
[region] Lisboa
A real French puzzle of a wine made in the summer heat of the Alentejo evoking another time and place. Late 40s. A smokey, dimly-lit jazz club in Place Pigalle with red velvet curtains and dark wood tables. A seductive alto sax solo meanders like a chocolate river amongst the well-dressed punters. Then the drummer joins back in, gently at first with a brush on the high hat and a tap tap of the snare, laying down a cool beat, till the whole band, one by one, fills the air with spice and plums and cherries and you feel like you’re floating in a magical, liquid fruit cake.
Pairs well with a chargrilled aged T-bone steak, braised lamb shank, a really stinky cheese.
Check it out in The Cellar.
Cinética, Valpaços "Bush Wine"
[grape/vintage] Tinta Amarela, Bastardo, Various / 2023
[region] Tras-os-Montes
Like driving a gold-rimmed Bentley down your throat. Intense and rich and delicious. Not for the faint-hearted. This 15.5% ABV beauty is an old vine field blend made from “goblet” vines which means the vines aren’t grown on trellises or supports. Basically, these grapes are tough SOBs, and their juice is complex and deeply layered. Plus 30 months in barriques and you’ve got a wine stinking of chocolate, cherry and black plum that you can really sink your teeth into.
Pairs well with grilled ribeye steak with garlic and rosemary, wild mushroom risotto with parmesan, charcuterie board with prosciutto, chorizo, and aged salami.
Check it out in The Cellar.