The Enthusiast – March 2025
The Enthusiast – 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. Vidigal, “Bailado” Chardonnay/Arinto [grape/vintage] Chardonnay, Arinto / 2021[region] Lisboa Creamy, fresh bursts of tropical rainbows spilling over fresh cut lemons like a magical mystery tour of joy and happiness. It’s a chewable white wine for any time of year but especially when it’s late winter and you’re desperate for a taste of summer and samba and sunsets. Pairs well with shrimp risotto, wild salmon, pad thai, cheesecake with raspberry coulis Check it out in The Cellar. Vidigal, “Bailado” Touriga Nacional/Syrah [grape/vintage] Touriga Nacional, Syrah / 2020 [region] Lisboa This is one of those wines that does more than what it says on the tin. It might look like a traditional Douro red but it’s more subtle than that. Open it a few minutes before drinking and let it breathe. It will reveal its complexity and reward your patience. Pairs well with …grilled prime red meats like a juicy picanha or t-bone, or a hearty game stew. Check it out in The Cellar. Quinta do Pinto, Estate Collection Tinto [grape/vintage] Alfrocheiro, Tinta Roriz, Touriga Nacional / 2016[region] Lisboa Make me smile. Make me feel something. Make me think. Yup, this classy blend of international and Portuguese grapes does all that. It’s a late night café in Mouraria, full of life and polyglot conversation. It’s a night train to Budapest in 1990, full of hope and cigarette smoke. Fresh and ready, balanced and intelligent, full of character. Pairs well with a seared fatty steak, a pheasant stew, any variety of strong, mature cheeses. Check it out in The Cellar.
The Connoisseur – March 2025
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 This is like June Carter and Johnny Cash singing a love ballad in a fruit orchard in late summer – all Georgia peach pie, fresh cream, lemon and spices. Their voices, mellowed with time in the barrel, are deep and rich and edged with a good acerbic wit. A fresh breeze brings the scent of wildflowers from the meadow and everything comes together in perfect harmony. 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.
The Insider – March 2025
The Insider – 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. Luis Pato, Vinhas Velhas Branco [grape/vintage] Bical, Cercial, Sercialinho / 2023[region] Bairrada Luis Pato says that this is his personal interpretation of a typical Bairrada white and who are we to argue with the master!? On the palate, this is like lying in an orchard on a dusty, late summer afternoon with a gentle breeze brushing the tips of one’s toes. Pairs well with itself as an aperitivo, but imagine it washing down a lighly-broiled sea-bass or a bowl of steamed mussels. Check it out in The Cellar. Musgo, Alfrocheiro [grape/vintage] Alfrocheiro / 2020 [region] Dão Have you ever had “summer pudding”? Classic British dish of stewed raspberries, blackberries, red and black currants, filling a deep bowl of thick farmhouse bread, then pressed and chilled, flipped onto a big platter and served with thick, rich double cream. It’s full of spice and fruit and earthy flavours. This Alfrocheiro is like that: intense berries, great balance of acid and tannins, complex layers, and a nice long finish. Pairs well with a whole bunch of dishes. You could try a pork roast, a spicy curry, a mushroom ravioli or squid ink risotto. Get creative! Check it out in The Cellar. ZOM, Grande Reserva Touriga Nacional [grape/vintage] Touriga Nacional / 2020[region] Douro Sophisticated and expressive and full of life. This is James Mason meets Helen Mirren meets Lester Young among the port barrels and cobblestones of Vila Nova da Gaia. It’s a complex burst of fruit, spice, old stone walls and a long conversation into the depths of the Porto night. Pairs well with a roast wild pigeon with rosemary and thyme, an eggplant parmigiana, a well-seasoned juicy steak or a slow-roast leg of lamb. Check it out in The Cellar.
The Insider – February 2025
The Insider – February 2025 Kicking off February with some well-earned sunshine! But is it the start of Spring or a false dawn? We’re skeptical but hopeful, and strongly recommend a healthy dose of sangfroid with a pinch of mad abandon. A good bottle of wine also helps and Carlos Lucas, one of our favourite winemakers doesn’t get too lost in existential angst. He prefers to keep things simple and focus on the art and craft of making great wine. This month, we’re going all in with his selections from the Dão and Douro. 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. Ribeiro Santo Rabo de Ovelha [grape/vintage] Rabo de Ovelha / 2020[region] Dão Sheep’s tail. It doesn’t exactly make you think about wine, or vineyards or fine dining. But take a sip of this delightfully crisp, complex and gastronomic white wine and, we assure you, your mind’s little tail will be blown. It’s a “Fellas Fave” for a reason Pairs well with a delicate white fish, grilled shrimp or lobster tail, a spicy ceviche, chicken picatta or tender pork loin. Check it out in The Cellar. Herédias, Reserva Tinto [grape/vintage] Tinta Barroca, Tinta Roriz, Touriga Franca / 2020 [region] Douro We smell rich earth spiced with oak and baked in a blackberry tart. In fact, we thought, this would go quite well with a fruit pie but couldn’t find one fast enough. Instead, drank it with a side of beef ravioli. Perfect. And the verdict is it will taste even better in 5 years! Pairs well with grilled prime red meats like a juicy picanha or t-bone, though a lamb chop or a rich pasta might not be a bad shout either. Check it out in The Cellar. Envelope, Tinto [grape/vintage] Alfrocheiro, Tinta Roriz, Tinto Cão, Touriga Nacional / 2017[region] Dão This wine is an open log fire in a ski hut with a warm fruit tart on a sheepskin rug: cozy, luxurious and a little bit dangerous. It’s a rich burst of red berries from four opinionated grapes with deep tannins (from a few days of 100% stem fermentation) all softened and smoothed by a year in French oak. Enjoy alone…or with someone special. Pairs well with a juicy steak, pheasant or lamb stew, aged manchego cheese, cherry pie. Check it out in The Cellar.
The Enthusiast – February 2025
The Enthusiast – February 2025 Kicking off February with some well-earned sunshine! But is it the start of Spring or a false dawn? We’re skeptical but hopeful, and strongly recommend a healthy dose of sangfroid with a pinch of mad abandon. A good bottle of wine also helps and Carlos Lucas, one of our favourite winemakers doesn’t get too lost in existential angst. He prefers to keep things simple and focus on the art and craft of making great wine. This month, we’re going all in with his selections from the Dão and Douro. 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. Ribeiro Santo Cimento Branco [grape/vintage] Cerceal-Branco, Encruzado, Malvasia Fina / 2022[region] Dão Sometimes the simple path is most effective. This blend of Encruzado, Malvasia-Fina and Cerceal-Branco grapes is grown at altitude in granite soils. The wine is fermented in stainless steel with wild yeasts then matured in an 80-year-old cement tank. It’s expressive and confident and multi-purpose. It’s got a good solid four-on-the-floor beat that fills your mouth with smooth mineraly base layers, a no-nonsense rhythm section of pear and peach, and teasing high notes of orange flower. Pairs well with shrimp risotto, wild salmon, pad thai, cheesecake with raspberry coulis. Check it out in The Cellar. Herédias, Tinto [grape/vintage] Tinta Amarela, Tinta Roriz, Touriga Franca, Touriga Nacional/ 2020 [region] Douro This is one of those wines that does more than what it says on the tin. It might look like a traditional Douro red but it’s more subtle than that. Open it a few minutes before drinking and let it breathe. It will reveal its complexity and reward your patience. Pairs well with …grilled prime red meats like a juicy picanha or t-bone, or a hearty game stew. Check it out in The Cellar. Automático, Tinto [grape/vintage] Alfrocheiro, Tinta Roriz, Touriga Nacional / 2021[region] Dão Hand harvested off 40 year old vines, this low-intervention red is a guitar by the campfire, a good book on a rainy afternoon, or a long meal at a Paris café filled with Gauloise smoke and existentialism – it’s alive and rustic and a little complicated. Pairs well with a succulant roast meat rubbed in dried herbs, a simple mushroom risotto or some mild cheeses. Check it out in The Cellar.
The Connoisseur – February 2025
The Connoisseur – February 2025 Kicking off February with some well-earned sunshine! But is it the start of Spring or a false dawn? We’re skeptical but hopeful, and strongly recommend a healthy dose of sangfroid with a pinch of mad abandon. A good bottle of wine also helps and Carlos Lucas, one of our favourite winemakers doesn’t get too lost in existential angst. He prefers to keep things simple and focus on the art and craft of making great wine. This month, we’re going all in with his selections from the Dão and Douro. 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. Ribeiro Santo Cimento Branco [grape/vintage] Cerceal-Branco, Encruzado, Malvasia Fina / 2022 [region] Dão Sometimes the simple path is the most effective. This blend of Encruzado, Malvasia-Fina and Cerceal-Branco grapes is grown at altitude in granite soils. The wine is fermented in stainless steel with wild yeasts then matured in an 80-year-old cement tank. It’s expressive and confident and multi-purpose. It’s got a good solid four-on-the-floor beat that fills your mouth with smooth mineraly base layers, a no-nonsense rhythm section of pear and peach, and teasing high notes of orange flower. Pairs well with…shrimp risotto, wild salmon, pad thai, cheesecake with raspberry coulis Check it out in The Cellar. Herédias, Reserva Tinto [grape/vintage] Tinta Barroca, Tinta Roriz, Touriga Franca / 2020 [region] Douro We smell rich earth spiced with oak and baked in a blackberry tart. In fact, we thought, this would go quite well with a fruit pie but couldn’t find one fast enough. Instead, drank it with a side of beef ravioli. Perfect. And the verdict is it will taste even better in 5 years! Pairs well with grilled prime red meats like a juicy picanha or t-bone, though a lamb chop or a rich pasta might not be a bad shout either. Check it out in The Cellar. Vinha de Santa Maria Reserva Tinto [grape/vintage] Alfrocheiro, Tinta Roriz e Touriga Nacional / 2020 [region] Dão Like a cherry pie wrapped in a 90s indie rock ballad – sweet and delicate and feisty. This wine’s got character without being rude. It’s got just the right amount of fruit and spice for a smooth and easy listening experience. Pairs well with…duck confit with chestnut and morel mushroom risotto, a camembert melting onto the cheese board, a beef phô with vermicelli noodles. Check it out in The Cellar.
The Insider – January 2025
The Insider – January 2025 Hello 2025! Phew…2024 was something, wasn’t it? We don’t know about you but we made it through thanks to some great wine and great friendships. As that amorous old bard, Ovid, said in The Art of Love, “When there is plenty of wine, sorrow and worry take wing.” To kick off the year, we’re going back to The Wine Fellas’ very own ancient history (December 2023 to be precise), bringing back some trusted old favourites. 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. Infinitude Semillon/Chardonnay [grape/vintage] Semillon, Chardonnay / 2022[region] Lisboa This is a real lover’s tiff, an amorous tit-for-tat, a passionate power play between two classic French grapes that are undressed and full of life from a year maturing in stainless steel. Stick your nose and palate in between these two and try and work out who is right, who is wrong: pungent, colourful Chardonnay with its guava and lychee and peach, or rootsy, earthy Semillon with its green pepper and forest floor and diesel. Pairs well with itself or almost any meal, even red meat, but we recommend with a meaty grilled fish, some lightly fried calamari, or grilled jumbo shrimp dipped in lemon butter sauce. Don’t serve too cold! Check it out in The Cellar. Casa Américo, “625 Mts” [grape/vintage] Baga, Jaen, Tinta Amarela, Tinta Pinheira / 2021 [region] Dão One sip of this subtle, complex tinto and you’ll be transported deep into the high rocky hills of the Dão region. Keep drinking. Breathe in the wild flowers and river stones. Taste the ancient soil and old gnarled forests. Born at altitude from a single harvest, old vine field blend, and aged in steel and oak for over a year, this wine tells a story as old as the hills. Pairs well with a creamy, smoky carbonara, a slow roast beef loin, game or meaty fish. Decant and let breathe an hour or so. Check it out in The Cellar. Rapariga da Quinta, Reserva Tinto [grape/vintage] Alicante Bouschet, Aragonês, Touriga Nacional / 2021[region] Alentejo It’s late afternoon in a summer orchard. Fig trees, plum trees and a scattering of blackberry bushes. Heat, barely a breath of wind, the buzzing of insects, a bird chirping nearby. Ancient dolmen stones lie scattered about among the cork trees. All this is smoothly, expertly bottled up in this delicious, full-bodied blend by Luis Duarte and his family. Open, let breathe, serve slightly below room temperature, and taste the rocky soil and blue skies of the Alentejo. Pairs well with a big fat sausage off the grill, dripping in fat or a classic Alentejano cake covered in rich plum sauce. Decant and let it open up a little before serving. Check it out in The Cellar.
The Connoisseur – January 2025
The Connoisseur – January 2024 Hello 2025! Phew…2024 was something, wasn’t it? We don’t know about you but we made it through thanks to some great wine and great friendships. As that amorous old bard, Ovid, said in The Art of Love, “When there is plenty of wine, sorrow and worry take wing.” To kick off the year, we’re going back to The Wine Fellas’ very own ancient history (December 2023 to be precise), bringing back some trusted old favourites. 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. Casa Américo, Encruzado [grape/vintage] Encruzado / 2021[region] Dão Mmmmmm. Smooth and round as a river rock. Crisp and fresh as a blast of mountain air from the slopes of the Serra da Estrella. Deep and complex as a Zen koan. This is a classic Encruzado…expressive and delicate, balanced and opinionated. Pairs well with fish and seafood, a rich tuna steak, or maybe something South Asian like coconut shrimp, or stay close to the source with the Portuguese classic bacalhau com natas. Read more about it in The Cellar. Zom, Reserva Tinto [grape/vintage] Touriga Franca, Touriga Nacional, Old Vines / 2019 [region] Douro An old stone wall, creeping blackberry vines, a gnarled old oak tree. A steep, terraced hillside and far below, the dark and dusty Douro River. This is a classic Douro red, with a solid base of Touriga Franca and Touriga Nacional but finished off with a mystery blend of old vine grapes. Open a wee bit chilled, then allow it to breathe and tell its story. Pairs well with a t-bone steak, roast leg of lamb, venison stew, strong stinky cheese. Read more about it in The Cellar. Casa da Atela, Castelão “Vinhas Velhas” [grape/vintage] Castelão / 2021 [region] Tejo You can taste the experience in this one. These 75-year old vines don’t need to wear any fancy clothes or use complicated words to impress you. They know their roots and they know their place, a well-drained alluvial plain along the Tejo river with misty mornings and sun-drenched afternoons. With some gentle handling in the adega these Castelão grapes chatter away like a bunch of old folk sitting under a plain tree in the praça – calm and steady and smooth with a twist of sardonic, world-weary humour and a twinge of saudade for lost youth. Pairs well with a succulent, seasoned piece of venison, a sunday roast, some strong cheeses or dense rich fruit cake. Decant and let it open up, a good couple of hours. Read more about it in The Cellar.
The Enthusiast – January 2025
The Enthusiast – January 2025 Hello 2025! Phew…2024 was something, wasn’t it? We don’t know about you but we made it through thanks to some great wine and great friendships. As that amorous old bard, Ovid, said in The Art of Love, “When there is plenty of wine, sorrow and worry take wing.” To kick off the year, we’re going back to The Wine Fellas’ very own ancient history (December 2023 to be precise), bringing back some trusted old favourites. As always, wine descriptions are 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. Anexo, Branco [grape/vintage] Antão Vaz, Roupeiro / 2021 [region] Alentejo Think of sunshine. Think of apples and peaches. Think of sliced lemons. Then dust it all in fresh snow on a field of Edelweis on a cold winter morning. A deliciously good Encruzado on any day of the year, but we would pop it open next to a platter of smoked salmon and capers on rye toast. Single vineyard, manual harvest and stainless steel fermentation – natural, clean and simple. Pairs well with smoked salmon on toast, a frisée salad with toasted walnuts and calves liver, a lemon tart. Read more about it in The Cellar. Hasso, Tinto [grape/vintage] Tinta Barroca, Tinta Roriz e Touriga Nacional / 2019 [region] Douro This is a loyal Douro red, faithful as a Rhodesian Ridgeback catching the last rays of the sun as they fall below the steep hillsides of Alto Douro. It’s open-minded and straightforward, with its feet solidly on the ground and its nose in a berry bush. Pairs well with tender young things like a veal marsala or slow-roast lamb, or a hearty pasta like a bolognese or carbonara. Read more about it in The Cellar. Zom, Reserva Tinto [grape/vintage] Touriga Franca, Touriga Nacional, Old Vines / 2019 [region] Douro An old stone wall, creeping blackberry vines, a gnarled old oak tree. A steep, terraced hillside and far below, the dark and dusty Douro River. This is a classic Douro red, with a solid base of Touriga Franca and Touriga Nacional but finished off with a mystery blend of old vine grapes. Open a wee bit chilled, then allow it to breathe and tell its story. Pairs well with a t-bone steak, roast leg of lamb, venison stew, strong stinky cheese. Read more about it in The Cellar.
The Insider – December 2024
The Insider – December 2024 Hello December! Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow…lots of wine and mince pies and baked bacalhau! We’ve all got our favourite holiday cuisine and The Fellas have picked three wines to slide right in there with your “lütvisk” or your “oliebollen” or your “turducken”. 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. Quinta Várzea da Pedra, Macerado Branco [grape/vintage] Alicante Branco, Arinto, Fernão Pires, Malvasia Rei, Moscatel-Graúdo, Seara Nova, Viosinho e Vital / 2022 [region] Lisboa A Sunday Times crossword, a hand carved wooden puzzle, a Sphinx’s riddle. This “orange” wine requires thoughtful patience and an open mind to let its mutliple layers and angles melt into harmony on your palate. A multi-grape blend from different plots combines into a symphony of tree fruits, fresh herbs, earth and flowers. Pairs well with almond crusted sea bass, a hearty ciopino, roast quail with thyme and rosemary, an aged gouda or quiejo de cabra. Read more about it in The Cellar. Vinha de Santa Maria, Reserva Especial, Tinto [grape/vintage] Alfrocheiro, Tinta Roriz, Touriga Nacional / 2017 [region] Dão Deep garnet color. Dark berries and deep complexity with well integrated oak. On the palate it shows intense concentration, with firm tannins and great structure. It’s acidity gives the wine freshness and balance and a very long finish. The power and elegance of Dão in perfect harmony. This wine will age beautifully. Pairs well with a roasted lamb with sweet potatoes , arroz de carreteiro, manchego cheese. Read more about it in The Cellar. Casa de Saima, Reserva Tinto [grape/vintage] Baga, Touriga Nacional / 2017 [region] Bairrada This wine has groove. It’s got a deep bass line of Baga with Touriga Nacional on drums. It’s as smooth as Barry White Wine and about as funky. Play it as accompaniment to a late summer bbq or a deep winter dinner party. Pairs well with a grilled prime red meats like a juicy picanha or t-bone, or a hearty game stew. Read more about it in The Cellar.