Welcome! After a four-week hiatus, the CorkPopper Project is finally back in action, and I am so psyched that for my first month back I’ll be exploring the exciting world of Portuguese wines! Portugal is not just about Port, after all, and there is no shortage of excellent Portuguese table wine just waiting to be discovered by people like you and me.
For this first week of my journey through Portugal’s wines, I’ll be tasting three different examples of Vinho Verde, which translates to “green wine” (meaning age rather than color) and could not be further in style from the country’s famous (and ubiquitous) fortified wine. Hailing from the Minho region in Portugal’s northwest, which has been demarcated as the Vinho Verde Denominacao de Origem Controlada (DOC), Vinho Verde is typically made from Alvarinho or Loureiro grape varieties. Vinho Verde is bottled young so that malolactic fermentation* occurs in the bottle instead of the barrel. This means that there is typically at least some carbon dioxide (which is a natural result of the fermentation process) in the bottle, making Vinho Verde slightly fizzy. In short, a perfect wine choice for a warm afternoon.
So, without further delay, here are this week’s contenders!
First, we’ve got a 2008 Encostas do Lima Vinho Verde, which is available for just $9.99/bottle at The Wine House.
Second, I’ll be tasting a non-vintage Broadbent Vinho Verde, which is available for just $8.99/bottle at The Wine House.
Finally, we have a 2008 Adega Cooperativo Regional de Moncao “Trajarinho” Vinho Verde, which can be purchased over at K&L Wine Merchants for just $8.99/bottle.
Cheers!
* Malolactic fermentation is the process by which the malic acid in a wine is transformed into lactic acid and is what gives some wines that “buttery” or “creamy” feel on the palate.
For this week’s third and final Vinho Verde, I tasted a 2008 Adega Cooperativo Regional de Moncao “Trajarinho,” which is made from a blend of Alvarinho and Trajarinho grapes. Clear and brilliant and light straw in color, this wine is slightly less effervescent than the Broadbent and slightly more so than the Encostas do Lima. There are crisp golden apples and underripe white nectarines on the nose, along with a bit of bread dough and a lot of minerality. On the palate, the wine is nice and dry, and the fruit is understated and is quite nicely complimented by a bit of mineral and medium-plus acidity. The alcohol is low, as is characteristic of Vinho Verde, but the finish and complexity are both medium.
