After an extended absence, I'm back and hope to be writing more than I previously was. Since graduate school is complete, I need a way to continue to learn, don't I? Hoping to get a new entry out every week or two for the foreseeable future. Anyway, Happy New Year and happy drinking! For my first entry of 2018, I am doing a Portuguese Alicante Bouschet. The esteemed wine publication Wine Enthusiast ranked this wine as #74 of its Top 100 Best Buy wines of 2015, and subsequently gave it a 90 point rating. Alicante Bouschet is a grape that is a cross between Petit Bouschet and, one of my favorite types of wine, Grenache. When in the glass, the color of this Portuguese red is a dark violet with a crimson/scarlet tint on the edges of the wine glass. Similar to the color of a deeper, bolder wine, this Alicante Bouschet has layers of flavors throughout. This grape is commonly planted in Spain, Portugal, and California. Also, fun fact, this grape was heavily planted during Prohibition to be shipped to the eastern United States due to its thick skin, which made the grape more resistant to the transportation process. The region where this wine comes from is known as Vinho Regional Lisboa (or Lisboa VR), which was called Estremadura until 2009. According to The Wine Atlas 7th ed., Estremadura, or Oeste, translates to "the West", which is notably as Portugal is located on the west side of Europe, and more specifically, this region borders the Atlantic Ocean to the west. The regional, true to its namesake, holds the capital and largest city of Portugal, Lisbon. This region also plants other grape varietals, like the bold Syrah, Touriga Nacional, and some lesser known grape varieties: Castelão, Camarate, Trincadeira, Fernão Pires, and Arinto. I had been saving this bottle to review for quite a while. When I researched the grape before I poured the bottle I was expecting a Syrah-Zinfandel-Cabernet Sauvignon type body, but upon smelling and taking a few sips from the glass, that it would not be. The dark inky color reminded me of one of the bolder wines I mentioned above, but with a bit darker color around the edges of the glass. The thicker skins of the grape is what gives it that darker color.
The initial smell of the Portuguese red was a stronger fruit scent than anticipated, with flavors like blackberry, red fruits like strawberry and raspberry that creates a bit of tang in the taste, and some plum. This wine has a strong fruit taste in the front with a transformation to an earthy and mildly dry finish of leather and tobacco, but subtle and not overpowering as its bolder counterparts. There is a notably amount of acidity on the end of this red, too. The wine did have a complex layered body, but without the heavy feeling of a bolder wine. If you are looking for a deeper red wine without feeling full or the dry mouth feeling after drinking, this is a good one to try. This is one of two Portuguese wines I have tried, so I'm still getting used to what the wine in the country is like, but this wine was a good one to better understand both red wines and red wines within Portugal. Specs: ABV: 13.0% Varietal: Alicante Bouschet Region: Lisboa VR, Portugal, Europe Bottle size: 750ml Pairings: Beef, tomato-based sauces
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Author20 something living in Beer City USA with an affinity for wine. Other hobbies include photography, reading, and playing my pup. Archives
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