Animus
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Winery Origin Vintage Style Varietal Price Current Stock |
Leite de Faria Douro, Portugal 2007 Red Tinta Roriz/Touriga Nacional/Touriga Franca £10.75 |
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This wine appears in the following casesEveryday Indulgences - Mixed (case of 12) |
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Story
Much like the game of “name five famous Belgians”, most people might be hard pressed to name a single Portuguese wine (the one in the funny shaped bottle excluded). Which is odd because the Douro Valley is one of the oldest delimited wine regions in the world - dating from 1756. However it’s mostly famous for the production of fortified wine, i.e. Port.
But Portugal’s changed. Sacks stuffed with EU funding have rebuilt the terraces and wineries, so the wines are now world class. And … still no-one’s heard of it.
Vicente Leite de Faria started winemaking in 2000. With around 100 varieties to choose from, he settled on a classic combination of Touriga Nacional and Touriga Franca (the mainstay of Port) and Tinta Roriz (better known as Tempranillo over the border in Ribera del Duero).
Taste
He’s made an everyday cracker that’s quickly being listed by sommeliers. As Charlie Young from Vinoteca put it; wild black fruit and temperament, tamed by ripe tannins and precise winemaking. This is where the hedgerow meets the barbecue, where the gardener is also the chef and where his rustic old farmhouse is served by a butler.
Serve
Slightly cool at 16°.
Match
Slow roasted lamb with bitter chocolate sauce; venison with loganberries; Morcilla (black pudding); Civet de Sanglier (shredded wild boar) with chestnut sauce.
Avoid
Believing your funny shaped wine bottle covered in sea-shells is an objet d’art. No, a candle doesn’t improve it either.
Quote
I’ve no idea who the five famous Belgians might be, but I do know the wine’s damn good.
Louise Gordon, Head Sommelier
Clos Maggiore, Covent Garden