(2012) This piles on the depth and intensity of fruit and aroma. Honey and obvious ripeness here, hinting at tropical. More luscious fruit. Some vergetal notes add to the complexity of the palate, but so much flavour, so much broad, green-bean tinged, fat lemnony fruit and huge natural concentration and freshness.
(2012) This has a lift of honey and flowers, really attractive, hinting at the exotic, but not overblown. Beautiful palate: pristine, ripe, sweet-edged fruit but such lime and lemon intensity and freshness. A touch of vanilla, but all about the fruit.
(2012) Organic and wild-yeast fermented, this has that slightly wild, sour cherry and Indian inky density and dryness of the Afros Vinhão I selected last year, with minerals and keen raspberry fruit too. Wow! An almost Champagne-like vivacity on the palate - not sparkling, but so much acidity and keen, lean, mouth-watering citrus and racy acidity. Deliciously different.
(2012) One of the new wave of single varietal Vinho Verde wines, this is 100% Alvarinho (Spains's Albariño). Only two sub-regions are allowed to bottle single varietal Alvarinho, Melgaco and Monçõo, both hugging the Spanish border with Galicia. This with its modest 12.5% alcohol seemed just a little dull on this showing. It is full-textured and ripe, with some peachy fruit on the mid palate and a big blast of pithy citrus on the finish, but perhaps lacking the vital spark of the best examples on this showing.
(2012) Terrific nose, so fresh, herby, floral and dry but attractively bright. Lemon peel and tangerine tang. Great palate: crunchy, vibrant, searingly peppy and tangy, with so much zest and vitality. Flavour is packed in here, though there is a bit of gunflint reduction that you can taste in the finish.
(2012) In many ways simpler, with a clear citrus character, cool orchard fruits too. On the palate tangy and spritzy: very vivavcious, very sherbetty and cool with the lovely fruit flooding the mouth. Classic in style, and very juicy and vital.
(2011) Alvarinho. A singular take on Vinho Verde from Galician winemaker Marcial Dorado. It spends one year in tank with lees, and qualifies as a 'Natural Wine', organically farmed, very low levels of sulphur and all natural yeasts. Powerful, leesy, oxidative nose showing lots of stony minerality. This is intense, with concentrated green apple fruit, lots of structure and acidity gripping the finish.
(2011) Loureiro. A passito wine, the grapes dried for five months. Fabulous nose, with cream and vanilla and lots of barley sugar and crème brûlée touches. The palate has absolutely delicious balance - the sweet, full fruit has a real sense of clarity with creamy texture and glycerine richness. Toasty, orangy, delightful.
(2011) Served cold, this deep crimson, biodynamic wine has beautiful aromatics with black cherries, red liquorice and a certain caraway seed spice. Beautifully focused flavours, the black fruit has shimmering gloss and refinement on the palate, with a granite-like backbone of structure. It finishes with creaminess and that beautiful kirsch-like freshness.
(2011) Made from Arinto, this spent three years in vat then three more in bottle for its second fermentation which finished at end of 2008. Toasty, buttery with lots of brioche and nettle notes. On the palate a big, powerful wine with bruised apple fruit and lots of leesy richness. Outstanding stuff that will split the jury into lovers and haters.
