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I just spent a few weeks in England, tracing my roots, looking up friends, downing a few pints and savouring some marvelous curries. England is no longer a place to find great deals when it comes to wine, although I did pick up some Hubert Laurent bubbly at Walmart, no less. It was originally priced at twenty pounds, but the “Roll Back” price had dropped it down to ten. It was really quite tasty and a good value at the equivalent of $20.00! Now I am home and I did have the chance to sip a few of the wines slotted for June 24th. The feature region this release is Portugal. Some good stuff to be found at pretty reasonable prices.

Some Portuguese whites:

642371 QUINTA DO PORTAL BRANCO 2005 Douro, $15.95
Aromas of Moscatel dominate this blend of Viosinho, Moscatel, Malvasia, Gouveio and Fernão Pires. It also shows notes of parsley stems, canned lychee and spring flowers. It has acidity to keep it clean. An interesting afternoon aperitif. Find this wine

684761 REAL COMPANHIA VELHA 'PORCA DE MURÇA' RESERVA BRANCO 2004, Douro $15.95
This blend of Boal, Gouveio and Moscatel shows hints of white chocolate, honeysuckle, wet stone and lemon. On the palate I note Asian pear, sweet grapefruit and citrus. Another nice alternative to the summer Chardonnay syndrome. Find this wine

727115 QUINTA DE AZEVEDO VINHO VERDE 2005 $11.95
This blend of Loureiro and Pederña shows some funky attributes of barnyard, straw, mineral and baked pear. It is quite tingly on the tongue, has a huge finish of green apples and might drink better with food. Find this wine

980227 SOGRAPE DUQUE DE VISEU BRANCO 2004, Dão, $11.95
This wine has a robust green/yellow hue. It smells a bit odd at first as all I note is a blend of wax and canned fruit. I am not sure if that is typical of this blend of Encruzda, Assario and Cerceal or not. The palate is quite balanced, showing ripe baked
pear with a touch of parsley stem. Could be fun on a hot sunny afternoon. Find this wine

Some Portuguese reds:

950220 ALIANÇA GARRAFEIRA BAIRRADA 1997 $12.95
There are notes of sweet toffee, stewed fruit, raspberry and spice on the nose. The taste profile really falters and the finish is rather bland. Find this wine

684712 BARÃO DE VILAR DOURO RESERVA 2004, Douro $15.95
This blend of Touriga Franca, Tinta Cão and Touriga Nacional, and Tinta Roriz needs time to open up. It delivers some pretty notes of cassis, black raspberry and chocolate. It is well balanced and has decent concentration. Find this wine

684936 VINHOS D. JOANA 'ENCOSTAS DE ESTREMOZ' TOURIGA NACIONAL 2003, Vinho Regional Alentejano, $17.95
An intriguing nose of wet earth, balsa, dark berries and sweet spice. The acidity is bang on, the fruit tastes sweet on the finish and it blends well with the taste of dark couvature. Find this wine

606590 ESPORÃO TINTO RESERVE 2003, Alentejo, $25.95
Tinto Reserve uses Aragonés, Trincadeira and Touriga Nacional. At this point in time it is showing notes of shoe polish, clove, dark fruit and mushroom. It is thick and full bodied! Although it is not overly tannic, I think this wine needs time to be at its best. Find this wine

687541 'PIORNOS' JAEN VINHO TINTO 2002, Beira, $17.95
The grape variety here is Jaen. It makes a wine similar in style to the New World approach by showing cedar and lots of sweet buttery fruit. It has a jammy texture on the palate. Not really my style. Find this wine

685073 HERDADE GRANDE TINTO 2003, Vinho Regional Alentejano, $14.95
This blend of Aragonés, Trincadeira and Alicante Bouche, offers notes of sage, Dutch licorice, strawberry and blackberry. There is a lively streak of fruit on the palate, there is some tannin, but it does not distract. A reasonably priced quaffer. Find this wine

357962 QUINTA DE CAMARATE TINTO 2003, Vinho Regional Terras do Sado, Fonseca, $13.95
This mélange of Castelão Frances, Espadeiro and Cabernet Sauvignon has an attractive nose of mud, fresh coulis and coffee! The palate has plenty of spicy fruit, dark chocolate and it finishes, oddly enough, with a hint of tangerine. I will buy some of this. Find this wine

682591 SOGRAPE 'CALLABRIGA' DOURO TINTO 2003, $18.95
This, the first wine of the month, conveys a little bit of poo, compost, wet leaf along with plenty of cherry, plum and dark fruit coulis. The oak seems a little heavy at first, but as the fruit opens up, it should fade. Good stuff. Find this wine

674259 BLANDY'S 'ALVADA' 5 YEARS OLD RICH MADEIRA $19.95
A lovely sweet nose of dried banana, dried tangerine, Christmas cake spices and caramel. The palate is pretty darn good too! Find this wine

656561 J.LOHR 'SEVEN OAKS' CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2003, Paso Robles, $19.95
The other wine of the month gives a rich sweet nose of blackberry, cassis, a touch of mint, cigar leaf and chocolate. It is drinking well and I do quite like it. Find this wine

226944 RODNEY STRONG CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2003, Sonoma County, $24.95
This too is quite nice, but lacks the concentration of the latter wine. It might just be tight right now. There are traces of blueberry and blackcurrant, but right now they are masked by sweet oak. Maybe a year or two will bring the fruit to the surface. Find this wine

683003 MOUNT LANGI GHIRAN 'CLIFF EDGE' SHIRAZ 2001
Grampians, Victoria $23.95
Sweet and minty, loaded with cardamom, blueberry and plum. It has plenty of peppery spice, nice acidity and it is cloying. It is a bit clumsy right now, but give it a year or so and it should settle down. Find this wine

678581 PARKER COONAWARRA ESTATE 'TERRA ROSSA' MERLOT 2001 Coonawarra, South Australia, $33.95
A rich ripe wine full of red raspberry, black cherry and stewed fruit compote. The oak is nicely integrated and the acidity is superb. Tasty stuff. Find this wine

590570 CHÂTEAU CESSERAS MINERVOIS LA LIVINIÈRE 2002, Midi, France, $16.95
I really like this wine. It has heaps of dark jammy fruit, a trace of mint and just enough earthy notes to render some diversity to the nose. The tannins are silky, the balance is superbly done and the finish of fruit lingers long. Find this wine


683722 DOMAINE MAGELLAN SYRAH/GRENACHE VIEILLES VIGNES 2003, Vin de Pays des Côtes de Thongue, France
$15.95
Apparently only 500 cases of this wine were made and Vintages was able to secure 350 of them. It is a powerful wine showing notes of coffee, spice, morel, and dark fruit. The balance is spot on. The finish is a touch tight right now, but I think this could be my “wine of the month”. Find this wine

319376 MAS CHICHET ROSÉ 2005, Vin de Pays des Côtes Catalanes, France $12.95
Some red currant, a high acid palate and not a lot of fruit to speak of. Find this wine

685040 JEAN-LUC COLOMBO 'ROSÉ DE CÔTE BLEUE' 2005, Coteaux d'Aix en Provence, $14.95
This wine shows some nice notes of guava, quince and steely red fruit. It comes across as being a little sweet on the palate; the finish is pleasant, but by no means long. Find this wine