Douro - Red
Eight medals last year, eight medals this year and a similarly wide-ranging spread of styles and, in particular, prices. Interestingly, our tasters were more bothered about the former than the latter. It’s hard to get good cheap wines from the steep slopes of the Douro, and our judges seemed to be more interested in finding quality than amazing value for money.
There was affection for the aromatic styles of these wines – the best had more perfume than power – and since over-exuberant alcohol or tannin often tended to diminish with time, it’s perhaps no surprise that our only Gold here was also the oldest wine sent in. For £12, the Quinta da Silveira is astonishingly good value.
From The Tasting Teams
‘These were interesting. A floral style of the Douro, with dried rose and potpourri, as well as fruit character and balance.’ Laurent Richet MS, team leader
‘At that £12-15 mark there were some really great wines here that would work in a variety of restaurants and bars.’ Sam Weatherill, Etch. by Steven Edwards
‘They’re quite aromatic and can develop too. They’re wines to have with food. But what we appreciated the most was the value.’ Elena Serban, Heritage Restaurant
‘At the entry level these were easy-drinking, lovely wines, and then at the top end there were some super wines, with lovely fruit, good acidity, and really refreshing too. Much of the Douro can be port-like, but these weren’t heavy.’ Vivienne Franks, Aspects of Wine
‘These were great wines, at all prices. You get a lot of fruit and sun in the bottle. I’m in a Spanish restaurant and any of these would be a good addition to my wine list. They deliver great quality at that price.’ Jurijs Nemkovs, StreetXO
‘I would have liked to see a bit more of the contemporary styles. These were all very good, but all very classic.’ Jan Konetzki, team leader