Vale do Vinhedos

Vale do Vinhedos, RS
Tasted Wednesday, January 4, 2012 by Timbalimba with 634 views

Introduction

All wines were tasted at source, at the domains.

Serving temperature, glasses, and general condition of the wines served was sole responsibility of the person who presented the wines. I found the conditions (wine temperature and sample freshness) in two of the tasting rooms less than ideal but surely it must be up to the winemaker to decide how to serve his or her product?

Apart from that complaint, I found it a thoroughly delightful visit to the Vale. It offered a nice opportunity to meet the men (they were all men) behind the labels, try their wines, discuss them in detail, and, as visits to winemakers rather have a habit of doing, provided some real surprises as well. Some of the bigger names did not perform as I had expected them to and some of the lesser known garagistes certainly punched above their weight.

Flight 1 - Vinícola Miolo (6 Notes)

  • 2008 Miolo Moscatel Terranova Late Harvest Reserve 85 Points

    Brazil, Vale do São Francisco

    Green-tinted gold. Toasted vanilla, some linoleum, nice pear-drop fruit underneath. Medium palate, nice fruit, a touch of acidity, decent finish. Not bad.

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  • 2008 Miolo Quinta do Seival Castas Portuguesas 81 Points

    Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul, Campanha

    Purple, layered. Dirty nose, dry herbs, scorched red fruits. Disjointed palate, fruit stew, grainy tannins, sharp acidity. Unbalanced.

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  • 2010 Miolo Pinot Noir RAR Colezzione 82 Points

    Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul, Campos de Cima da Serra

    Garnet-ruby. Muted nose, some undergrowth, overripe strawberry, oak. Not very expressive palate, a touch of strawberry, moist earth, oak. Square--- no great gestures, no charm.

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  • 2009 Miolo Chardonnay Cuvée Giuseppe 83 Points

    Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul, Serra Gaúcha, Vale dos Vinhedos

    Pale gold. Big bouquet dominated by toasted French oak, some green fruits underneath, some yeasty tones, obvious sur lie. A lot of wood on the palate as well, buttered salted toast, green plum. Decent finish (oak again). Overdone sur lie and then clobbered senseless with a wooden stick. Pity, because there are hints of delicate fruit somewhere.

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  • 2008 Miolo Reserva Lote 43 84 Points

    Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul, Serra Gaúcha, Vale dos Vinhedos

    Purple. Charred oak, cedar, cherry, a dirty tone of damp earth. Full bodied on the palate, grainy tannins, sharpish acidity, some fruit, and more oak again. Medium finish, echoes of damp earth return. Nope. In my opinion the Miolos struggle with the balance, especially at the premium range.

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  • 2009 Miolo Merlot Terroir 85 Points

    Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul, Serra Gaúcha, Vale dos Vinhedos

    Concentrated purple-garnet. Toasted oak, licorice, star anise, plum. Dense in the mouth, four-square, fruit and spice packed together. Slightly mean finish, tart acidity. Closed and unbalanced. Heavily extracted and I wonder (actually I very much doubt) whether it has all the elements to turn into an outstanding wine.

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Flight 2 - Pizzato Vinhas e Vinhos (10 Notes)

  • 2009 Pizzato Fausto Brut 83 Points

    Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul, Serra Gaúcha

    Light gold. Lively mousse. Another classic nose with a large serving of toast. Quite hefty on the palate, pink grapefruit, even a touch of cherry. OK finish.

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  • 2009 Pizzato Brut Rosé 84 Points

    Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul, Serra Gaúcha

    Deep rose colour. Stinky nose, Pinot barnyard. Hmm… not sure. Very dry on the palate, fruity, full, yet austere. Not my style but I'll have to give it points for individuality and courage.

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  • 2007 Pizzato Brut Branco 84 Points

    Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul, Serra Gaúcha, Vale dos Vinhedos

    Pale gold. Good mousse. Benchmark nose, hint of strawberry, brioche, vanilla. Not quite as good on the palate, very fruity, no minerals and a bit short.

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  • 2010 Pizzato Chardonnay de Chardonnays 86 Points

    Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul, Serra Gaúcha, Vale dos Vinhedos

    Unoaked. Pale gold. Nice, mineral nose, touch of honey, peach. Medium bodied, very fresh, delicate fruit. Decent length. Not bad at all, Chablis-like.

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  • 2005 Pizzato Concentus Gran Reserva 86 Points

    Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul, Serra Gaúcha, Vale dos Vinhedos

    Garnet, slight bricking. Peppery nose, hint of raspberry fruit. Fleshy and ripe in the mouth, balanced finish. Nice blend.

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  • 2007 Pizzato Egiodola 84 Points

    Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul, Serra Gaúcha, Vale dos Vinhedos

    Blue-tinted garnet. Perfumed, musky bouquet, herbs, tobacco. Stewed strawberry fruit on the palate, tobacco comes back, tar. Reminds me very much of Sangiovese. Good.

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  • 2005 Pizzato Alicante Bouschet Reserva 85 Points

    Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul, Serra Gaúcha, Vale dos Vinhedos

    Blackish purple, impressive depth of colour. Closed nose, some minerals, herbs. Mouth-coating tannins, liquorice again, fruit kernels, tar. Not short on power but a real brute.

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  • 2006 Pizzato Tannat Reserva 84 Points

    Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul, Serra Gaúcha, Vale dos Vinhedos

    Deep purple, no obvious signs of age. Smoky, liquorice nose, deep. Good structure in the mouth, full bodied, but a bit tight, needs to gain some weight. Maybe improves with time.

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  • 2006 Pizzato Cabernet Sauvignon Reserva 85 Points

    Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul, Serra Gaúcha, Vale dos Vinhedos

    Purple-garnet. Black pepper and liquorice on the nose. Medium bodied, slightly stalky, but individual style, very peppery. Not bad.

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  • 2008 Pizzato Merlot Reserva 84 Points

    Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul, Serra Gaúcha, Vale dos Vinhedos

    Garnet. Finely tuned bouquet, cherry, some oak in the background. Fine fruit, just a bit short. Correct.

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Flight 3 - Adega Cavalleri (5 Notes)

  • 2006 Cavalleri Merlot Segredo 86 Points

    Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul, Serra Gaúcha, Vale dos Vinhedos

    Garnet. Deep, brooding nose, very typical Merlot with some bottle age, cherry fruit and saffron spice. Fine, balanced in the mouth, not terribly long but good balance.

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  • 2009 Cavalleri Cabernet Sauvignon 88 Points

    Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul, Serra Gaúcha, Vale dos Vinhedos

    Garnet, starting to show maturity at the rim. Surprisingly mature nose, perfumed rubber, Syrah-like. Nice. Medium bodied, yet flesh, fine fruit, integrated oak. Excellent balance. The best Cab I've tried from Serra Gaúcha, very elegant.

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  • 2011 Cavalleri Chardonnay 85 Points

    Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul, Serra Gaúcha, Vale dos Vinhedos

    Greenish gold. Oak, dry nose, minerals. Quite fruity but classic. Not the longest of finishes but clean and balanced.

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  • 2009 Cavalleri Brut Charmat 85 Points

    Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul, Serra Gaúcha, Vale dos Vinhedos

    Pale gold. Dry nose, biscuits, nuts and toast. A bit fluffy perhaps and quite full, but not bad, restrained fruit (thankfully). Clean refreshing finish.

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  • 2011 Cavalleri Moscatel Espumante 82 Points

    Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul, Serra Gaúcha, Vale dos Vinhedos

    Pale silver. Fruity nose, muscat grape juice aroma. Nice palate, not too full, has a more serious tone underneath. Finishes well with some echoes of residual sugar.

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Flight 4 - Angheben Vinhos Finos (4 Notes)

  • 2010 Angheben Pinot Noir 83 Points

    Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul, Serra do Sudeste

    Unoaked. Light garnet. A bit of smoke on the nose, some kirsch. Medium palate, not much fruit. The balance is all right but this is pale, not showing much.

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  • 2010 Angheben Barbera 82 Points

    Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul, Serra do Sudeste

    Purple. Closed nose, some funk, a hint of stewed, herby fruits. Medium to full bodied, quite acidic, some dirty cherry and bitter almonds. Too dirty, too short on fruit.

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  • 2006 Angheben Cabernet Sauvignon 82 Points

    Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul, Serra do Sudeste

    Garnet, bricking. Green pepper and American oak… oh well. Full bodied, mature yet still stalky, salty tannins. Unbalanced and not up to par if it wants to compete in the global Cab market.

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  • 2005 Angheben Teroldego 83 Points

    Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul, Serra do Sudeste

    Concentrated blackish purple, maturing towards the rim. Tar, fruit stew on the nose. Full bodied yet doesn't feel very generous, stalky fruits, grainy thin tannins. Shortish finish. Square.

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Flight 5 - Vinícola Almaúnica (7 Notes)

Flight 6 - Vinícola Don Laurindo (12 Notes)

Flight 7 - Vinícola Torcello (5 Notes)

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