October 7, 2015 - 86/87. Love all manner of Portuguese reds; love all manner of natty wines; love Aphros's Loureiro -- this, though, was just not my thing. Really putting the sour back into sour cherries. Not poorly made at all -- just nothing I'd buy again.
October 1, 2014 - I had a glass of the 2012 vintage at a New York restaurant - our waitress has recommended this wine to us and, as I had never had a Portuguese red before, I thought I'd give this one a try. The restaurant was quite dark so my perceptions of color will probably be off. The wine appeared to be inky, though when I tipped the glass over a candle, it was quite transparent. On the nose, I got floral aromas (magnolia? rose?) mixed with red fruit. There was a bit of spice in there as well. The wine was quite acidic and very refreshing on the palate. Palate was dominated by red fruit. Paired wonderfully with a grilled beef tenderloin.
September 13, 2014 - Fruity and raw. Agree with the comment "good quaffing drink".
August 23, 2013 - Almost explosive berry nose with sweet raspberry dominating. Some bitter orange, liquorice and a slight touch of animality.
Medium bodied and juicy palate of raspberry to forest fruit. Minor tannin presence and pretty refreshing acidity. Quite tangy and bitter - which keeps this nicely nervous. Some MLF feel, liquorice and herbs. Lengthy.
So clean, ripe and concentrated it's hard to see VVT here. But it's a good wine. Reminds me of Austrian Heinrich. Acetic character strengthens considerably with time.
February 16, 2013 - At Latva Bar in Helsinki. Interesting minerally nose. Light bodied and smooth, delivering juicy dark fruit with prominent mineral and liquorice flavors. Gentle tannins and acidity. Flattened a bit with more airtime in the glass. A nice quaffer though. Paired nicely with the sapas dishes.
December 15, 2012 - Very deep and dark ruby color with the slightest hint of translucency. Very bright, fruit-forward nose with aromas of wild strawberries, tart lingonberries and some saddle leather with rather pronounced MLF aromas of strawberry yogurt and hints of floral perfume. Very youthful, bright and focused on the palate - the initial sip feels very ripe and supple, but quickly the racy acidity dries and lightens the mouthfeel, transforming the taste into crunchy, acid-driven explosion of tart lingonberries, ripe raspberries and fresh redcurrants with a light funky touch of leather and a hint of licorice. The structure is really nice with high acidity and quite modest yet at the same time rather prominent, grippy tannins. A great balance of youthful, crunchy freshness and grippy, stern structure. The finish is long, dry and savory with flavors of tart lingonberries and cranberries, some loamy earth, tannic astringency, a little herbal bitterness and a hint of strawberry yogurt MLF notes.
A lovely red Vinho Verde with great purity, focus and structure. I especially enjoyed the crunchy sweet-and-sour character of the palate. On its own this is a great palate-cleanser for the duration of one glass, but the wine starts to demand food with the second glass. Great value at 15,90€.