Vale Dos Vinhedos Grape-Growing/ Wine-Making Region Of Brazil... the headline should finish.
There are five wine-producing regions of Brasil and it seems that the most important so far is this Vale Dos Vinhedos. Arielle Monaco of the Country Vintners Imports in Ashland, Virginia, Michel and I tasted three wines from the CASA VALDUGA family vineyard yesterday, Wednesday, July 26th, 2012. Other sales people were here and so I invited Lucinda and our customer Graham to join in as well. It was a treat : it was fun.
Arielle Monaco had been here this past Saturday doin a weekend-wine-tasting here and somehow it came out that she had wines from Brasil. She immediately told me that she had the CASA VALDUGA wines. She did not pause or hesitate, the name came immediately to her. She told me that perhaps two years ago when the Cafe Atlantico was still around here in Washington D,C, that she had taken them to taste with the owners/ wine-buyers then. She said that they had not shown well then. She did not say whether she sold them any of the wines? I will have to ask her.
I asked her to bring them to me yesterday so that I could taste them. I was really excited to hear this news and she brought me three to taste with Michel and one to take to the Outer Banks of North Carolina to enjoy with my family this first week of August when I take my vacation, Thanks Arielle, I appreciate that very much.
When we tasted them early Wednesday afternoon here the Reserve 2010 Chardonnay ( Estate-Bottled, 13% alcohol by volume ) really was tight and closed and no one liked it : no one. It was really quite tight and acidic and with no body or middle or finish to it.
The " Arte " dry red blend, a 2009 at 12.5% alcohol and a blend of 40% Cabernet Sauvignon , 30% Merlot and 30% Cabernet Franc was fruity and fleshy and a bit like an unfocused picture that had promise and was pleasing enough after having just been opened for us to taste. Arielle opened each of the bottles here for us to taste. We all liked it enough and thought it was very reasonable for the price.
The Reserve 2007 Merlot was bigger, broader, richer, deeper, more spicy with more tar and leather and tobacco : a more serious wine altogether. We all liked it, too. I preferred it to the Arte 2009 dry red blend. We will buy that and have that here the first week of August 2012.
I asked Arielle to pour me some of the Chardonnay to try later as I wanted to see what would happen later ? She left me the bottle along with the Arte 2009. I took them home with me. I shared some with neighbors and then enjoyed them at dinner. I reversed my decision from earlier : at dinner the Chardonnay 2010 Reserva Estate-Bottled was the clear star and at dinner the 2009 dry red blend " Arte " was showing way too much alcohol in the taste that made it very hard for me to enjoy my glass.
I told my wife that it was a very rare moment in my life when I would drink a Chardonnay over a dry red Bordeaux blend. Here I was doing just that. More to follow soon with the pictures of the bottles. Cheers and thanks / muit obregado Arielle! Anthony ( TONY ) Quinn
UPDATE :
" Doing Thai " Eladio said to me. " Not going to be fancy, a friend of a friend ... " he continues. Eladio said : " Around twenty." Eladio answered when I asked him what he wanted to spend. I already knew that with " a friend of a friend " that it had to be more about tasty and flavorful to match the flavors of the Thai food. I sold Eladio a bottle of our 2007 Merlot from the CASA VALDUGA winery in the Valle Dos Vinhedos, $19.99 just south of the wine capitol of Bento Goncalves. I told him that it was flavorful and dry like a good bottle of French Bordeaux or even an Italian Friuli or Veneto dry red, as the ancestors of CASA VALDUGA are either from Trentino or Veneto, Italy. Eladio seemed pleased and he mentioned the World Soccer Cup in Brazil. So, now all I have to do is wait to hear from Eladio. Cheers, Happy New Year Eladio. Anthony ( TONY ) Quinn 1/12/14
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