Spring 2021 Wine Club
The six club wine details are below and the historic Douro Valley is featured with four of the six wines coming from this storied region. We will have two live events detailed below and a Michelin-star Chef joins JD Selections to provide wine and food pairings.
Special Event Details
Winemaker Discussion with Luis Seabra
Each wine shipment will be accompanied by a live, members only webinar scheduled after the wines are delivered. We will be joined by Luis Seabra, one of Portugal’s most influential wine professionals. He is the winemaker of the Muxagat wines. He’ll join us to discuss the Douro, his winemaking philosophy, the two Muxagat wines from this shipment, and answer questions.
June 6 at 5pm ET / 2pm PT
RSVP to: jeff@jdselections.com
Tasting with Sommelier Carlin Karr
Carlin Karr is the Beverage Director for James Beard award-winning Frasca Hospitality Group. She is a Wine Enthusiast 40 Under 40 Tastemaker as one of the most influential wine professionals in America. Her wine and service program at Frasca Food and Wine in Boulder, Colorado, has been recognized nationally. She will join us live to taste through the club wines, discuss how she evaluates wines, and answer questions.
May 2 at 6pm ET / 3pm PT
RSVP to: jeff@jdselections.com
Cook with Henrique Sá Pessoa
Michelin Star-decorated chef, Henrique Sá Pessoa joins JD Selections as a featured contributor to provide food and wine pairings exclusive to our club. Chef Henrique is at the pinnacle of Portugal’s rich culinary scene as the creative force behind Lisbon’s must-visit 2-Michelin Star restaurant, Alma.
Below are details on the Spring 2021 club wines. My aim is to give you a sense of their place and process, and also the key people involved while moderating the overly descriptive tasting notes given we can all experience wine differently. If you have any questions, reach out to me any time. Cheers, saúde!
2016 Muxagat Tinta Francisca
Club members received a taste of the incredible work being done at Muxagat (pronounced Moo-sha-got) in the Winter 2020/21 pack via the 2016 Tinto, the winery’s red blend. Muxagat is located in the tiny village of Meda almost 3 hours drive from Porto at the eastern end of the Douro Valley. The Douro is divided into three regions and you can refer to this wine map for orientation. The Baixo Corgo is the western-most part of the Douro, closest to Porto and the influences of the Atlantic Ocean. Cima Corgo is the middle section. The most rugged, least developed region is the Douro Superior with parts of it closer to Spain than to Porto and the coast. The region is sought after for its high elevation vineyards, extremes in diurnal versus nocturnal temperature, and situational position to ripen grapes and produce beautiful wines. Muxagat has been making wines here since 2002.
Muxagat is a family-owned property, with Susana Lopes at the helm and she has helped drive awareness of artisan, terroir-focused Douro Valley wines forward through her work. Several of the wines are now only available on allocation, though luckily, we will always be able to secure the wines of our choice for the wine club. Winemaking is overseen by the legendary, Luis Seabra, widely regarded as the best winemaker in the Douro and one of the most influential wine professionals in Portugal. Note… we will be joined by Luis for a live discussion on June 6 at 5pm ET that you won’t want to miss!
The Muxagat wines are a prime reason I began importing wines, and the 2016 Tinta Francisca is their “flagship” red wine. As with all Muxagat wines, the farming practices are sustainable and focus on the natural, long-term health of the land and vines. The grapes are harvested by hand and sorted immediately upon arrival at the winery. 75% of the stems were used in the stainless steel tank fermentation. Punch downs were a highly manual process, done by hand to ensure gentle treatment. Malolactic fermentation took place in used French oak barrels where the wine aged for 18 months before bottling in April of 2018.
There is relatively little of this precious wine produced, with just 1,200 bottles total from the 2016 vintage. While blends are more common than monovarietal wines in the Douro Valley, Tinta Francisca is a grape that shows great depth but also softness and elegance on the palate. It is a grape with high natural acidity and floral notes, often reminding fans of Italian wines (including me) of the Nebbiolo varietal. With 5 years of age, the tannins are fine and support enjoyment of the wine both with or without food depending on personal preference. This wine is not sold anywhere else in the United States and I’ve only made it available to club members. I’m delighted to be able to share it with you.
2018 Muxagat Branco
As mentioned above, blending is a common practice in the Douro Valley and more widely across Portugal. Blends sometimes receive negative views in the States, though their results can often produce wines of far greater depth and nuance given the varying characteristics of multiple grapes. If someone tells you a blend can’t produce high quality wine, shrug and point them to Bordeaux for example. And Portugal! Blending is traditional by Portuguese winemakers because many vineyards in the Douro and across most growing regions of the country have a “field blend” of multiple varietals planted and growing together. It becomes logistically impossible to separate the different grape varietals and thus they are picked and fermented together. Another common practice, as is the case at Muxagat, different varietals are planted separately in the same vineyard, harvested separately then blended in the winery. The final wine best resembles the full quality of the vineyard characteristics.
With 2018 Muxagat Branco the dominant grape in the blend is Rabigato at 60%. Rabigato is a full-bodied, workhorse grape that responds incredibly well to the high elevation vineyards and hot, sunny summer days of the Douro Valley. I often compare it stylistically to Chardonnay. 30% of the wine is Arinto, another popular varietal in the region for its floral characteristics and high natural acidity. We’ll explore more Arinto wines in future club shipments as it is a varietal that thrives in multiple regions across Portugal. The final 10% is Gouveio which gives the wine additional structure and acidity.
The resulting wine has incredibly broad appeal and versatility, and I am excited to include it in the club shipment as I consider it the perfect white wine heading into the warmer weather months ahead. Bright appearance and smelling of ripe peaches and pears and a full, round taste in the mouth without being too heavy. Because the wine has some bottle age there is a light honey quality not typically present in white wines that are released earlier. This is a wine I have a hard time putting down and I take it everywhere, from camping trips in the mountains to afternoons at the pool or the perfect pre-dinner grilling wine. With a moderate 12% alcohol it has a freshness that allows for enjoyment without food. It also pairs well with white meat, seafood of many types, and lighter pastas. I had it recently with several types of hard and soft cheeses and it was delightful.
2019 Pormenor Reserva Branco
Pormenor means “details” in Portuguese, and Pedro Coelho, owner and winemaker of Pormenor is hyper focused on the details that count when delivering incredible wines. Pedro is one of my original producer partners, a great family man, and a joy to open a bottle of wine with. One detail he insists upon is old vines, but in Douro Superior they are very hard to find. Douro Superior, sometimes referred to as Upper Douro is a relatively “new” development in Douro Valley wines… a bit of an oxymoron when speaking of a region that has a wine history spanning more than 2,000 years. But, it wasn’t until the 1960s when electricity arrived to parts of the Douro Superior that there was enough modern infrastructure and winemaking comforts that allowed for high quality wines to flourish. Most of the Douro prior to that time period was focused on port production with the primary growing regions further west toward Porto. Unfortified table wines were an afterthought and largely made from excess grapes not used in the more lucrative port wines.
In more recent years a relatively new crop of younger generation winemakers seeking different growing conditions began realizing the terroir of the Upper Douro was yielding dry table wines (port is fortified) of distinction. Thus, the majority of the vineyards in the Douro Superior are relatively young. Pedro’s meticulous search and a bit of good fortune allowed him to secure vineyards in the Douro Superior with vines ranging in age from 40 to 95 years. The qualities that old vines impart through the magic of Mother Nature yields a much different experience in our glass.
The first vintage of Pormenor was 2013, and Pedro’s approach to his wines starts in the vineyards. Another detail he refuses to bend on is the practice of organic farming to promote the health of his precious old vines. The 2019 Pormenor Reserva Branco is sourced from their oldest vineyards with vines aging from 80 to 95 years. Vines face north and southeast and are at elevations between 1,800 to 2,135 feet above sea level - optimal positioning for ripening grapes in this climate. The vineyard is planted as a field blend and dominated by Rabigato at 85%. The remainder is Malvasia Fina which has a gentle wax and smoke character to it.
Harvests are by hand and Pedro’s aim is to make wines that reflect the beauty of the vines and land and thus another self-appointed detail is to stay out of Mother Nature’s way. In winemaking terms, this is minimal intervention and letting the fruit take its natural course toward the wine we are enjoying. Upon arriving at the winery the grapes are gently pressed with the juice decanting for 24 hours at low temperature. Fermentation is in large format, 225-liter used French oak barrels. It is spontaneous and natural with native yeasts only and no temperature control, additional hallmarks of minimal intervention winemaking. The wine then ages in the same barrels for 11 months on the fine lees (dead yeast cells). Aging wines on the lees can add body and additional flavors and is a practice Pedro does with his white wines. The wine is then naturally stabilized and is unfiltered, thus it can develop natural sediment after time in the bottle.
Pormenor Reserva Branco is a “benchmark” reference for Douro Valley white wine and is often featured on wine lists at fine dining restaurants in Europe. Pedro produced less than 3,100 bottles in 2019 and we are the exclusive importer in the United States. The wine is vibrant and on the nose displays floral aromas, citrus, green apple, pineapple, and green herbs. Tasting the wine reveals the tension and intensity that old vine wines can impart along with balanced and elegant acidity. A light touch of wood is noticeable given the time in barrel, and the wine will certainly benefit from more time aging in bottle. The wine pairs wonderfully with foods that have medium fat content. Fish, white meats, soft cheeses, and risotto would be home runs.
Chef Henrique of 2-Michelin Star restaurant, Alma in Lisbon has paired this wine for club members with a special dish. Watch the instructional pairing video and access the recipe here.
2018 Pormenor Tinto
Pormenor’s red (tinto) wines deliver using the same attention to detail and “DNA” of old vines and minimal intervention winemaking. The grapes for Pormenor Tinto are also from a field blend on old vines, but just west of Douro Superior in the part of the Douro Valley referred to as the Cima Corgo. The vineyard is 60 years in age and composed of traditional red grapes of the Douro all planted together: Touriga Franca, Tinta Roriz (known as Tempranillo in neighboring Spain), Tinta Amarela, Tinta Barroca, and Rufete.
2018 was a warm year with low humidity and thus grapes matured relatively quickly. Harvest was in early-August, and in Douro where temperatures can soar, quality winemakers like Pedro preserve good natural acidity and maturation with a strict picking schedule. It is common for a 3-4 weeks difference in harvest dates between vintages depending on weather and the internal conditions of the grapes. As with all harvests at Pormenor, it is done by hand. After sorting at the winery, grapes were pressed with partial stems and fermentation occurs naturally with native yeast in stainless steel tanks. The wine is macerated for four weeks. Maceration is a winemaking practice that leaves the skins, seeds, and stalks of the grapes in contact with the juice. This can optimize the structure and flavor of the wine and it is a judgement call by the winemaker as to how long to macerate. The wine is then aged for 20 months in 225-liter used French oak barrels before bottling. It is naturally stabilized and unfiltered, so you might notice natural sediment in the bottle especially with age.
The principles of Pormenor and Pedro’s process to avoid all unnatural additives in the vineyard or winery bring forth a purity in his wines that I enjoy immensely. We are treated to the sensory experiences of the fruit and the vines to reveal a pure example of Douro Valley red wine from old vines. Fresh, elegant, strong natural acidity, well-rounded tannins, and the aging in barrels is discreet. I’ve enjoyed this wine with and without food, though common pairings would include red and white meat, pasta, and a family favorite pairing of homemade pizza.
2017 V Puro Aliás Tinto
V Puro returns as a producer we were introduced to with the Doravante wines in the Winter 2020/21 club shipment. The feedback on the Doravante red and white was overwhelmingly positive. Owner and winemaker, Nuno Mira do Ó joined us live for a discussion and Q&A, and if you were unable to tune in and would like to review it the video is here. Nuno owns and works three vineyards in close proximity in the Bairrada wine region, which we will feature regularly as one of Portugal’s regions producing astounding references of reds, whites, and sparkling wines. Nuno’s focus with V Puro (puro being the Portuguese word for pure) is to work exclusively with Portugal’s native varietals and showcase their natural elegance and freshness through old vines. Checking out Bairrada on the wine map shows it immediately next to the Atlantic Ocean, an important feature in the climate of the region. Summer brings hot days but cool, sometimes cold nights and the big temperature swings combined with the clay soils make the Bairrada an exciting region for artisan winemakers like Nuno.
Whereas the Winter 2020/21 club wines featured fruit from his Doravante vineyards, the 2017 Aliás Tinto takes us to an adjacent parcel of even older vines. This image shows the vineyard positioning. The wine is 100% Baga and from a specific parcel of the Aliás vineyard that is entirely 100+ year old vines… a rare and special treat! The limited production of this wine is only 2,200 bottles.
The 2017 growing season in Bairrada featured the trademark hot days of the Portuguese coastal summers and cooler Atlantic nights. The dry nature of the vintage had Nuno push up the harvest to preserve the freshness and depth of the fruit. The grapes are hand picked and fermentation begins in open lagar (large stone trough) with 10% stems included. Fermentation is through native yeast only and ends in barrels. The wine was then aged 20 months in used French oak before being bottled in September 2018 where it remained in its original location until I imported it for you earlier this year.
The wine is in a great drinking window now, though it will age gracefully for many years. Give the wine some time in the decanter, and take that time to enjoy the floral and cherry aromas. Baga is a special grape that we will revisit a number of times, and this is a unique expression given the 100+ year old vines. In the mouth the tannins are smooth with great primary fruit and spice. There is a hint of Atlantic salinity (remember the proximity to the ocean) and balanced acidity. The wine pairs well with a wide variety of foods from red and white meat to seafood.
2017 Mira da Ó Vidente
Gazing back at the Portuguese wine region map, you’ll see that just east of Bairrada is the Dão region. We enjoyed the Textura wines from the Dão region in the Winter 2020/21 wine shipment and this time we revisit this exciting area through Nuno’s eponymous wine label, Mira do Ó. Nuno owns vineyards and makes wines in both regions, the Bairrada and Dão and his experience and understanding of the intricate nuances of these neighboring regions allows him to bring forth wines of distinction. Nuno’s professional training includes viticulture, and he is in constant search for the balance between soil, climate, and vines. He then seeks to sustain that balance through the sensory experience of the wines we enjoy.
The Dão region has different yet equally attractive geographic and climatic conditions from neighboring Bairrada. Being further inland, the influence of the Atlantic Ocean is still present but muted. The dominant feature of the Dão is the presence of Portugal’s tallest inland mountain range, the Serra da Estrela. With peaks over 6,500 feet, it impacts growing conditions and keeps the warmer inland temperatures at bay enough to create a longer growing (ripening) season for the grapes. At 1,500 feet of elevation, Nuno’s vineyard in Dão is elevated from coastal Bairrada, which also helps mitigate the summer heat. Granite is the dominant soil type in this area and it imparts different elements on the vines than the softer clay soils further west toward the coast.
2017 Mira do Ó Vidente is made from 30-year old vines and is a blend of varietals native to the the Dão: Jaen, Alfrocheiro, Tinta Pinheira, and Touriga Nacional. Harvest is by hand followed by a slow fermentation in stainless steel tank. The wine is aged 10 months in used French oak barrel before bottling in May of 2019. On the nose you’ll smell cinnamon, cherry, and cocoa. Upon tasting, I find the tannins to be softening with bottle age but tense and the wine has a long, silky finish. I love this wine with food and pair it with a wide variety of meat-based dishes.