Espigueiro Vinho Verde 2007 from Portugal (From The Northern Echo)

Espigueiro Vinho Verde 2007 from Portugal

11:35am Thursday 21st August 2008 in

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I have a Portuguese wine this week with a famous name - Vinho Verde. This is actually the name of the region North of the River Douro to the border with Spain.

The name does not refer to the wine’s colour but to its youthfulness.

The climate here is warm and very rainy. The grapes tend to be low in sugar hence the wine is not high in alcohol. This bottle from Oddbins is only 10.5 per cent. The prickle in the wine is actually injected as CO2. The grapes used are loureiro and arintom, which give the wine a light, fresh, crisp taste. Vinho Verde goes well with fish and it does make a nice aperitif. It’s on the shelves at the moment with 70p off at £5.39.

Oddbins also have the very opposite - a red wine of 14.5 per cent alcohol. This is a Barossa wine - produced by the Grant Burge firm. Made from cabernet sauvignon and merlot in 2006, it’s a vibrant wine with a nose of sweet ripe berry fruit and hints of mint and spice. On the palate there’s a nice combination of black cherries and liquorice integrated with smokey oak flavours. This wine is quite a mouthful with a long, complex finish. The makers recommend that it goes best with beef ragout, barbequed meats and heavy tomato dishes and is on the shelves at £5.99.