Quinta de Chocapalha Red 2010
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Deep violet in color with a powerful bouquet of ripe black fruit, spice and rose, this tinto is elegant on the palate with soft tannins and vibrant acidity leading to a long and expressive finish. Pairs well with portabella mushroom burgers or spicy beef stirfry.
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Wine Enthusiast
A mix of grapes from southern Portugal and the north along with a hint of Syrah, this is a stylish wine, feeling fresher and lighter than its alcohol would suggest. It has that cool feel of Lisboa wines, a touch saline, and balances firm, impressive fruit and tannins with juicy acidity. Drink from 2018.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2010 Tinto, the estate red with just Quinta de Chocapalha on the front, is a blend of 45% Tinta Roriz, 25% Touriga Nacional, 15% Castelão, 10% Syrah and 5% Alicante Bouschet. It was aged for 18 months in French oak (60% second use, the rest third use). It comes in at 14.5% alcohol and a slightly elevated 4.5 grams per liter of residual sugar. Not quite an oldie (or vertical), which would be more in keeping with this issue's theme, it is nonetheless a rather late release with an old vintage date. It was just recently launched in the USA. This seems like a beauty that is in a very good place right now. It's a super value. Solid in the mid-palate, it has a fine, palate-coating mouthfeel with intense fruit flavor, no doubt the last third of the blend (Castelão, Syrah and Alicante) stating a case. It seems more like the Castelão, though. Very ripe, it is wonderfully fruity, but saved from being merely fruity by its beautiful structure and balance. It is rather gripping on the finish, although it is approachable right now. It evolves nicely with aeration. This is going to be a crowd-pleaser at an "everyone" price that is still serious enough to impress the geeks.
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With hundreds of red grape varieties to choose from, winemakers have the freedom to create a virtually endless assortment of blended red wines. In many European regions, strict laws are in place determining the set of varieties that may be used, but in the New World, experimentation is permitted and encouraged resulting in a wide variety of red wine styles. Blending can be utilized to enhance balance or create complexity, lending different layers of flavors and aromas. For example, a red wine blend variety that creates a fruity and full-bodied wine would do well combined with one that is naturally high in acidity and tannins. Sometimes small amounts of a particular variety are added to boost color or aromatics. Blending can take place before or after fermentation, with the latter, more popular option giving more control to the winemaker over the final qualities of the wine.
How to Serve Red Wine
A common piece of advice is to serve red wine at “room temperature,” but this suggestion is imprecise. After all, room temperature in January is likely to be quite different than in August, even considering the possible effect of central heating and air conditioning systems. The proper temperature to aim for is 55° F to 60° F for lighter-bodied reds and 60° F to 65° F for fuller-bodied wines.
How Long Does Red Wine Last?
Once opened and re-corked, a bottle stored in a cool, dark environment (like your fridge) will stay fresh and nicely drinkable for a day or two. There are products available that can extend that period by a couple of days. As for unopened bottles, optimal storage means keeping them on their sides in a moderately humid environment at about 57° F. Red wines stored in this manner will stay good – and possibly improve – for anywhere from one year to multiple decades. Assessing how long to hold on to a bottle is a complicated science. If you are planning long-term storage of your reds, seek the advice of a wine professional.
Best known for intense, impressive and age-worthy fortified wines, Portugal relies almost exclusively on its many indigenous grape varieties. Bordering Spain to its north and east, and the Atlantic Ocean on its west and south coasts, this is a land where tradition reigns supreme, due to its relative geographical and, for much of the 20th century, political isolation. A long and narrow but small country, Portugal claims considerable diversity in climate and wine styles, with milder weather in the north and significantly more rainfall near the coast.
While Port (named after its city of Oporto on the Atlantic Coast at the end of the Douro Valley), made Portugal famous, Portugal is also an excellent source of dry red and white Portuguese wines of various styles.
The Douro Valley produces full-bodied and concentrated dry red Portuguese wines made from the same set of grape varieties used for Port, which include Touriga Nacional, Tinta Roriz (Spain’s Tempranillo), Touriga Franca, Tinta Barroca and Tinto Cão, among a long list of others in minor proportions.
Other dry Portuguese wines include the tart, slightly effervescent Vinho Verde white wine, made in the north, and the bright, elegant reds and whites of the Dão as well as the bold, and fruit-driven reds and whites of the southern, Alentejo.
The nation’s other important fortified wine, Madeira, is produced on the eponymous island off the North African coast.