The Magic of Portugal

Primarily known for Port Wines, Portugal has many styles of wine, from light and refreshing to full bodied.

June 28, 2015

Thank You Silver Coast

Future Chapter Events July No Meeting

Aug 30th National Wine Tasting Project

Sep 27th QVC Wine

Oct 25th Virginia Wines by Mary Lou and Jeffery Salter

November No Meeting

Dec 7th Wine Dinner

Membership Survey 2015

Ocean Isle Beach Chapter

COMMENTS

***Suggestions: Name tags - printed once for members, left in box, member picks up at the beginning of meeting and returns to box at end. Visitor will have a "sticky" name tag. Stan, you often talk to your left side of the room when presenting information. You have your back to your right side of the room. Just an observation.

***Good, often extremely well. I have been introduced to wines I never would have thought to taste. For example, Kosher wines.

***Stan and Tess do an amazing job!

***Stan, you and Tess have developed a first-rate Chapter. Thank you! The acoustics in the meeting room are awful. Could we look into getting a mic? Or, reconfigure the tables so that the speaker is always facing the audience (?)

***We have been well educated in wines since we started attending the meetings.

***Might be able to cut back to nine if there were no August meeting.

***Either current schedule or 8 per yr (eliminate another summer month and a big holiday month)

COMMENTS

Some are outstanding, others only good. But, I've learned to like some types of wines I previously had avoided.

We appreciate the diversity of the wines and the variety of themes.

Given the $$$ constraint, the wine selections have been great.

All of the wines tasted so far have been outstanding. Very few are disliked, but that is expected.

The selection of wines have always been outstanding.

COMMENTS

In our opinion a larger group would not add any value.

I prefer to keep our meetings at the current size. I think larger meetings would become unwieldy and somewhat impersonal. Perhaps we should limit attendance to members who respond and pay within a certain time period before we allow guests. However, I realize that we may have more members than we can accommodate if we keep attendance at 40ish. Therefore, I would support buying more wine if absolutely necessary. (I'm not comfortable with the fact that people could pay to be AWS members and get closed out of meetings.)

Pay at the door.

Direct bank transfer (?) Bank of America (and probably most of the other big online banking services) allow funds to be transferred in a variety of ways including by email.

Like the current cash system prior to or at the time of the event

COMMENTS

I think Stan does a great job of providing a variety of great wines. I would prefer to repeat varieties from well known places (e.g. Italy, California), rather than stretching with wines from less successful regions like southern states.

I like them all!!!

= WINO! [from someone who, like 70% of the other respondents, chose the Will Rogers response: “I’ve never met a wine

that I didn’t like (or at least drink)” ]

MAXIMUM Cost pp for Wine Dinner

Total responses =19

2 $40/pp

9 $50/pp

3 $60/pp

5 $75/pp

1 “open”

Several commented that the cost should parallel the quality of the wines/food

Virginia, Australia with ostrich and kangaroo, Argentinian or Australian with lamb. There are several area chefs who could be hired to prepare or hire a club house. Maybe, First Tee facility..has great kitchen.

Vertical tasting = 2 responses

Focus on more regional wines. There are many good wines available in various states. Encourage members to suggest these wines for tasting.

Washington State, summer wines.NC = 2 wines of north carolina

I would be glad to do a taste sometime in the future. We have been to France several times and know Bordeaux well enough to do a knowledgeable taste.

German/Austrian White Wines

May have already been done but tight region tastings ie Russian River, areas of Canada (if they even make wine)

Tasting of the same varietal from different regions

another region in Italy - ie Veneto or Puglia or Piedmonte

Rotate the responsibility among members

Food

Providing Food Pairings for the Wine Tastings

All members sign up for rotating teams. I don't think people realize how much work Stan and Tess do.

I love the Food Pairings. I suggest we rotate this task via a signup sheet. If members take responsibility for one item, we would probably be responsible only a few times a year. (I prefer this over hors d'oeuvres at Meet and Greet.)

Would be interested in helping with the hors d'oeuvre and serving when needed.

The Magic of Portugal

Portugal’s Wine History

Grapes have been grown for 4000 years. The Phoenicians probably introduced winemaking to the south, and the Romans

spread vine cultivation and winemaking further upcountry as they drove out the northern Celts.

Christianity arrived in the second century AD, incorporating wine into its ceremonies.

Winemaking thrived, until falling foul of Muslim prohibitions. In the 15th C, England, a political and military ally, was a thirsty customer, turning to

Portugal for its wine supplies during periods of conflict with France. After World War II - over 100 co-operatives were built throughout Portugal during

the 50s and 60s. Portugal joined the EU in 1986.

Wine Regions of Portugal

14 wine regions

Diverse terroir from north to south and east to west.

Wine styles abound

DOP applies to wine products with originality and individuality due to an inextricably link to a particular region, place or traditional denomination with specific characteristics deriving from the local terroir (geographic environment, natural and human factors).

These wines are subject to strict rules of control in order to guarantee authenticity and quality and can be labelled as DOC.Protected Designations of Origin for European wines are included in a European Union register.

Wine Designations DOC or DOP (Protected Designation of Origin)

IGP applies to wines from a specific region named on the label, produced with at least 85% of grapes of that region. Like DOP/DOC wines, they are subject to strict rules of control.

These wines can be labelled as “Vinho Regional”. Protected Geographical Indication for European wines are included in a European Union register

Wine Designations cont.IG or IGP (Protected Geographical Indication)

Vinho WineWine not fitting into the above categories is simply known as ‘Vinho’.They must comply with National and European Union regulations.

2013 Verdelho Herdade do Esporão

This latest vintage is an impressive Verdelho. It is the producer’s best yet. It has warm, ripe apricot and pear flavors that are intense and generous. The soft, rich texture is cut by nervy acidity that gives the wine fine balance.

2012 Delaforce Alvarinho

Appearance: Clean, clear and bright pale yellow color. Nose: Fruity Aromas tempting floral notes. Mouth: The combination of fruity aromas and a palate highlighted by crisp acidity and flavorful minerality make this Alvarinho a classic example of the variety.

2013 Chrysalis Albariño Verde

This is Chrysalis Vineyards’ newest wine, an homage to the Vinho Verde wines of Portugal.

When made with Albariño (or Alvarinho as it’s known in Portugal) it’s called Vinho Alvarino and is known as the “premium” variety for this style.

This style of wine is characterized by its light and crisp texture, intense fruit, and slight effervescence.

Esporão Private Selection White 2012Ripe citric and tropical fruit aromatics combining with complex white chocolate and toasty oak notes.

It has a well balanced palate with a elegant and persistent long finish.

Crystal clear, straw color.

Americo Vinho Tinto Red 2008

This red wine is made with the noble varieties of grape from the Dao region. It presents an intense ruby color along with a rich nose. The wine pairs well with soft cheeses.

2011 Luis Pato Colheita Seleccionada

Deep ruby red. Menthol and dark red fruits on the nose. Firm tannins, medium bright acidity on the palate which echoes the nose.

Enjoy it now with gamey meats or hard cheeses.

Regional wine made from a blend of Baga and Touriga Nacional grapes.

2009 Quinta dos Aciprestes Douro Tinto

Mocha and baker's chocolate are the dominant flavors in this muscular red, which offers focused accents of hot stone, with Bourbon vanilla notes, that have a creamy allure. The plush finish is long and rich.

2011 Lemos And Van Zeller Port Quinta Vale Dona Maria

"Deeply flavored, ripe and rich-tasting, with a seductively spicy aroma and concentrated flavors of raspberry, boysenberry, wild plum and cherry. The minerality in the finish lingers.

WS 96 points.

“My books are like water; those of the great geniuses

are wine. (Fortunately) everybody drinks water.” –

Mark Twain

Till next month...be good, behave and be well.

Godspeed and Best Wishes everyone!!