Alfaraz tinto 2004, V.R. Alentejano.

Color: dark red with browning edges.
Nose: expressive, with lots of multi layered classical, earthy, smoky and spicy nuances, also wood, vanilla and beautiful peppery fruit, minerals, phenolic nuances, great fruit, complexity, depth, a bit austere in style, but very  classy.
Taste: medium bodied, with a lot of power, extract and intensity, many wood nuances and serious tannins, but well matched by the intense and dense core of fruit and minerals, classical phenolic nuances with beautiful fruit, minerals, strong acidity, earth,  depth, complexity, excellent balance and even elegance.
Finish: long, intense, fanning-out, complex, with powerful and smoky tannins, good acidity and spices, fruit and a touch of sweetness, impressive.

* A great and impressive Portuguese red with an intense, austere, strong and elegant character with an impressive array of complex and deep nuances of minerals, earth, wood and fruit. Not an easy wine, but a classy one with a strong structure not unlike a classical Bordeaux including depth and complexity.

- Can be drunk now, will keep up to 2009, maybe a few years longer.

- Tasting this wine without knowing its provenance will confuse many professionals. There is a unmistakable warmth in this wine and also a certain type of spicy-warm fruit from a hot region, but the strong and compact, austere structure, firm acidity and Bordeaux-like aroma pattern will make it hard to categorize. Made from Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Trincadeira and Alicante Bouchet. Matured during 8 months in French and American oak barrels.
I like this wine and am excited about the combination warm-classical-cool-austere. It gives this wine great tension and it forces me to explore all aspects of this wonderful combination. No, it is not modern, no it is not terroir-faithful, but it is so exciting. Try this wine, it is a strong statement. A marriage between two opposite worlds, a great match!

- lotnr.: ?

- tasted: 09-01-’07

- estimated retail price ca. 9,00 euro

- average production: ca. 80.000 bottles

- Herdade da Mingorra, Mr. Henrique Uva, export manager: Dalila Perdigão, 7800 – 761 Trindade /Beja, tel.: + 351 284 952 004 / fax: + 351 284 952 005 / e-mail: geral@mingorra.com / web site: www.mingorra.com