Vinhos Verdes Masterclass

Masterclass by Dirceu Vianna Jr, MW on vinho verde, which is a region, not a single style like many believe. The area was demarcated in 1908.

Associated with fresh light summer wine but there is much more than that. 

Fit contemporary trend to lighter lower alcohol wines. 

Largest wine export from Portugal, more than port. 

Granite soil mostly but diversity. Mostly between Minho and South of the Douro rivers. About 120km x 90km. 

Atlantic and Mediterranean climate influence. Mild temperature, 1200mm/yr average rainfall. 

Over 17,200 hectares, mostly planting in small parcels, 1400+ producers make almost 100 million liters of wine. Over 45 varieties for vinho verde, 80% white 20% red.

Varieties cultivated

Loureiro 47m Sq meters 

Alvarinho 25

Arinto 24

Vinhao 18

Exports are mainly to the US (31%), Germany (18%), Brazil (19%), Poland (14%).

Below are my tasting notes:

1. Quinta de Azevedo 

Property from XII century. 

Loureiro 2023

Intense floral and herbal aromas Zesty fresh,passion fruit notes 

Rrp £21

Score 89

2. Casa de Pacos 

Loureiro 2018

Intense floral aromas, moderately fresh, well balanced by smooth honey notes. 

Rrp £21

Score 92

3. A&D wines 

Esculpido vinhas velhas Avesso 2022

Avesso 100%

Perfect balance and good length, 

Rrp £28

Score 93

4. Casal de Ventozela 

Prime selection 2023

Alvarinho 55%,Avesso 25%,Loureiro 20%

Wines blended from different years, bottled in 2023. 

Perfect balance, creamy vanilla, long. Surprisingly evolved so young thanks to old French osk. 

Rrp £65

Score 94

5. Soalheiro primeras vinhas 2023

Alvarinho 

Freshness prevails but still good balance and length 

Rrp £26

Score 91

6. Anselmo Mendes 

Muros antigos 2015

Alvarinho 

Fully evolved 

Rrp 14 

Score 93

7. Falua Barão do Hospital 

Espumante 2020

Padeiro

Sparkling rosé

Easy drinking, moderate bubbles 

Rrp 30

Score 85

8. Quinta de Tamariz 

Rosé vinha do Jardin 2023

Touriga Nacional 

Medium freshness and length. 

Rrp £17

Score 88

9. Costantino Ramos 

Zafirah 2019 

Alvarelhão Borraçal, pedral, vinhão

Soft extraction , light oak, elegant texture 

Rrp £23

Score 89

10.Aphros 

Vinhão 2022 

Light, slightly rough, rustic, mod length. 

Rrp £20

Score 85

11. Quinta de Santa Cristina 

Arinto Espumante 2018 

Arinto 100%

Traditional method, fragrant balanced 

Rrp £20

Score 88

12. Provam Côto de Mamoelas 

Assemblage 2017,18,19

Alvarinho 

Traditional method, balanced 

Rrp£17

score 87

The unexpected wines of monção and melgaço

Masterclass by Dirceu Vianna Jr MW. 1821 hectares of vines in these two regions, planted at 83% Alvarinho, only recently appreciated low yield small bunches, scorned in the past. Growers were sent into exile in late XVIII century if caught growing it!

Here are my tasting notes.

1. Anselmo Mendes

Tempo 2019

Loureiro 100%

Fresh, slight pleasant savory oxydation. 

Fermented on skins, good structure.

Rrp £55

Score 91

2. Adega de Monção

Deu la Deu premium 2020

Alvarinho 100%

Delicate acidity, good length. Almonds. 

Rrp £25

Score 90

3.Quinta de Paços

Casa do capitão Mor

Alvarinho sobre lias 2020 

Herbal aromas, cut grass, powerful structure for a white no doubt because of the lees. Slight "positive" oxydation. 

Very Long! 

Rrp €32 in Portugal 

Score 93

4. Soalheiro 

Revirado 2022 

Alvarinho 100%

Revirado means turned over lots of times, batonage. 

Balanced, slight bitterness, good length. 

Rrp €45 in Portugal 

Score 89

5. Valados de Melgaço

Alvarinho grande, reserva 5th anniversary 2016

Limited edition only 1910 bottles. Very light press. Wood then tank with lees. 

Herbal intensity, glycerin roundness, balance and length. A majestic perfectly aged alvarinho. 

Rrp €65 euros in Portugal 

Score 95

6. Quinta de Santiago 

Sou 2020

Alvarelhão 100%

Portuguese answer to Pinot noir 

Light, easy, balanced.

Rrp €38 in Portugal 

Score 86

Domaine Franco-Chinois from China

Based in Hebei province. THey brought some wines to the LWF but not much of the information we would have liked, in part because of a language barrier.




Riesling 2019

Typical petrol

Score 87

Trade £19




Chardonnay 2018

Reserve

Honey

Score 90



Red Blend

54%merlot 32%frabc 14%cab sauv

Domaine Franco chinois reserve

Still feels young, fruity balanced

Score 92




Marselan 

Marselan 100% 2013

Powerful structure long complex

Ready but could use a few more years

Score 95

Trade 72




Petit Manseng

late harvest 2018

Harvest November

Smooth sweet still some acidity

Score 87

Himalayan wines from China

Chinese wines are up and coming, including at the London Wine Fair.

Thanks to Himalayan wines, a winery from Yunnan, for bringing some interesting products. 

This is the 10th year of production for them.

Below are my tasting notes and the RRP, which very ambitiously position these products in an expensive range.

The quality is high, the prices even higher!

Allofme 2022

Chardonnay

3mos each old new French oak

Balanced wine, 7000 bottles produced.

Score 89

Rrp 75




Célèbre 2022

Chardonnay

12 Mos new French oak

Balanced and complex

Rrp £ 200

Score 91




Allofme 2018

Rose of Cabernet sauvignon bleeding

Smooth long

20k bottle

Score 89

Rrp 40




Célèbre 2018

Cabernet sauvignon

18 Mos new French oak

Balanced long

35k bottle

Score 92

Rrp 200




Allofme 2018

80% Cabernet sauv 20% rose honey

Complex flowers balanced

Score 93

Rrp 40

Garnacha Alta wines at the London Wine Fair

Delightful masterclass by Rosana Lisa, winemaker from the Spanish wine academy.

These are the main takeaways from her talk.

Grenache, as it is mostly known outside of Spain, is valued because it is highly resistant to drought, a rustic variety that should adapt well to climate change, ie drier seasons.

It can have high yields but at the expense of quality and recently producers prefer quality over quantity.

It is also quite resistant to pests, including phylloxera, which allows for less use of pesticides.

It is a good "team player", meaning it works well in blends with many other varieties.

Discreet, soft tannins, make for a highly drinkable wine even without long aging.

Here below my tasting notes.

1. Ramon Bilbao

Early harvest rose 2024

60% tempranillo 40% red garnacha

Floral, smooth and long.

Score 88



2. & 3. Ramon Bilbao

90% red garnacha 10% viura

Lalombra finca Lalinde 2015 & 2024

2015: evolved dry fruits dry Apricot, petrol notes,feeks slightly oxydized

Score 88

2024: smooth long




4. Ramon Bilbao by Sebastian Velez from Colombia challenge winner

100 garnacha

Score 86




5. Ramon Bilbao, Limite sur 2020

100% garnacha

20yo avg age of vines

Score 88




6. Ramon Bilbao

100 month concrete 2015

100% garnacha single vineyard, no oak

Liquorice, still evolving,

Score 92



7. Mas Alta

ELS PICS 2021

50% garnacha 40% cariñena 10% syrah

Mas means rural house.

Powerful complex long

Score 93


8. Mas Alta

Artigas 2020

80% garnacha 10%cariñena 10% Cabernet sauvignon

Very long and complex, perfect balance

Score 95

Sake and cheese masterclass at the London Wine Fair

Masterclass on pairing of cheese and sake by Natsuki Kikuy, a well-known senior sake researcher with WSET credentials.

Sake is, of course, the national drink in Japan, we all know that. What many, surprisingly, still don't know is that is is a fermented drink, and not a distilled one. 

Four basic elements go into sake: rice, water, koji and yeast.

 There are about 100 types of sake rice in Japan and several are grown specifically with sake brewing in mind. Water in Japan is also special, it has the least minerals of most other waters in the world. Koji is a mould, also used as condiment with miso etc Finally,  koji yeast is used to break up starch into sugar.

As for sake categories, to put it in simple terms, the popular Junmai means the sake has 50+%plus polish, ie more than half of the rice grain is polished away to leave only the inner core for sake.

For honjozo they add alcohol and achieve a staggering 70% polish rate.

Cheese and sake go well together because they share : fermentation, umami notes and, for both, aging matters.

Following are my tasting notes.

Kisaki sprasu pink sake

Junmai daiginjio 

Sparkling sake, champagne method 

50%pol ratio 

11%abv

Score 89

La tur cheese from Piedmont 

Soft blend cow sheep goat 

Koi Junmai Daiginjio 

17%abv 

Score 92

Secret polishing ratio 

Very smooth long 

Brilliant savarin creamy cheese from burgundy 

Perfect pair by concordance 

Tatsuriki Sakura 

Junmai 65% polish ratio 

15%abv 

Used cherry blossom flower that contains yeast 

Score 89

Dorstone goat cheese from England 

Light fluffy texture 

Niida Shinzenshu 

Kimoto Junmai Genshu

From fukushima 

Polish ratio 80% 16%abv

fruity 

Score 90

Cheese Salers from Auvergne 

Un pasteurized cow milk 

Chunky cheese concordance with thick sake 

Asahizakura ginjio koshu (aged) 1996

Exception as it needs aging while usually sake should not 

Polish ratio 60%

Abv 17%

Color by maillard reaction like for onions,slight toasted bitter nites

Score 88

4yo gouda cheese from Netherlands 

Smooth paste and sake by concordance 

Ebisu Fuku Ume 

Not technically sake 

Made with apricots 

Abv 12%

Aged in brandy casks for 20 years 

Paired by concordance with 

Blue cheese goat gorgonzola from Italy 

Hidden gems of Iberia

 

Eclectic masterclass at the London Wine Fair 2025 focussed on Iberian wines and led by Mercedes Carbajo of Majuelos Iberia.

Below are my tasting notes.

Rias Baixas

Alvinte As Laxas

Crisp, zesty, green apple,

Score 86

Cariñena

Garnacha 

Vaquerizas, tierra de Cubas

Score 85

Catalayud 

las Martas San Gregorio 

Garnacha 

Smooth elegant long 

Score 92

Ribera del Jucar Ramblilla 2022 

bobal grape 

Vega Maragona 

40yo vines 

Structure length 

Needs a few years in bottle

Score 88

Txakoli Zudugarai rosé

Hondarrabi 60% beltza and 40% zuri 

From Basque country, 

Slight effervescent natural 

Score 85

Rioja selection, Jesus Madrazo 2018

Graciano 28% 2% Maturana 70% tempranillo 

Intense aroma, Elegant, structure still rough, needs time 

Score 86

Ribera del Duero - AØ (zero) Ferratus 2020 

Tempranillo 

12 months French oak 

Perfect balance, long ready 

Score 91

Jumilla 2021 

Alceño 12

From area considered kingdom of monastrell (mourvedre), only grape that grows well in the region 

Pre phylloxera vines, climate too tough even for pests!12 months in French and American oak 

Perfect balance, long, ready 

Score 92

Klein Constantia, South Africa

Clara Schnitzler export manager

Small but interesting tasting at the LWF 2025 of a niche South African wine.

Klein Constantia is a  340-year-old winemaker, one of the oldest in South Africa, planted its first vines in 1685 close to ocean. In part for this reason, Muscat first worked well.

In the old days it was a favorite of royals in Europe as well as by the rich in the USA, though it later became more affordable and widespread and thus available to a wider clientele. Jane Austen said it helped heal broken hearts!

Only 11 producers in Constantia valley, smallest region in South Africa.  

Below my tasting notes:

2023 estate 

100% sauvignon blanc 

Fresh salinity, crisp finish yet balanced, mod complex 

Score 88

2019 Clara sauvignon blanc 

After c Eliza hussey, American steel heiress who helped develop KC in 1920s

More floral, more texture, earthy notes 

Score 86

Estate red 2020 

58%cab sauv 

Blend p verdot, malbec, syrah 

Smooth, elegant Perfect balance, mod long, ready

Score 90

2020 Anwilka 

In Stellenbosch 

60% cab sauvignon 

40% syrah 

A bit rough attack, intense red fruits and notes of leather 

Wait 5 years 

Score 88

Vin de Constance 2021 

100% muscat de Frontignan 

Late harvest, pick highly concentrated grapes, no botrytis 

Aged 18 months in mixed old and new French oak 

Marmalade and lichee, moderately long. 

Score 89

Discovering China’s Coastal Terroir in Penglai

Masterclass at the 2025 London Wine Fair with Michael Palin, expert of Italian wine actually who recently discovered Chinese wines, and Sonya Song, founder of Longting, China's leading boutique vineyard by the sea.

We learned how China now boasts 100k hectares of vineyards, roughly the same surface area as in Germany. The huge country can use a huge range of soils, altitude, rainfall, latitude.

Since 2010 push to try different grapes, Marselan and Petit Manseng works well in Shandong in addition to classic Chard and Cabernet Franc 

These are my tasting notes.

Petit Manseng 2022

3 months of oak 

Balance sapidity and smooth ,long

Score 90

Rrp 500 rmb in China 

"Sea breeze" 2020 

Chardonnay 

3 months in New French oak 

Intense aromas Zest almonds 

Score 88

Rrp 600rmb

"Lan" Marselan 2021

Ripe fruit, plum, black cherry, cassis, still rough edges needs time 2 years perhaps

500 rmb

Score 89

Dragon label 2019

Cabernet franc

30 days on skin, plenty of tannins 

Alcohol feel (14.5%)

Needs time

Rrp 2000 rmb almost sold out 8k bottles 

"jade" late harvest petit Manseng 2021

Acidity and smooth ending 

Score 86

Rrp 287 rmb, 7 is her lucky number