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Alvaro Castro Quinta Da Pellada Carrocel 2011 750ml

size
750ml
country
Portugal
region
Dao
WA
95
WA
95
Rated 95 by Wine Advocate
The 2011 Carrocel Quinta da Pellada was aged for 22 months in two-year-old year old French oak and just bottled in November, 2013. It is 100% Touriga Nacional. Of all the wines here, this is easily the most interesting, and perhaps the most concentrated, while still retaining the elegance and grace Castro’s wines typically show. It is surprisingly fresh and aromatic considering the time in oak, and it is already integrating its oak well. In its own, understated way, it is also quite sexy, showing those beautiful aromatics and fine flavor on the crisp finish. This is pretty pricey, but I suspect a lot of folks who lean to the elegance side of the equation will find this beautifully balanced wine irresistible and completely enchanting. I liked it a lot on Day 1. Day 2 sealed the deal, when it woke up and kept getting better, showing ripe tannins and those still-glorious aromatics. It was never obvious, making its bones with finesse. This is not a wine to bring out to a tasting where everyone gets an ounce. This is a wine to sip through the evening. It was quite unevolved when I saw it, but I think in time it will have many stories to tell all evening long. The price point and scarcity (related issues, to be sure) will likely exclude many consumers, but this is the pick of the litter of the winery’s submissions for this issue, granting that there is some leaning up for potential. If you like Castro’s style – size isn’t everything, and elegance has its rewards – it is one of those wines that will keep growing on you. Drink now-2031.
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Alvaro Castro Quinta Da Pellada Carrocel 2011 750ml

SKU 756755
Out of Stock
More Details
Winery Alvaro Castro
barrel

Vintage: 2011

The year 2011 was an interesting year for many northern and central European countries, as the weather was more than unpredictable in the spring and summer. However, in most countries, the climatic conditions thankfully settled down in the late summer and fall. The result of this slightly difficult year of weather in France was a set of surprisingly small yields, but overall, these yields were of a higher quality than those harvested in certain previous years. A fantastic set of wines was also made in Italy and Spain, and the Rioja wines - when released - are set to be very good indeed. Austria also had superb year in 2011, with almost fifty percent more grapes being grown and used for their distinctive Gruner Veltliner wines than in the year before. Possibly the European country which had the finest 2011, though, was Portugal, with wineries in the Douro region claiming this year to be one of the best in decades for the production of Port wine, and the bright, young Vinho Verdes wines. In the New World, the Pacific Northwest saw some of the best weather of 2011, and Washington State and Oregon reportedly had a highly successful year, especially for the cultivation of high quality red wine grapes. Chile and Argentina had a relatively cool year, which certainly helped retain the character of many of their key grape varietals, and should make for some exciting drinking. South Africa had especially good weather for their white wine grape varietals, particularly Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc, and many South African wineries are reporting 2011 as one of their best years in recent memory.
fields

Country: Portugal

Benefiting from both the hot, dry Iberian climate as well as brisk Atlantic winds, Portugal is a perfectly situated country for vineyard cultivation and wine production. With a wine making history which stretches back thousands of years, it comes as little surprise that wine plays an important role in the cultural identity and practices of the country. The Phoenicians, the Carthaginians, the Greeks and the Romans all had a hand in forming Portugal as an important center for wine production, and over the millennia, this resulted in each region of this beautiful part of Europe producing its own distinctive wines easily identifiable and separate from neighboring Spain's. Today, the varied terroir and climate across Portugal allows a great range of wines to be made each year, from the fresh and dry Vinho Verde wines to the famous and widely drunk fortified Port wines, and many in between.