The "TOP TWELVE TOURIGA NACIONAL WINES" of Portugal by Philip S. Kampe

You would naturally think that the title of this article should read" THE TOP TEN TOURIGA NACIONAL WINES", not The Top TWELVE.
Well, that is not the case.

Recently, Fourteen of the Word's Finest 'WINE EXPERTS' judged and selected the Top TOURIGA NACIONAL wines of Portugal and oddly ended with TWELVE Selections, instead of TEN. Various judges I spoke with indicated that 'the wines were so good, we could not possibly pick only the ten best, hence, we ended up with twelve".

The judging and selection took place at Porto's Yeatman Hotel http://www.the-yeatman-hotel.com/ ,in conjunction with the WINES OF PORTUGAL INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE, which was held at the ALFANDEGA CONGRESS CENTER, overlooking the magnificent DOURO River.

++Beatriz Machado is the Wine Director at the Yeatman Hotel++

Judges for the event included:

JANCIS ROBINSON MW
(Chairman for this event) UK

NEAL MARTIN
UK

DOUG FROST MW MS
USA

MARY EWING MULLIGAN MW
USA

KRISTINE BAEDER
GERMANY

STEPHEN REINHARDT
GERMANY

TOMAKO EBISAWA
ASIA

NED GOODWIN MW
ASIA

TOMMY LAM
ASIA

SIMON TAM
ASIA

GUILHERME RODRIGUES
BRAZIL

TOM MARTHINSEN
NORTHERN COUNTRIES

JOSE SALVADOR
PORTUGAL

LUIS LOPES
PORTUGAL

The judges objective was to pick the TOP TEN TOURIGA NACIONAL WINES.

TOURIGA NACIONAL is revered in Portugal for producing deep, intense aromas for wines. This is due to the varieties 'small berry' ,which produces little juice, but, adds richness, depth and flavor to the wine. The grapes produce tannic, deep, concntrated wines. The vines produce alot of foliage, but, few grapes. The vines produce light clusters of thick-skinned, concentrated, tiny blue black berries which yield nine to ten ounces compared to four and a half pounds, roughly, per vine.
Touriga Nacional is terrace planted in stony schist soil, high on the slope (up to 1800 feet). It is grown for QUALITY rather than quantity. The result is a wine with finese, structure and body .
This highly concentrated aromatic wine has an intense black fruit fragrance followed by notes of tea and flowers.
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The RESULTS of the TOP TWELVE TOURIGA NACIONAL WINNERS are in alphabetical order:

AFARAZ TOURIGA NACIONAL 2008 Alentejo

CHURCHILL'S ESTATES TOURIGA NACIONAL 2008 Douro

ENCONTRO TOURIGA NACIONAL 2008 Bairrada

HERDADE SAO MIGUEL TOURIGA NACIONAL 2008 Alentejo

INQUIETO TOURIGA NACIONAL 2008 Douro

MARQUES dos VALES GRACE 2008 Algarve

MUNDA 2008 Dao

PEDRA CANCELA TOURIGA NACIONAL 2008 Dao

QUINTA da PEDRA ALTA TOURIGA NACIONAL 2007 Douro

QUINTA das MARIAS 2008 Dao

QUINTA do CARDO TOURIGA NACIONAL 2008 Beira Interior

QUINTA do VALLADO TOURIGA NACIONAL 2008 Douro
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If you are a SERIOUS wine drinker and know very little about TOURIGA NACIONAL from Portugal, it is time to learn more about this indigineous grape, best known for PORT wines.
All the table wines made with Touriga Nacional are SOLID wines with finese, good structure and pleasing tannins.

ISN'T IT TIME TO BUY A BOTTLE OF TOURIGA NACIONAL TODAY AND SEE FOR YOURSELF? The wines are reasonably priced, age well and are of high quality. Recently,
I tasted a 1993 and a 1995. Both wines were soft and elegant with a Bordeaux blend flavor.

PHILIP S. KAMPE
philip.kampe@thewinehub.com

MARIA REVELEY

maria.kampe@thewinehub.com

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