All I can say is Wow! What a great Port of Wines Festival this year and I had the honor of pouring some terrific wines. Remember from last week’s blog, one of my favorites from last year was the Corbieres from Abbotts & Delauney.
Well, you can imagine what a thrill it was to not only meet the winemaker, but to spend 3 hours with him.
This is Frederic Carrerre, part of the Father/Son winemaking duo at Chateau Prieure Borde Rouge located in the Languedoc region in the southern part of France in the very heart of the Corbieres region. What a lovely man. Funny and witty, and a great winemaker. In the past, Corbieres was a 3 grape blend, Syrah, Grenache and Carignan. However, we were pouring the 2013 vintage, and Frederic told me it was just Syrah and Grenache. A big bodied wine with great tannic structure and from the man himself, a great wine with a beef stew.
Here is another wine we were pouring, the Mivervois Reserve from Frederic’s vineyard. A super smooth wine, I really enjoyed this. I found it easy to drink and although Frederic says its great with any type of meat, it can also be enjoyed all by itself. 40% of the wine has been aged in oak and 60% in stainless steel, so it’s not overly oaky at all. Hint of chocolate accompanies rich fruit flavors and a hint of thyme make for a beautiful wine.
For my white wine loving friends, Frederic is holding one of the most interesting wines I have ever tasted. Definitely one of the most interesting white wines. It’s a blend of Chardonnay and Viognier. It was spectacular and my favorite find from the show. It was a rich Chardonnay with the great acidity and vibrancy from the Viognier. Gorgeous flavors of dried pear and dried banana, I loved this wine.
And last but certainly not least….
The Zinfandel at this year’s show was spectacular and one I’ve never tired before. From the Gallo Family of California, this wine was given 91 Points by Wine Spectator and 92 from Natalie Maclean. This is one of the best Zinfandel wines I have ever tasted. Gorgeous rich and hedonistic! Blueberry flavors with spice and smoky bacon. At $50 a bottle it’s a treat wine for sure, but what a treat it is.
Me and my wine-loving friend Anthony who is also a wine blogger. You can check out his blog, Rookie Wine Reviews, here at Rookie Wine Reviews.
Till next week, Cheers
Darlene
Wine-It’s Just My Opinion 
That Corbieres from last year was from Gerard Bertrand. I poured the Bertrand wines this year, on Friday night. They were both very good, one as good or better than that Corbieres for similar price.
Right you are! My apologies Jeff