The first evidence of the Fonseca (www.fonseca.pt) firm trading in Port is an entry dated April 8, 1815. Now 200 years later they are a preeminent house with many historic outstanding vintage ports including the 1927, 1945, 1948, 1955, 1963, the surprising 1966, 1977, 1985 (note no vintage for 7 years later in 1992), and 1994 among others. The 6th generation carries on with David Guimaraens who returned to Portugal in 1990 after his broadening wine studies in Australia. No other Port house can claim 6 generations.

David explains the evolution of a bottle of vintage port as follows: “At 2 years it is bottled and you are completely committed to the style and the vintage. The first 10 years it is fruity, rich full bodied – a perfect young ruby port. From 10-20 years a transformation takes place whereby it loses the young berry fruit and bottle age maturity commences – sort of like a teenager who sometimes shows well but at other times doesn’t. From 20-40 years the vintage port develops bottle maturity and is great for drinking but still shows a lot of fruit and vitality. Over 40 years not every one makes this stage but where there is big fruit and big tannins it can go on even longer.” To celebrate their 200 year anniversary we tasted 5 decades with 1970 browning rim, raisins, caramel, spice; 1985 deep red, chocolate coffee buckets of ripe elegant fruit; 1994 produced by David’s father the legendary Bruce has youthful dense blackcurrants & fine tannins; 2000 purple concentrated tannic plums; and 2011 black inky opulent pure blackberries and licorice.

David feels that the end of the Portuguese spirit monopoly in 1991 has improved the product with cleaner finer results. Their neutral grape spirit for Fonseca, Taylor, and Croft now comes mainly from Spain at 3 euros per litre (compared to some others at 1.5 euros) which allows the fruit to show more luscious texture when young, more effective as a teenager and better integrated when old. Even though they still use foot treading of the grapes they take pride in being “the New World of the Old World” with their innovative ongoing changes. Nature rules with emphasis on viticulture, sustainable agriculture, bringing back abandoned grape varieties, understanding the importance of tannins for long aging, and the art of blending. Congrats to this cherished Port house!

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Anticoli Corrado

By Joseph Temple

*** WARNING: SPOILER ALERT ***

Following the successful invasion of Sicily in the summer of 1943, Fascist leader Benito Mussolini is swiftly removed from power while a new Italian government signs an armistice agreement with the Allies. Unfortunately, what appears to be a great triumph for Britain and America ends up becoming a hollow victory.  Within a few short months, German forces occupy Northern Italy and establish a puppet government against those in the south.  The battle for Italy’s future was just beginning.

That is the setting for Stanley Kramer’s 1969 film The Secret of Santa Vittoria starring the late Anthony Quinn and Hardy Krüger.  Based on Robert Crichton’s book, the movie takes place in the small hillside village of Santa Vittoria where the fall of Mussolini has led to a power vacuum.  With indifference amongst the local population to this revolutionary change, Italo Bombolini, the lovable drunk played brilliantly by Quinn suddenly becomes the town’s new mayor.  But after learning that the Germans are on the move, he quickly sobers up and begins mobilizing the entire population to protect its greatest asset—1,317,000 bottles of fine wine.  Hidden safely away in a nearby cave, a game of psychological chess is played by the mayor and Captain von Prum who is eager to steal every single bottle before he and his soldiers leave.

Released during the golden age of World War II movies that included Patton, Tora! Tora! Tora! and The Dirty Dozen, Kramer’s contribution to the genre is noteworthy.  Filmed almost entirely in the Italian commune of Anticoli Corrado, the beautiful scenery is greatly enhanced by numerous locals who were used throughout the movie as extras.  According to IMDB, the actual Santa Vittoria had modernized greatly since 1943, making it impractical for a Second World War period film as production started in 1968.

Adding to its picturesque location, Anthony Quinn steals the show with his larger than life performance.  The buffoonish Bombolini will definitely make you laugh out loud, including one hilarious scene where he intends to punish the man caught sleeping with his daughter.  But he’ll also leave you at the edge of your seat, especially during his intense negotiations with von Prum over the million bottles that have gone missing.  His character makes you realize just how important wine is to Italian culture and why a whole village bases their entire identity on what Krüger’s character facetiously calls “fermented juice.”  Whether its Chianti, Sangiovese or Barbera, the audience never learns exactly what type of wine is being hidden away.  All you know is that giving it away to Germany is like “paying a stranger to sleep with your wife” according to Bombolini.

Unfortunately for the folks at MGM, The Secret of Santa Vittoria didn’t fare well at the box office.  According to Jeffrey Kauffman at blu-ray.com, the year 1969 marked a turning point in the history of film with counterculture movies like Easy Rider taking over the silver screen.  Big budget flicks with older casts had suddenly became yesterdays news, resulting in just $6.5 million in receipts during its initial run.  However, just like a fine wine, the film has gotten better with age.  So whether you’re an oenophile or a history buff, you’ll definitely need to check this out the next time you feel like being in a retro mood. Ciao!

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Question: Do you have an example of a wine you purchased that disappointed you but later with cellaring surprised you?

Answer: Great question! Lots I could share. This often happens with the pinot noir variety which doesn’t always develop in a straight line of maturity. Particularly high acidity red Burgundy vintages like 1972 & 1988 with time now have developed into some marvellous fresh delicious bottles. More recently in Burgundy maybe the irregular still tart 1996 and the smaller crop 2010 may be similar – definitely the latter has fruit acidity balance for the future. A recent example from this month is 1975 Chateau Montrose from that very hard tannic vintage. Cellared and drank too early many disappointingly dry austere bottles which definitely needed food. Many 1975 Bordeaux just don’t have enough fruit to out-last those tannins. However, even though it may not be the 100 point 1990 this 1975 now at 40 years of age shows improved old style complexity of true St. Estephe terroir from that over 70% cabernet sauvignon dense fruit less hidden by the strong tannins which are starting to mellow. Surprise or at least patience rewarded!

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Do you know the difference in Rioja among crianza, reserva, and gran reserva? At a recent tasting producer Marques de Caceres founded in 1970 by Enrique Forner certainly showed wines displaying these levels with both vineyard age and yields being important keys.

CRIANZA:   Consistent vintage year (presently 2011) best seller in USA 85% tempranillo, 10% spicy garnacha, & 5% graciano aged 12 months in new and used oak French (60%) & American (40%) shows good freshness.

RESERVA:  Better vintages (currently 2008) using same grape mix of older 30 year vines with lower yields (30hl/ha) aged 22 months French oak (1/3 new) displays more concentration & elegance.

GRAN RESERVA: Same grape mix but slightly more natural acidity of graciano (7%) best years (currently 2005) oldest vines and lowest yields aged 26 months in French oak (1/2 new) shows fruit depth with ripe prunes complexity.

Also have a structured GAUDIUM ( “joys of the senses ” in Latin – not the famous Spanish architect Gaudi) GRAN VINO in 2009 (10th one, first one 94) limited production of 94 new French oak barrels (28,200 bottles) 18-20 months where the malolactic fermentation takes place from 95% tempranillo & 5% graciano from 6 special parcels of very old vines with one 1.5 hectare plot pre-phylloxera over 120 years (average 70+) & low yields (18hl/ha) results in more tannins for cellar aging potential.

Appreciated as well the good value of both their fragrant white 100% verdejo (harvested at night in Rueda when temperatures are cooler to intensify their mineral attributes) first own vineyards vintage 2014 but from vines 30-40 years old and fresh flowers Rosado (Rose) from 96% tempranillo & 4% garnacha.

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By Joseph Temple

Twenty years ago, few people living outside the borders of Argentina knew about its local wine industry.  Today, exports are at nearly a billion dollars per year, fueled largely by its world-famous Malbec grapes and a cost-friendly price tag (although this may be changing soon).  With Argentine wines being sold across the globe, it’s hard to imagine that at one time, the nation’s growers gave little thought to exports.  Of course, with a per capita consumption of twenty-one gallons per year – one of the highest in the world – satisfying their own people’s thirsty palates took top priority.  But with increased foreign investment, Argentina began aggressively looking at markets beyond South America.  And although the country has become synonymous with Malbec, other varietals including Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay and Sangiovese are being cultivated near the Andes, where the melted snow from the mountain tops is used to nourish the land through an impressive irrigation system.  So for this week, have a look at ten interesting facts about the Argentine wine industry.

By Rod Waddington from Kergunyah, Australia [CC BY-SA 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

1. Argentina is the number one producer of wine in South America
and the world’s sixth-largest producer.
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2. Wine grapes have been grown in Argentina since at least the mid-16th century.
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By Fred von Lohmann from san francisco (Wine Tasting: Malbec) [CC BY 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

3. More Malbec is grown in Argentina than anywhere else in the world.
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By Emilia Garassino [CC BY-SA 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

4. Most of the nation’s wine regions are located in the west central part of the country near the foothills of the Andes Mountains. With elevations
up to 4,900 feet above sea level, some of these vineyards have the highest altitudes in the entire world.
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By Fabio Ingrosso (Flickr: Francois Lurton, vigneti in Argentina) [CC BY 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

5. In Argentina, the land and labor costs are roughly $30,000 per acre. In comparison, the same costs per acre in the Napa Valley are $300,000.
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By European citizen (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 or GFDL], via Wikimedia Commons

6. Mendoza is the largest and most successful region for viticulture in Argentina. Located east of the Andes, it accounts for 70% of the country’s wine production and is the sixth-largest producer of grapes in the entire world.
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7. With completion of the Mendoza-Buenos Aires railroad in 1882, the region became vital in supplying Argentina’s political and financial capital with agricultural products—including wine.
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By Tjeerd Wiersma (Flickr: Argentinie 123) [CC BY 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

8. Up until the mid-1990s, Argentina’s wine industry almost exclusively focused on domestic consumption, producing mostly inexpensive wines that were blends from many different grapes.
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9. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Argentina experienced hyperinflation at approximately 1,000 percent a year. With price controls placed on wine during this time, many growers shifted away from grape production.
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By Juan Pelizzatti (Bodegas Chakana) [CC BY 3.0-2.5-2.0-1.0], via Wikimedia Commons

10. Those who stuck with growing wine grapes were given financial incentives to destroy older and traditional varieties in favor of high-yield and inferior varieties designed for domestic consumption.

Sources:

Catena, Laura. Vino Argentino: An Insider’s Guide to the Wines and Wine Country of Argentina. San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 2011.
Koplan, Steven, Smith, Brian H. and Weiss, Michael. Winewise: Your Complete Guide to Understanding, Selecting, and Enjoying Wine. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2014.
Luongo, Michael, Mroue, Haas and Schreck, Kristina. Frommer’s Argentina and Chile. Hoboken: Wiley Publishing Inc., 2005.
MacNeil, Karen. The Wine Bible. New York: Workman Publishing Company, 2000.
McCarthy, Ed and Ewing-Mulligan, Mary. Wine For Dummies. Hoboken: Wiley Publishing Inc., 2012.
Nowak, Barbara and Wichman, Beverly. The Everything Wine Book: From Chardonnay to Zinfandel, All You Need to Make the Perfect Choice. Avon: Adams Media, 2005.
Parker, Robert M. Parker’s Wine Bargains: The World’s Best Wine Values Under $25. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2009.

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