I haven’t had a wine with a nose that enamored me like this in a long time.
WINE DETAILS:
- Grape: Touriga Franca
- Alcohol: 14.5%
- Wine: Touriga Franca
- Vintage: 2015
- Winery: Casa Santos Lima
- Location: Lisboa, Portugal
- Date: 3/27/21
- Distributor: B. Fernandez / Almacen del Vino
Curious Synonyms: Albino de Souza, Esgana Cão, Rifete, Touriga Francesa, Touriga Francesca.
Nerd Alert: Jancis Robinson once called this grape as playing “Cabernet Franc to Touriga Nacional’s Cabernet Sauvignon”. It seems most likely that Touriga Franca is either a mutation, or a crossing of Touriga Nacional and an unknown parent, possibly Mourisco Tinto (Marufo). Even though it is much more widely planted than Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca is the less prestigious of the two grapes. Occasoinally, Touriga Franca is produced as a fortified wine.
Personal Note: Ladies and gentlemen, I’ve found yet another contender for this list’s great finds. What an incredible wine and what an incredible round this has been. Also, I’m enjoying the curious happenstances, like having two nerd alerts in a row based out of Jancis Robinson commentaries. I just love reading her opinions, even if I disagree. Now I haven’t had a wine with a nose that enamored me like this in a long time. I spent the first five minutes just looking at its deep purple color while poking my nose above the glass trying to decipher what was that I was picking up. Definitely flowers and dark fruit but unsure of the details. Once I tried it it was just blackberries and cassis and even hints of vainilla. This is the second portuguese wine I try (first was #25). I was making a comparison yesterday about this grape and Touriga Nacional and my nest metaphor was the relationship between Marcia and Jan Brady fom the 60’s tv show The Brady Bunch. I can hear Franca already. “Nacional, Nacional, Nacional”.
Thoughts?
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*Sources for the wine facts are from: Wine Searcher, Wikipedia, Vivino, wine.com, and the wineries websites.
