Vinho Verde – Casal Garcia
For my first wine review, I will start with the Vinho Verde which is as ubiquitous in Portugal as Jacobs Creek is in the UK: Casal Garcia. Vinho Verde, for those that don’t know, is very young wine, often a bit lower in alcohol and with a slight fizz. Although Casal Garcia is said to be looked down upon somewhat by the locals, it is a very fresh, dry and citrusy wine, which goes beautifully with fish and shellfish or light meat. It is also very easy to drink far more of than you intended!
I would add that Casal Garcia, like a lot of dry Portuguese wine is at its best when VERY cold and becomes a lot less pleasant once it loses its chill!
PRICE: approx €3.20
MY VERDICT: 7.5/10
SECOND OPINION (the wife): I could drink this all day (and sometimes do!) – it may not be the connoisseurs choice but I have yet to find a Vinho Verde I like more. 8/10
I absolutely agree with the 2nd opinion (your wife) – I could drink this all day! Absolutely lovely wine in my opinion. Unfortunately where I live I can get it only for 3x it’s Portuguese price. 🙁
Try Alvarhino from Monção area…a little pricey but tops. Ponte de Lima is very good…and Ponte da Barca, which used to be mouth-wrenchingly horrible, has made itself completely over (younger blood in the co-operativa, I think) & is now exceedingly good.
We purchased a Ponte De Barca in Continente yesterday so I will be sure to write a review when we try it! I had heard that Alvarhino wines are the benchmark for Vino Verde – have tried Quinta De Aveleda(?) and Quinta De Azevedo which was the only Verde we could get in Waitrose when we were in the UK – both are very nice, but, to us, do not justify the additional cost over some of the cheaper Vinho Verdes.
Am looking forward to trying the Ponte De Barca, which was, I think, under 2 euros in Continente 🙂
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