Last of five fun, fantastic, and frugal wines for everyday drinking, and I had to go with something odd; with a fortified wine from Portugal. And no, it’s not Porto, nor Madeira, but Moscatel de Setubal; a much lesser know surprising alternative. Impressive copper color and dense. The aromatics are full and rich with honey, caramel, orange peel, cinnamon, butterscotch, and marmalade. The pallet follows the nose with added notes of hard candy, syrup, and slight acidity. This wine is pure fun and joy. At under fifteen bucks a bottle, this is a “must try” for any sweet toothed wine lovers out here. Cheers. — 3 years ago
Oceanic. Some smoke. Raisin and caramel. More like Madeira! Astounding length. Salty, biting. With almost a peppery bite on the finish. Tongue salivating. Perspiring. This heats up the body. Palate is perfect. Nose falls down a little- but this was from open bottle in enomatic so may not be the wine’s fault. — 9 months ago
I think this port is outstanding. It is really more a cross between a port and a Madeira (perhaps even closer to a Madeira). Nutty with hints of caramel. An astonishingly satisfying finish. — 3 years ago
an amazing champagne of craftsmen. Unfiltered with a remarkable symptomatic deposit of living wines. Greedy nose tangerine and peach, white Porto or Madeira notes, a touch of bitter orange. The palate is very digestible and suggests respectful vinification with little sulfur; it is a real wine that can be enjoyed on its own as well as as an accompaniment to petit four, fish, and even a dessert with orange or tangerine. — 4 years ago
Tasted blind. Reddish tawny, thin and very old looking. Notes of brown sugar, molasses, some wood. Medicinal. In the mouth it’s different than what I expected. Tastes like Port, but looks and smells like Madeira. Someone guesses Vin Santo. But based on the taste I go with old Port. — 4 years ago
Some bottle stink and a little dull due to extended time in bottle. But otherwise love the depth and complexity. Madeira like. If the nose cleaned up this would warrant a higher score. I bet a more recently bottled example would be stunning. Bottled in 1986. — 5 years ago
Loren Gesinsky
Tasted with Pascaline Lepeltier, who was as enthusiastic as the rest of us. Lots of sensory impressions in balance. Luis Seabra recommended we try this wine when we met him in Porto. — 4 months ago