Portuguese wines are riding high this year after Wine Enthusiast, a prestigious American magazine, has featured several of them in their “Top 100 Best Buy” category and no less than nine in their “Top 100 Cellar Selections” for 2013.
The accolade puts Portugal in 4th place in world rankings, behind France, the USA and Italy.
According to Wine Enthusiast, this has “created a buzz”, affecting both consumers and opinion makers.
The wines featured are essentially Port wines (five in all), with another two chosen from the Douro region and two from the Dão.
Featured in the Top 100 Cellar Selections are: Quinta do Noval 2011 Vintage Nacional Port in first place with 100 points, followed by Taylor Flagdate 2011 Vintage Port in 10th place with 97 points, Quinta do Vesúvio 2011 Capela Vintage Port in 15th place with 98 points, Wine & Soul 2009 Pintas Character in 19th place with 95 points, Warre’s 2011 Vintage Port in 25th place with 96 points, Niepoort 2011 Vintage Port in 31th place with 95 points, Passarela 2009 Casa da Passarela O Oenólogo Vinhas Velhas Red in 42th place with 94 points, Quinta da Romaneira 2009 Reserva in 76th place with 94 points and Sogrape 2009 Quinta dos Carvalhais in 89th place with 94 points.
Jorge Monteiro, CEO for ViniPortugal (Portuguese wine promotion association), remarked: “Portuguese wines have been well received by wine critics and that’s a very positive fact. This is an example to prove that Port wines and Portuguese table wines can benefit with all-in-one international promotion events. Sometimes Port wine may catch the consumer’s attention and other times it could be the table wines. USA is the fourth export market for Portuguese wines and in 2012 has increased 8.4% in terms of value.”
