See this guide to our autumn collections.
The well over 200 wines below are presented with Spain first and then Portugal, and within each country divided by colour and in descending score order so that could can pick out the bargains more easily. You may also like to see last week's Douro for dummies and Ferran's details report on Ribeira Sacra – the tasting notes.
See also Julia's article today on Recuperating Txacoli in Basque country.
SPAIN
WHITE
85% Viura. 15% Malvasia Riojana. 18 months in oak – they...
Sauvignon-like, including the little sweetener on the palate. A...
Neutral nose but some fruit in the middle and excellent acidity...
100% hand picked Viura. Some substance on the nose – just a hint...
Co-op producer for this Tesco 'Finest' bottling though the F...
Toasty, oak-dominated, smoky nose and palate. The acidity has...
Toasty, rich and vanilla-scented – shows its oak influence above...
Oxidative, orange peel character. Definitely in the tertiary...
Yoghurt style nose and aromas. Peach melba. Still alive, but it...
Rounded, less vibrantly brisk than the 2007 and 2010. Showing...
Flinty mineral character and smoky, maturing development. Fruit...
Juicy tropical fruit. Lots of concentration and a fine vein of...
Viura. Plain, flavourless, boring. Doesn't live up to its name I...
Best White Of Show, Spanish Wine Awards 2013.
Attractive, bold...
Attractive, bold...
Fresh, neutral fruit, glossy texture. Perfectly nice, but has...
Best Premium White £20+, Spanish Wine Awards 2013.
Similar nose...
Similar nose...
Best White Over £10, Spanish Wine Awards 2013.
Floral, almost...
Floral, almost...
Best White Under £10, Spanish Wine Awards 2013.
Attractive peachy...
Attractive peachy...
Viura in US oak for six months. Rather raw and green appley on...
Peachy and a bit too manipulated for my taste. (JR)
Smart heavy bottle. A blend of four grape varieties – mainly...
The second bottling. Bit soft. OK but no tension there. (JR)
Full and not quite as tense as some. Soft? (JR)
Wild yeast. Correct and round and lots of excitement there. (JR)
Treixadura with some Godello, Loureira and Albariño. Exciting...
PX aged under flor. Very very loose. Good label but not as...
Grenache Blanc. Slightly musty. Light. Rather plain. (RH)
Pure, aromatic, cool nose. Very fine and firm with real...
The Val de Monterrei is the only Galician region that lies in...
Special project of Laithwaite's buyer Beth with their Rioja...
One of those typographical labels so typical of Barcelona and...
Attractive oceanic nose with lots of clean fruit and saltiness...
70% Godello, 30% Palomino. I can’t really see why one would...
Lightly tangy with some waxy character but, just, sufficient...
Very smart green label. Note this is not a DO wine. Actually the...
Good old Co-op tells us on their unusually informative back...
100% Albariño. The yield has been reduced to 9,000 kgs/ha, less...
Pungent and punchy. Lots of green, cut-grass and unripe mango...
From steep and sunny vineyards in this small DO in the middle of...
The wine already looks dense! Creditable and racy with a lightly...
Grip, zest and a bit of iodine on the nose. Not one of their...
Wow! Oily and fun. Lemon and beeswax. Quite extraordinary. Not...
Relatively fat. Serviceable rather than thrilling. Not razor...
Norrel Robertson MW made this from 5,000 kg of grapes from one...
According to the back label, Terra Alta 'covets' the largest...
In a screwcapped burgundy bottle from Norrel Robertson MW. Cool...
100% Verdejo. Fermented in 100% new French oak barrels. Vanilla...
100% Viura. RS <2 g/l, TA 5.89 g/l, pH 3.28. SO2 free/total 30...
A site five kilometres inland, in Condado de Tea. Round and soft...
Modern white wine style but there is some purity. Tart. (JR)
Organic, old vines (50+ years), hand-harvested. Skin maceration...
Aged on lees and very lean and lively. Quite a contrast to the...
100% Viura. 6 months sur lie in French oak. Quite restrained on...
ROSÉ
Best Value Rosado, Spanish Wine Awards 2013.
Creamy, oaked nose...
Creamy, oaked nose...
Monastrell. Pale orange. Off dry, some fermentation aromas but...
Made exclusively from the local and rare variety Romé. Glass...
100% Tempranillo. RS 0 g/l, TA 0.31 g/l, pH 3.46. Held at low...
RED
100% Tempranillo. Semi-carbonic maceration. Scented with red...
100% Tempranillo, 2 years in French oak. Vanilla-laced cherry...
I don't happen to like the oak notes on this. A bit heavy and...
Dark crimson. Quite a bit of oak on the nose and then balsamic...
Dark crimson. Lots of modern winemaking here. To reasonably good...
Feral, concentrated, damp-fur sort of nose. Then well-behaved...
Gamey nose and without that much concentration. Chewy finish. A...
Dark purple. Sweet oak on the nose, but not the rioja type...
Tannins a little chewy still but good fresh fruit. Just a bit...
Dark crimson. Intense and even a little port-reminiscent...
Some interest and savoury character. A rather 'cool' wine –...
Simple young, unadorned Tempranillo nose. Easy simple fruit. Not...
Very deep, vibrant crimson. Charming, sweet fruit. Tannins very...
Bright red rim. Gamey, leathery nose and fully evolved palate...
Firm tannins and acidity. Desperately needs food but there is...
Dark crimson. A bit raw on the nose then sweet and overall a bit...
Mid, ripe, sweet fruit. Good acidity and some tannin. Nearly...
Dark purple. Intense nose with masses of tannin still. Not...
A little bit of oak in evidence. Sweet, juicy, Garnacha-esque...
Deep crimson. Young, concentrated and sweetly fruity. Not...
From the Olivo vineyard and 90% Tempranillo and 10% Graciano...
They are particularly proud of Graciano in 2011 – much riper...
Rioja Alavesa. Very dark crimson. Transparent and seductive with...
Rioja Alta. Very dark crimson. Heady and very slightly cheesy on...
TA 5.4 g/l. Six months in new French and American oak, then 12...
TA 5.5 g/l, 3.76 pH. 18 months in new French oak. Coffee...
18 months in new French oak. TA 5.5 g/l, 3.52 pH. The last...
TA 5.1 g/l, 3.49 pH. 18 months in new French oak. Dense...
TA 5.4 g/l, 3.40 pH. 18 months in new French oak. Chewy. Smoky...
Closed nose but juicy and layered on the palate. Doesn't seem to...
Lovely stewed fruit notes, still very firm and youthful on the...
Best Rioja, Spanish Wine Awards 2013.
Dry and soft. Good oaky...
Dry and soft. Good oaky...
Sweet, aromatic, chocolatey nose. Very smooth tannins. Sculpted...
Garnacha, Cariñena, Cabernet Sauvignon. Sophisticated, minty...
Best Red Over £10, Spanish Wine Awards 2013.
Garnacha, Cariñena...
Garnacha, Cariñena...
Manto Negro, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon. Cassis, cedar, black...
Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Tempranillo. Very primary, very...
Expressive, delicious vanilla oak – so distinctively Spanish...
Best Premium Red £20+ and Best Red Of Show, Spanish Wine Awards...
Boldly oaked – very Spanish, which is very appealing – but the...
Bright, expressive fruit with serious firm tannin. Oak seems a...
Sweet, aromatic spicy nose. Dry black fruit. Pretty heavyweight...
Restrained nose with a lovely marzipan and black cherry fruit on...
The nose is either reductive or bretty, which is offputting...
Best Value Red, Spanish Wine Awards 2013.
Baked black fruit, lots...
Baked black fruit, lots...
Pretty inconsequential nose, but a lovely rich, satisfying...
100% Carignan from vineyards around the village of El Masroig in...
100% Tempranillo grown on clay-based soil with a proliferation...
Dark crimson. Thick and dramatic and much more like the Ribera...
Dark crimson and lively, fresh, sweet fruit that is well judged...
Bright crimson, and very uncomfortable oak. (JR)
Alavesa bodega with 10 ha of vines founded in 1987 by a Jerezano...
All 'Sirah'. A bit reduced. Cool and fresh, and not overdone...
Old Garnacha. Soft and concentrated, but then a bit tough on the...
Bobal. Round and treacly. A bit hot and chewy. (JR)
Bobal. Bright crimson. Quite raw. Har work! But it may soften...
Ester Nin is also the winemaker for Daphne Glorian at Clos...
The last vintage of José Benavides Jimenez-Landi and Danny Gómez...
Round and sweet. A tiny bit metallic. (JR)
Handsome magnums! Looks a little cloudy. Mid ruby. Absolutely...
As with their Usoa Joven, this isn't especially Riojan in...
Simple and plain and not especially Riojan. Decent generic dry...
Sappy and lively and well-intentioned Rioja. Real character. (JR...
The intention is an Oz-style Shiraz. 40-year-old vines. Lovely...
This region is influenced by the Atlantic Ocean's climate, and...
Ricardo and Alvaro Palacios started this joint venture in 1999...
85% Tempranillo, 10% Graciano, 2.5% Mazuelo and 2.5% Garnacha...
Tempranillo in barrique. Finishes dry. GV (JR)
Special project of Laithwaite's buyer Beth with their Rioja...
Special project of Laithwaite's buyer Beth with their Rioja...
Magnum. Fully evolved – more so than the Martinez Bujanda 2001...
Firm and sweet and round. Not that obviously Rioja but a well...
Mid blackish ruby. Fully evolved nose and still some strawberry...
Quite an inky expression of Mencia. Round, sweet, mulberry fruit...
Nicely married nose with something floral about the aromatics...
San Gregorio. Sweet, honest, toasty mouthful of sweet fruit that...
Unlike the Bobal 2012, this has freshness on the nose. Served...
Sweet, purple, velvety impression that doesn't have quite enough...
95% Tempranillo, 5% Graciano. 24 months in oak, 24 months in...
100% Graciano. After the grapes are picked and crushed, the...
100% Tempranillo. 10- to 20-year-old vines, 100% organic...
Monastrell (Mourvèdre), Syrah, Cabernet. Aged for six months in...
Tempranillo, old vines – some even over a hundred years. 12...
Light and sweet. Round and easy with more oak in evidence than...
Some pretty oily obvious oak. On the nose and finish. Pretty...
55% Garnacha, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Cariñena and 10% Syrah...
From the same Tomàs Cusiné cellar as Cara Nord. 80% Carinyena...
A blend of Garnatxa, Syrah and Garrut (Catalonian GSM) grown at...
Garnacha grown organically in Catalunya's Terra Altá vineyards...
Easy sweet blend in which fruit plays the dominant part. Fun...
Mencía from Pedro and Rodriguez Perez. Bright crimson. A little...
From Montecastro, young vines. Rather low key and tough. Good...
50/50 Cariñena/Garnacha. Dense and dry. Intensely llicorella...
100% bushvines Monastrell grown in the hills. Bright crimson...
Sweet start. Juicy, dried-fruit flavours and a dry finish – a...
Winemaker Ludovic Vano. Old vines: 80% Garnacha, 20% Syrah...
Bright crimson. Very lively on the nose with both ripeness and...
75% Tempranillo, 25% Merlot. Made with help from Denis...
70% old vine Garnacha, 15% Syrah. 10% Tempranillo, 5% Mazuelo...
Mid crimson. Relatively simple, tentative nose with a bit of...
Old vine Garnacha. Dark crimson. Very fresh nose. Bursting with...
Unfiltered wine from Norrel Robertson MW and, most unusually...
90% Tempranillo, 3% Granciano, 4% Garnacha, 3% Mazuelo. RS < 2 g...
Very classic Rioja nose, sweet coconut oak forward. Elegant and...
A François Lurton wine. Deep purple-tinted crimson. Blackberry...
Very firm and a strong spine. Very appetising. Clean as a...
Best red under £10, Spanish Wine Awards 2013.
Heady but not...
100% Tempranillo. 12 months in new French oak. Sweet, ripe...
A touch of dried tobacco leaf and mulled sloe berries and...
PORTUGAL
WHITE
Unusual, old-fashioned flask-shaped bottle. Very old vines...
41% Rabigato, 29% Gouveio, 25% Viosinho and 5% Côdega de Larinho...
Lightly spritzy and good freshness even if pretty light. (JR)
Innocuous and a little bland. Medium everything. (JR)
Cream, peach, soft and smooth. Lovely balance, density and...
Great personality. A Vinho Verde with breadth! Broad and racy...
Mainly from high, granitic vineyards. Quite floral and then...
Fine and sleek and fruity/fragrant. Good lime finish. (JR)
Mainly Bical. Stinky/reductive = good! Broad and fragrant...
Organic, from Lima. Tense and lively. Green and refreshing. (JR)
Siria, Fonte Cal. A new producer. Fragrant, easy, simple. (JR)
Malvasia Fina, Encruzado. A bit edgy. Chewy. Too chewy. (JR)
Easy and low acid. (JR)
The vines here grow on soft slopes of granitic soils and are...
Lively, off dry and slightly floral. (JR)
Loureiro, no oak. Lightly fizzy. Lightly, smokily pungent. Just...
Tense and green. Lively. A full-bodied vintage. Exciting and...
Rabigato, Códega, Donzelinho, Viosinho. Smoky and quite...
RED
Old vines plus Touriga Nacional. Aged in new French oak.
Ripe...
Ripe...
Tinta Roriz, Tinta Amarela, Touriga Franca, Touriga Nacional...
Old vines and Tinta Roriz. Aged 17 months in new French oak.
Deep...
90% Touriga Nacional, 10% old vines field blend. All estate...
50% Touriga Nacional, 50% field blend of old vines. Foot trodden...
33% old vines, 31% field blend, 14% Tinta Amarela, 11% Touriga...
Unusual, old-fashioned flask-shaped bottle. Tinta Amarela, Tinto...
Not given away! 40% Touriga Franca, 40% Touriga Nacional, 20%...
30% Touriga Nacional, 20% Touriga Franca, 20% Tinta Roriz and...
Smoky and flinty. Gorgeous fruit, really crafty oak gives just a...
Heady and correct. Salty with dark fruit. Great stuff! (JR)
Grown in Pocinho. Aged in French oak. Very dark purple indeed...
This late ripening variety is grown, against expectations, at...
Grown at low altitudes on schist and granite with old vines...
Mid to dark ruby. Rather strange minty note. Tastes as though it...
Solid, dry, uncompromising and racy. (JR)
Quite heavy oak. Thick. (JR)
Touriga Nacional, Tinto Roriz and Alfrocheiro, unoaked. Carlos...
Heavy bottle. 50% Touriga Nacional, 10% Merlot and 40% Aragonez...
Touriga Nacional, Merlot and Aragonez. Fragrant red fruit, just...
Tinta Roriz, Touriga Franca and a little Touriga Nacional. Round...
Racy and lively. Lots of fruit and edginess – beautiful fruit...
Aragonez. A bit sweet and simple. Not very refreshing. Dull. (JR...
Douro field blend of c 20 varieties. 10% aged in oak. Dark, a...
60% Jaen. Soft and gentle with a round body and fresh. Smoky...
Entry-level wine for the on trade. Blend of 53% Touriga Nacional...
Very dark. Dense and sweet. A little heavy handed. I think I'd...
