Quote:
Originally Posted by mosesbotbol
Yes, it's the alcohol that is making this wine taste "pleasant". Higher alcohol gives the impression of more extract in flavor. Very common wine making method in new world wines.
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Moses,
Please don't go there! Alcohol has nothing to do with much, I've had low alcohol wines where the first thing you smell and then taste is alcohol and I've had high alcohol wines, in the 16-17% range, where you didn't really notice alcohol until you looked at the label. Wine balance is key and when all components are in balance (fruit, acidity, alcohol, oak, tannins), alcohol plays a secondary fiddle.
Higher alcohol creates an impression of bigger wine BODY, not flavor. The only way to create great flavor is to use great fruit, there is no substitute. IMHO, of course. At least I haven't found one yet
Besides, do you really believe the numbers on European wines' labels? Many of them are false, have no idea why ATF is not paying closer attention.
For example, one very famous French wine always lists 13.9% content on its label, yet a number of lab reports peg it at mid to high 15%. The importer confirmed this fact as well. I am sure if more are tested, you'll see a significant number of highly touted wines actually come in in similar alcohol ranges to USA made wines'. From my own tasting experience, although limited due to cost, almost every 1st and 2nd Bord you can name is at least at 14% and some are in the 15% range. LLC is proudly using RO to concentrate the juice, almost all firsts and many seconds use the technology as well, ask yourself why.
Just yesterday there were news about 50+ French vintners being sued by the French authorities for using sugar to beef up alc levels, and this is not an isolated case, trust me, these were just careless enough to get caught (although I am not sure how they got caught, their competitors snitching?).
I stopped paying attention to stated alc numbers a while ago and only want to know how well is alc integrated in the overall taste profile of a wine. If it sticks out enough for you to notice, then sure, its out of balance.
So, how do drink Porto with all that alcohol in it?
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Bogle is one of the best QPR labels around, pretty much everything they make is solid and some wines, such as their Petite (already mentioned above) is a great deal, IMO, year in and year out.
Jewel is another well priced and well made label, should be in the $10-14 range. Central Cost fruit.