Wine of the week: a delicious, complex blend from Portugal

published 1 November 2019

2017 Quinta da Fonte Souto, Floro Tinto, Portalegre, Alentejo, Portugal

£11.95, The Wine Society, 01438-741177, thewinesociety.com

Quinta da Fonte Souto is a new acquisition by the Symington family, owners of the heroic Port brands Graham's, Dow's, Warre's, Cockburn's and Quinta do Vesuvio. Unlike their epic Douro properties, this incredible property is situated in Portalegre, in the Alentejo region, due east of Lisbon, on the Spanish border. The area has a unique climate, thanks to its 500 metre altitude on the slopes of the So Mamede range, and I visited the property in the summer while on holiday in Portugal.

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My sneak preview of the portfolio of wines was an eye-opener and this inexpensive red, with its chic packaging and knockout flavour, is the pick of the bunch. With a decent 40,000 bottles made, every MoneyWeek reader can get involved this week, and this is the UK scoop on this epic red wine. Made with the merest kiss of oak and using a complex, layered blend made up of trincadeira, cabernet sauvignon, syrah, alicante bouschet and aragonez (tempranillo), this is a delicious, finely textured, fruits-of-the-forest-style wine with amazing freshness and vibrancy and these characteristics are a result of the estate's unique location. Faint whispers of florals and pine trees accompany the sleek fruit tones and the result is a classically balanced wine with precise regional expression. I love this style and the value afforded here is incredible.

Matthew Jukes is a winner of the International Wine & Spirit Competition's Communicator of the Year (matthewjukes.com)

Matthew Jukes has worked in the UK wine business for well over three decades and during this time has written 14 wine books.

Matthew regularly lectures, judges, speaks at wine conferences and runs masterclass tastings for both corporate and private clients all over the world. Matthew is also the creator of his ground-breaking initiative, the One Day Wine School, an indulgent day of tasting and learning first performed in 2006.

He has been the MoneyWeek wine correspondent since 2006 and has written a weekly column for the Daily Mail’s Weekend Magazine since 1999. His four highly-acclaimed, annual wine reports – the Burgundy En Primeur Report, the Bordeaux En Primeur Report, the Piemonte Report and the 100 Best Australian Wines – are published on his website, www.matthewjukes.com.

Matthew is one of the world’s leading experts on Australian wine and, with Brisbane-based wine writer Tyson Stelzer, runs an annual competition in Australia to find ‘The Great Australian Red’. He was made Honorary Australian of the Year in the UK at the 2012 Australia Day Foundation Gala dinner.

Matthew is a winner of the International Wine and Spirit Competition's Communicator of the Year Trophy. His thoughts, recommendations and tastings notes are followed very closely by the wine world at large.