Tonight I went out to a Brazilian eatery and found this bottle on the list. I figured it would be interesting. The blend is mainly Aragones (Tempranillo as it's known in Alentejo) and Syrah, with small amounts of other grapes. Alentejo seems to be the place where they experiment most extensively with nonnative varietals in the blends. The Aragones let itself be known, and the Syrah really added a lot. There really is something about Syrah when it accompanies. It can be like adding Space Dust to the blend. I don't know how else to describe its presence in a blend.
The 2006 was apparently the last year for 14% ABV. After that, they dropped it down to 13.5%, according to the website: http://cortesdecima.com/products/wines/chamine/ The blend does vary slightly from year to year, also. I've talked about the high ABV taste before, and this bottle did have some of that, admittedly. I'd sure love to see what the 2007 is like. It was only $32 for the bottle in the restaurant. I have never seen this bottle in a shop before, but then I am in Chicago.
2006 Cortes de Cima Chamine (Alentejo)
Moderators: Glenn E., Roy Hersh, Andy Velebil