Cheap & Cheerful - 2020 Niepoort Douro Twisted Tinto

In the continuing see-saw tradition of the wine industry, wines of Portugal are ascendant once again, as they have been at various times over the past 500 years. Though still dominated by Port (which, strangely, many consumers don’t realize comes from Portugal), wines from this sun washed Iberian country are gaining in popularity despite the lack of knowledge about and inability to pronounce the places or names of the grapes from which they are made.

But to be honest, a lack of familiarity with Portuguese shouldn’t really pose a burden. Mispronunciation of Italian, French and Spanish wine terms and regions is a distraction that seldom impedes enjoyment. And more and more high-quality Portuguese producers are presenting their wines in attractive (to the English-speaking public) packages to support the attractive flavors and styles.

This wine is a case in point. It's part of the ‘Fabulous’ collection, created by Dirk Niepoort in 2004 to expose Portuguese wines to the rest of the world. After the initial success in German speaking markets, Niepoort began to develop labels for other countries i.e.: Portugal (Diálogo), Norway (Fabelaktig), Finland (Sarvet), Allez Santé (Belgium), ETO CARTA (Japan), Fantasi (Denmark), Drink Me (UK), Berek (Poland), Gestolen Fiets (Holland), OO JA PAEV (Estonia), Ubuntu (South Africa), Sasta (Ireland), Conversa (Brazil) and Twisted in the US. Rich, concentrated, fruit driven and structured, this is an extremely enjoyable and fresh red from Douro, made mostly of Tourigo Franca. Easy to like on its own, it will shine with any type of boldly flavored dish as well. (PW)