Caminhos Cruzados - The Crossroad where Modernity meets Tradition

Our second stop on the Dão media tour was at Caminhos Cruzados. This modern mecca of wine rises out of the vineyards that surround it. The building was just completed last year though the company was started in 2012.

In English, the winery's name means crossroads and the name inspired the building designed by Porto architect, Nuno Pinto Cardoso. The unique modern design has already attracted architecture lovers from the U.S, U.K, Germany and the Netherlands while the wine quality is the draw that will bring them back. Even though it is the first year for the new winery to be open, they have received a lot of wine tourists, the majority have been from Brazil which is a major market for the wine.

The company was started by Paulo Santos who was born in Nelas. His love of wine began with the

small quantities of wine that his family has produced for over 30 years from their own vineyards. He believes in the quality of wine that the area can produce and decided to convert an old agricultural company into a contemporary wine production facility.

Surrounding the modern structure are 17 hectares of land under vine. They also own an additional 23 hectares nearby. They were able to double their production this year upping it to 500,000 bottles. Their main brand is Titular but they also offer some smaller production wines under the Caminhos Cruzados label.

Caminhos Cruzados is on the Dão Wine Route which guarantees that it is a tourist friendly winery. Reservations for tastings are recommended.

The Tasting:
Titular Branco 2016 - A blend of Encruzado and Malvasia Fina, very floral with citrus and a mineral

finish.
Titular Dão Novo 2018 - Made from Jaen (aka Mencía in Spain), this wine was made using carbonic maceration to produce a light, fruity, easy drinking red meant to be consumed young. It has a Welch's grape juice nuance that tastes best chilled. Ideal for outdoor summertime drinking.
Titular Colheita Tinta 2015 - This red wine is a blend of Touriga Nacional, Tinta Roriz, and Alfrocheiro which was fermented in stainless steel. It has bright red fruit aromas and flavors with noticeable tannins.
Titular Jaen 2015 - Fresh, mixed red fruit aromas and flavors with food friendly acidity. The winery also suggests serving this wine at cooler than cellar temperatures.
Titular Reserva 2015 - This red wine is a blend of Touriga Nacional, Tinta Roriz, and Alfrocheiro which was fermented in oak for 12 months. Mixed berry aromas and flavors with vanilla and spice.

Titular Touriga Nacional 2013 - This wine tasted of higher alcohol though the label said not. Light blackberry and plum aromas and flavors with hints of violet.
Titular Alfrocheiro 2015 - This wine was partially fermented in stainless steel and partially in French oak where it spent 18 months. It was very aromatic and well structured with velvety tannins, red berry aromas and flavors and a lingering spicy finish. My favorite in this tasting.
Titular Dão A Edicão S/ Nome 2015 - This wine is a blend of Touriga Nacional, Tinta Roriz, and Alfrocheiro sourced from a small vineyard near the owner's home. It had a big tannic structure with dark fruit aromas and flavors, a hint of vanilla, and a smoky note in the persistent finish. It spent 18 months in oak barrels.
Our group was treated to a lunch of traditional Portuguese food where we enjoyed more of the wine. We also tried the Caminhos Cruzados Descarada 2017 - a simple, sweet white wine consumed with dessert.

"The Zen of Zin" Tasting at Fleming's in River Oaks

On Friday evening, my husband and I attended the Zinfandel wine tasting at Fleming's in River Oaks. My husband gets totally pumped up for any and all things Zinfandel but what I found really intriguing in the line up of wines were the aged offerings. Brent Sloan, managing partner at Houston's premier wine storage facility Nos Caves Vin, had provided Fleming's with four 18 year old bottlings and one 17 year old bottling from his collection of some of his favorites. I found this interesting because 1. I don't believe that I have ever had an 18 year old Zinfandel before this evening and 2. From various wine classes, I had always heard that at best Zinfandel had very limited aging ability. So, I was definitely excited to give these wines a taste. There were also an additional five younger Zinfandel wines that are some of Fleming's best sellers. The entire tasting line up for the evening included: 2009 Orin Swift Saldo - California 2007 Schulz "Lampyridae...

Spanish Wine under a Houston Sunset

I was asked to speak about Spanish wine and to conduct a tasting at the 30th birthday party of Kyla Kennedy on the rooftop patio of her and her fiancé, Jonathan Garrett's home this past Saturday. They invited a great group of friends with a new interest in wine tasting. Jonathan had the idea after the two had watched the movie "Somm" and had become interested in learning more about the wines of the world. For our tasting tour of Spain: Anna de Coderniu Brut Cava * - Guests loved this Spanish sparkler! They found the history of the winery interesting and enjoyed the refreshing style of the wine. The birthday girl named the subtle tropical and citrus aromas like a pro. 2012 Burgan's Rias Baixas Albarino - Guests talked about the fresh peach aromas and the crisp taste. Many felt this could be their summer sipper. 2012 Raimat Costers del Segre Albarino* - Guests were interested in learning about this lesser known area, the innovative winery and how ...

A Tropical Staycation with Spy Valley E Block

After a fair amount of traveling this summer with more still to come, I was looking forward to spending time at home with my family this week. Both of my millennial children have recently moved back to Houston but the home-cooked meals have been few and far between. I had recently received a sample of the Spy Valley E Block Sauvignon Blanc 2017 along with an invitation to participate in an on-line tasting with the Wine Pairing Weekend group (find them online under the hashtag #Winepw), this became the inspiration for this family gathering. I gleefully sent out a group text, "I'm grilling poolside tonight, be home by 7:30 p.m. to eat, come earlier if you want to swim." I am surrounded by funny people as the responses reflect, "Who is this?", "What have you done with my mom?", "Not a good night, Bachelor in Paradise is on." I was undeterred, I knew that they would come. I pulled the bottle out of the wine fridge to investigate what I was ...

Wine Life - Houston

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