Skip to main content

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.


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Lust Zinfandel 2007

     My husband loves this wine so he purchased quite a few bottles at a recent Michael~David  dinner that we had attended. Last night, I decided to open a bottle to serve with dinner. I was making a roasted southwestern pork tenderloin, sweet potato fries (w/ chipolte ketchup) and a salad consisting of baby lettuce (fresh from my garden) with strawberries, red bell peppers, red onions and walnuts tossed with a white balsamic-raspberry vinaigrette.      This turned out to be a great pairing. It is a bold wine that really stood up to the strong chipolte seasoning while complementing the fruit flavors. I opened the bottle a 1/2 hour before I served it as I have found this wine to be more enjoyable when I do so.      The Lust Zinfandel by Michael~David 2007  was a dark purple color with a ruby rim. It has intense aromas of very ripe mixed berries and baking spices-both allspice and ginger with hints of ...

Introducing Oltrepò Pavese - An Italian Sparkling Wine that You Should Know

Last year, I had the opportunity to travel to Italy to taste the wines of Oltrepò Pavese. I discovered that these sparkling wines are based on Pinot Noir, they are made in the traditional method, like Champagne, and most importantly, they are an Italian hidden gem that bubble lovers across the world need to put on their radar. In the August issue of Galveston Monthly magazine, I introduce these wines to my readers.

The Salta Tour 2012

Vine Connections and Pioneer Wine Company hosted a seminar and tasting event for Houston's wine trade and media at Backstreet Cafe yesterday. All but two of the wines were from the Salta Province of Argentina. Salta is the most northern wine region in Argentina lying close to the Bolivian border. The climate is very extreme due to the high altitude.  Plantings start at 5,000 feet above sea level and climb to 9,000 feet, making these vineyards the highest in the world. The intense sunlight the area receives helps to create grapes with more anthocyanins, these are the color pigments which result in softer tannins, lower astringency and more intense flavor. The wines produced are extremely pure, concentrated and terroir specific. Torrontes Riojano which is considered the best of the three Torrontes clones is the most widely planted grape with plantings of Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon and Tannat increasing. The seminar started with a tasting of four Torrontes wines, three from...