Fernao Pires
Thurs 03 July 2008
Those of you who follow me on twitter will already know but ... my results from my WSET Advanced Certificate arrived yesterday! It's been two months of anxious waiting (ok, the first week was anxious, and then I tired of worrying pretty quickly!) and I'm pleased to announce that the hard work (bad moods, pestering Andy to test me on anything and everything) paid off. Not only did I pass but a distinction in the theory section AND a distinction in the practical means that I've come away with a distinction overall! Hooray!
No immediate celebrations (mid-week and all that), but we are going to take a peek at a grape that may or may not be new to you: Portugal's Fernão Pires (also known as Maria Gomes, Fernam Pires or Fernão Pirão). This is Portugal's most widely grown white grape and one of the main grapes grown in Portugal's most productive region, coastal Estremadura. Which is where my example wine comes from ...
The wine is Casa Santos Lima 2007 Fernão Pires, which I purchased from Oddbins for just under £6 (on offer). In non-wine-geek-speak, I would best describe this as a toned down Sauvignon Blanc. The herbaceous, green, vegetal notes are definitely there, with hints of gooseberry. While there's nowhere near as much acid as you'd expect in a good Sauvignon Blanc, there's certainly enough for the wine to be crisp and refreshing. Apparently some examples of Fernão Pires can exhibit some floral, aromatic qualities - but not this one. On the palate, there was a slight creaminess and even hints of tropical fruit to go with the citrus.
As we move into BBQ weather (hopefully ... I know there's some rain forecast for us in the North this weekend) this is a wine to keep in mind. It's perfect for quaffing while you wait for sausages and burgers, and will no doubt prove a bit of a talking point - always a good thing!
tagged with:
portugal, 
wine, 
fernao pires
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Those of you who follow me on twitter will already know but ... my results from my WSET Advanced Certificate arrived yesterday! It's been two months of anxious waiting (ok, the first week was anxious, and then I tired of worrying pretty quickly!) and I'm pleased to announce that the hard work (bad moods, pestering Andy to test me on anything and everything) paid off. Not only did I pass but a distinction in the theory section AND a distinction in the practical means that I've come away with a distinction overall! Hooray!
No immediate celebrations (mid-week and all that), but we are going to take a peek at a grape that may or may not be new to you: Portugal's Fernão Pires (also known as Maria Gomes, Fernam Pires or Fernão Pirão). This is Portugal's most widely grown white grape and one of the main grapes grown in Portugal's most productive region, coastal Estremadura. Which is where my example wine comes from ...
The wine is Casa Santos Lima 2007 Fernão Pires, which I purchased from Oddbins for just under £6 (on offer). In non-wine-geek-speak, I would best describe this as a toned down Sauvignon Blanc. The herbaceous, green, vegetal notes are definitely there, with hints of gooseberry. While there's nowhere near as much acid as you'd expect in a good Sauvignon Blanc, there's certainly enough for the wine to be crisp and refreshing. Apparently some examples of Fernão Pires can exhibit some floral, aromatic qualities - but not this one. On the palate, there was a slight creaminess and even hints of tropical fruit to go with the citrus.
As we move into BBQ weather (hopefully ... I know there's some rain forecast for us in the North this weekend) this is a wine to keep in mind. It's perfect for quaffing while you wait for sausages and burgers, and will no doubt prove a bit of a talking point - always a good thing!
tagged with:
portugal, wine, fernao pires
Stumble It!
posted by Alex at 7:39 pm
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2 Comments:
Wow a distinction!
Hearty Congrats to you!!
Thank you very much!
I'm still very pleased with myself!
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