A brilliant, affordable Portuguese red

After some negative comments about a widely available Portuguese red a few days ago, here's one that I'm happy to see well distributed. If you haven't tried a Portuguese wine of late, get thee to Waitrose or Majestic to pick up a bottle of this. It's a really good example of why Dao is one of Portugal's most interesting wine regions. And best of all, it's affordable.

Sogrape Pena de Pato Dao 2005 Portugal
From Portugal's Dao region, this is a blend of Touriga Nacional, Tinta Roriz and Alfrocheiro, and it's just delicious. Deep coloured, it has lovely violet, dark cherry and blackberry aromatics, with hints of spice and meat. The palate shows fresh, bright modern fruit with some peppery structure and lovely fresh acidity. There's perhaps a hint of jamminess to it, but overall this is a beautifully fresh, cherryish, fruity red wine with lovely definition. A great introduction to the new Portugal. Pena de Pato translates 'duck's feather'; there's no relation to Luis Pato of Bairrada fame. 88/100 (£6.99 Majestic, Waitrose)