Quinta do Vale Meao Meandro Red 2006

BN#282693

#48 in Wine Spectator's Top 100 Wines of 2009

Wine Spectator

Offers a powerful aroma of crushed red fruits, with flavors to match. There's an intense minerality that's accented by notes of beef and pepper, with medium-grained tannins on the closed finish. Needs some time in the cellar. Best from 2009 through 2013. 2,500 cases imported.

Score: 92. —Kim Marcus, February 28, 2009.

Wine Advocate

The 2006 MEANDRO DO VALE MEAO is a pretty nice second wine in this difficult vintage. One reason may be that a lot of declassified juice that would’ve have gone into the grand vin was used for this bottling. On first taste, this seems exceptional, elegant in weight, yet mouth filling and delicious. As with most 2006s, the proof is in the pudding, or rather the aeration. That first taste is not a reliable indicator in this vintage with most wines. After it airs out, it shows more hollowness than seemed initially apparent in the mid-palate and a shorter finish. It doesn’t have the penetration and power of its predecessor, the fine 2005, either. All that said, it tastes awfully good, will be approachable immediately and it is very reasonably priced. Drink now-2015.

Score: 87. —Mark Squires, December 2008.