Tuella Douro – A Trader Joe’s $5.99 Hot Pick

The last wine in our Trader Joe’s series, the Tuella Douro. Just be sure to let it breathe!

A blend of Touriga Franca, Tinta Barroca and Tinto Cao from Douro, Portugal.

The Tuella Douro is available for $5.99 exclusively at Trader Joe’s. Imported by International Wine Imports.

From the bottle:

Tuella is made by the Symington family, in the Douro Valley, from native Portuguese grape varieties. The Symingtons have been making fine Douro wines for over 100 years. Tuella is an excellent example of the ‘new Douro’ style of table wine which combines the benefits of a mature vineyard with ultramodern winemaking methods.

13.5% Alcohol

Here at Reverse Wine Snob we’re big fans of the wines from Portugal precisely because they fly under the radar of a lot of wine drinkers who assume Portugal is all about Port. As it happens, those same grapes used to make Port also make a heck of a nice table wine. And because recognition for these wines is still growing, prices are great. Combine that with the Trader Joe’s model for their exclusive wines, which keeps prices low, and you’ve got a winning combination.

The 2013 Tuella Douro by Symington Family Estates begins with a nice mix of fruity and earthy aromas. Dark fruit, a little leather and hints of tobacco and chocolate intermingle nicely after the wine has some time in the glass. The wine tastes pretty darn good AFTER it has a lot of time to breathe — and we mean a lot, we found it to be at its best on day 2. If you pop and pour this one you are likely to be disappointed; however, if you are patient you’ll find a nicely structured, medium-bodied wine that will blow most California wines at that same price point out of the water. The dark fruit, tobacco and chocolate notes from the nose carry over when tasting this easy drinker. It ends dry with good length and even has a bit of a mineral streak to it.

As always you can find an updated list of all our recommended wines from Trader Joe’s as well as more tips and tricks for shopping the store here.