Wine Review - 2008 Casa Santos Lima Touriga Franca: Juicy And Spicy Portuguese Vinho
This is a wine grape that there is not a lot of origin information about. It would seem from the name that this might have some level of connection to Cabernet Franc. This seems to hold up in spirit as Jancis Robinson has mentioned it as "Cabernet Franc to Touriga Nacional's Cabernet Sauvignon". That certainly is good enough comparison for us. This grape is also known as Touriga Francesa which is not what is on the label so there you go. Casa Santos Lima is a located 45 miles North of Lisbon and they grow (if the translation is correct) a whopping 50 different varieties in their vineyards (some of which are experimental). We were pulled in by the idea of it being a Portuguese version of Cab Franc but we also haven't seen a lot of single variety wines from Portugal. Douro and Dao are red blends so this makes it doubly interesting. This is considered a medium bodied wine, but once you take a look at in the glass it seems like a bit fuller...