Vintus

Last week Jim Meehan won the first ever James Beard award for Outstanding Bar Program!  You can see more here on the Beard website.  Below, one of Jim’s Noval BLACK cocktails.

One of the world’s greatest hotels, the George V in Paris, has come up with a fabulous Noval BLACK cocktail with an equally fabulous name – “the Promiscuiti”.  Created by Joris Caillon as follows:

Muddle orange, lemon and lime twists in the shaker
Then add
2 bar spoons of simple syrup
.5 oz. Cognac infusion
.5 oz. fresh vanilla
1 oz. Cognac VSOP [we prefer using Cognac Tesseron Lot 90!]
2 oz. Noval Black
Shake with ice and enjoy !

At the “Portuguese Wine Oscars” a few weeks ago, Quinta do Noval was named the Port producer of the year.  A great honor, and like us, you may not take the term “Wine Oscars”  literally – and like us you would be wrong!

Winner of the 2010 Competition for Best Sommlier in the World, Luca Gardini has published a book titled the “Encylopedia of Wine”, which includes a classification of the Top 100 Producers and 3,000 Best Wines in the World.  The top 50 wines of his list have been released, and the #1 wine is Quinta do Noval Nacional 2003!  See here for more details and the full list.

Two days ago, the Washington Post published a big article on port cocktails by Jason Wilson, one of the most important spirits writers in the country.  Quinta do Noval was the centerpiece of the article, with extensive quotes by sales director Aymeric de Gironde.  Noval Black was named as one of Jason’s two favorite ports for cocktails, and he also mentions Noval’s work with mixologist Jim Meehan of PDT, the creator of the Noval Noval Cup. “We plan to be even more aggressive in the future with Noval Black in cocktails,” de Gironde said to Wilson.   Wilson shares a recipe for the Philadelphia Scotchman (recipe below), that showcases ports versatility.

3/4 ounce apple brandy

3/4 ounce of port [best to use Noval BLACK]

3/4 ounce freshly squeezed orange juice

1 ounce chilled ginger beer

Pour brandy, BLACK, and orange juice over ice

Stir, then top with chilled ginger beer.

To read the full article click here.

WGBH is one of the main public radio stations in New England. They held an event with the senior producer at Masterpiece, Susanne Simpson, whose Downton Abbey series has been a breakout hit (and won the Golden Globe a few weeks ago for best TV series).  Last week more than 300 Downtown Abbey fans came to show their support of WGBH and enjoy the “An Evening Inspired by Downtown Abbey”.

Click below to see the slide show of the event, a few slides show that this group was a very-forward thinking crowd of Edwardian party-goers, clearly enjoying the Noval BLACK served and featured.

Over the last few weeks some folks from Quinta do Noval have been traveling the country and in addition to the incredible Noval ports have been showcasing  some cocktails that can be made with Noval BLACK.  The response has been impressive and even better than anticipated!  Here are a few cocktails that were created on the spot during visits in Milwaukee, Boston, and in the Mid-Atlantic. Check them out below!

“The Port Authority” – a play on the Manhattan from Jordan Burch at Hinterland in Milwaukee (http://www.hinterlandbeer.com)

In the glass:

Luxardo Marachino Cherry

2 counts Noval BLACK

Shake:

4 counts Maker’s Mark

2 counts Lillet Blanc

Dash old timey bitters

Pour gently over Port and garnish with a thin orange peel

The “Bloody Port” from Aaron Brooks at 28 Degrees in Boston (www.28degrees-boston.com)

2 oz Noval Port

1oz Solerno Liqueur

1 oz Courvoisier

3 splash aromatic bitters

Splash of blood orange juice

The “El Dia de Los Muertes” Margarita from Eli at Chef Geoff’s in the Mid-Atlantic area (https://www.chefgeoff.com/chef-geoffs-home.html)

1.75 oz Reposado Tequila

1.5 oz Noval BLACK

1 oz fresh lime juice

.5 oz hibiscus syrup (Flor de Jamaica)

Shake and pour over black salt rimmed glass

Wine Spectator Magazine, February 2012, gives delicious recipes to impress this Valentine’s Day with wines to match.  Of the recipes, one recipe is for a Faultless Chocolate Souffle with a recommended wine pairing of our very own Quinta do Noval 40 Year Old Tawny Port!  Take a look at the recipe below!