A large mix of Portuguese Wines, Ports and Madeira's and some other things too

[Andy Velebil]

Since this involved a long lunch with a variety of things, I will post it here as a summary.

After a long hiatus due to Covid, I was finally able to catch up with Chris Lavin from Broadbent Selections, a USA importer of wines, Ports and Madeira's. We meet at an amazing seafood restaurant in West Hollywood, California called Connie & Ted's. I highly recommend it to anyone visiting the area. Back to the important part, Chris brought along a very large line up of their Portuguese bottlings, plus a little New Zealand and South African wines as well. Oh, and did I mention a Napa Cabernet, English Pinot and a French Syrah to boot. We circled the globe in a couple hours.

I didn’t take any type of detailed notes, just some very brief general impressions and, where indicated, a rough score. Overall, I was very impressed with the line up. There wasn't a bad one in the bunch, sure some better than others, but even the value priced wines generally punched above their retail price point.

Broadbent used to be the importer for Casa Ferreirinha. However, Sogrape who owns C.F. has switched to their own in-house distribution. In a remarkable deal, Sogrape is now making Broadbent's own-label Portuguese wines and Ports.

2020 Spy Valley Sauvignon Blanc
Bright, clean good mid palate. A lovely versatile daily drinker.

2019 Broadbent Dao Branco
Citrus fruit, good acid, a moderate finish. I liked this one. At $13 retail you can’t go wrong. 88 Points

2020 Broadbent Branco - Madeira
A rarely seen table wine from the Island. Great nose, lacks some complexity on the palate but a nice enjoyable entry level white. 86 Points

2020 Broadbent Reserva Branco - Madeira
Wow, a huge step up from the regular version. See's a little oak and longer aging. Spices, full bodied, great acidity, long finish. 91 Points

2019 Broadbent Douro (red wine)
An entry level Douro Valley red wine. Fragrant nose stood out. Vibrant red fruit, moderate complexity, light tannins, and a solidly long finish for an entry level wine. This punches well above the retail price point. $13 retail, yes $13! 89 Points

2018 Broadbent Douro Reserve (red wine)
Familiar alluring Douro scented nose. Darker but fresh fruit, dusty tannins, sneaks in up front then quickly transforms into one stellar wine. Loved the seamless transition to the long finish. I wasn’t expecting this level of quality. Seriously, back the truck up and buy all you can, you won’t find a better value at $20 retail. 91(+) Points



2018 Broadbent Auctioneer Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley
This took me by surprise by the overall quality of fruit, balance, depth, pencil lead, tannins, length of body and finish. One often gets worried of industrial tasting overpriced wine in the $30-ish retail price point for a Napa Valley Cab. No need to worry here, just a screaming value from the Valley. A no brainer $30 Cab for a fantastic upper end daily drinker that won’t break the bank. 90(+) Points

2019 Skerpioen (South Africa)
From Chris’ private cellar, as he knows I love this rare white. I just savored it and got lost with it, so no note. But it is a rock star...

2019 Eluers de Mai – Domaine Georges Vernay - Syrah
From Chris' private cellar. I know nothing about this but I loved the traditional more restrained style of Syrah. Bright, complex, nice finish and overall a well made wine. I wish more people made Syrah like this.

2018 Gusbourne Pinot Noir Boot Hill Vineyard - England
I love their bubbly but had no idea they made a Pinot. This fired on all cylinders and left me wanting more. Super clean and restrained, like Pinot should be, and a lingering finish. This surprised me in a very good way…I want more of this. 91+ Points

Broadbent 10 Year Tawny Port
Bottled 2020. Dried strawberries, licorice, tastes older than most 10 yr blends, long finish. A 10 yr at the top of the category. Seriously impressive stuff. $22/500ml 91 Points

Broadbent 20 Year Tawny Port
Bottled 2020. Orange zest, marmalade, caramel, mahogany, complex, spices. Wow, just like the 10, this punches above it’s weight for the category. $50/500ml 92+ Points

Broadbent 30 Year Tawny Port
Wow, explosive body. Waxy, zesty, toffee, old wood varnish, mixed spices, long finish. An impressive 30 yr tawny. $95/500ml 94 Points

1997 Broadbent Sercial Cask O 016
Citrus, V.A., nice depth, long finish. 91 points

1997 Broadbent Verdelho Cask O 078
Wow, I like this one, bright complex body, old wood, saline and lingering finish. 92+ Points

2009 Broadbent Malvasia Cask 122
Young by comparison, but fun to see what these are like without the extra age. Sweet, young but good caramel. Finish a little short, and just needs time, but a nice easy sipper. Ok lets be honest, it’s kinda not fair to pit this against older ones. But it still held it’s own pretty well nonetheless. 89 Points

1997 Broadbent Malvesia Cask 204
Rich, acidic, pralines, very consistant across palate and finish. I really liked this one. Yummy!! 93(+?) Points

1997 Broadbent Malvesia Cask 235
Vibrant nose, sweeter on palate, lovely old wood varnish, long dry finish. I liked Cask 204 a touch better, it was close though. 92 Points

[JacobH]

The looks like a great selection. Although making two table wines from Madeira seems like quite a bold choice! I am also quite amused to see a bottle from a reasonably-local vineyard to where I live make it into a selection like that. I still can’t quite get my head around English sparkling wines having an International presence!

[Andy Velebil]

I still can’t quite get my head around English sparkling wines having an International presence!

Hah, but when they make juice that good it's hard to keep it a secret for long.