Vértice Gouveio 2008

"The 2008 Gouveio Espumante Bruto (Vértice) has only five grams per liter of residual sugar—but about seven years on the lees. It does have 15% Arinto included this year. About half of the juice was fermented and aged in used French oak. With the basic stats, you know this is going to revolve around complexity, acidity and power. If that's what you like, this is an amazing value. (If not, step away; this is one of the producer's geek wines.) This is typically my fave of the producer's sparklers, but they sure aren't easy and fruity. In this year, the acidity is very fine here while the body is just average. It handles its wood well. Despite all that time on the lees, it seems relatively fresh and less oxidative than in some years I've seen, but it still has some of that, for sure. Pointed and focused, this is another beauty, but don't think it's a simple walk-around sparkler. It's quite a bargain, though. There were 8,938 bottles produced."