WINEMAKER'S NOTES:
Color: Deep garnet. Nose: A very lively and eloquent nose, where ripe red fruit and black plums blend harmoniously with the balsamic, spicy and smokey notes of the French oak casks used for ageing this wine. Palate: Silky, vibrant and complex in the mouth, with a meticulous tannic structure – one of the key results of working with vines that are over 80 years old. This single vineyard offering marks a return to the past in the best Douro tradition and serves as a tribute to all those who have worked these mighty terraces and preserved the intriguing mix of grape varieties here, thus enabling us today to appreciate terroir wines in a region as inhospitable as the Douro.
TASTING NOTES:
This is tight and powerful, perhaps a bit drier and sterner than usual, but nicely concentrated. Some fruit does emerge with air, though. This hard-edged tinto really needs some time to develop in the cellar, moderate its tannins and acquire more harmony. Put it away for three to five years, at least. Its crisp edge, serious backbone and well-crafted mid-palate should give it a bright future.
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 94 pts.
