2003 Touriga Nacional

The 2003 Touriga Nacional is a sweeter, more open and expansive wine than its 2004 counterpart, with a certain sweet ‘n’ sour feel. I liked the balance on the 2004 better, although it is a bit closed at the moment. The 2003 has very sweet fruit up front, nuanced with rhubarb and plum notes. It has tannins on the finish, which increase in intensity for awhile with air, but eventually become quite refined. There was initially a bit of funk on the nose, that followed through slightly to the palate, but this partly – although not entirely – blew off after a couple of hours. This seems to be maturing fairly quickly, but it is not quite ready to drink, although very approachable. This is well done, but it is probably my least favorite of the prestige bottlings in this lineup. Drink 2007-2015. This old, historic estate, owned by the Roquette family, is on everyone’s short list for the designation “best dry wine producer in Portugal,” and with good reason. This is one of the estates that turbo-charged the dry red revolution in modern Portugal. As befits a standard bearer, they go from strength to strength and their wines are in high demand. Even their off-vintage wines are good, while their upper level “good vintage” wines are some of the most sought after in Portugal, and some of the most distinguished the country has to offer. The Roquettes’ exciting new joint venture with Jean-Michel Cazes (of Chateau Lynch Bages) is another feather in their caps. It is separately listed under “Roquette e Cazes.” The lineup from Quinta do Crasto was probably the most impressive that I tasted, from top to bottom, when I was in Portugal. (The wines reviewed here, as with almost everything in this report, were retasted from bottle under controlled conditions in the USA.) If there is a downside, it is the obvious one – the wines are pretty pricey, a function of prestige and, sometimes, scarcity. Importer: Broadbent Selections, San Francisco, CA; tel. (415) 931-1725