2017 Quinta do Vale Meao Douro Red
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Tasting notes
Mainly Touriga Nacional and Touriga Franca plus Tinta Roriz, Tinta Barroca and Tinto Cão from the oldest vineyards of the Quinta: Vale Grande, Cabeço das Pulgas, Casa das Máquinas, Três Encostas and Poente da Viola. Each grape variety is harvested and vinified separately. After being crushed and destemmed into granite lagares, they are trodden by foot. Later they are transferred to stainless-steel tanks where fermentation takes place during eight days. After the alcoholic fermentation, one part of the wine undergoes malolactic fermentation in barriques. The ageing is done for 16 to 18 months in barriques which are 50% new and 50% used. Deeply coloured and still quite purple. Very dark core. Initial impression is sweetness and spice from both the fruit and the oak. Quite oaky – spice and chocolate – on the palate too but the fruit underneath is fabulous, rich, dark and mouth-filling. Blackberry, blueberry, damson and all kinds of dark fruit, ripe but so fresh. It opens in the glass to the classic floral/bergamot aroma of Touriga Nacional but there's also a dark and savoury – almost charry – aspect that is pure Douro. Very young still, firm and chewy in texture, but has the balance to age very well. A lovely wine that has slimmed down since I tasted it as a barrel sample. Succulent and moreish even though it is so youthful. This will become even more elegant and complex with a few more years in bottle. Just a baby now. (JH)
Critic scores
Julia Harding MW, jancisrobinson.com
Mark Squires
More reviews and scores
The 2017 Tinto is a 50/40 blend of Touriga Nacional and Touriga Franca, with Tinta Roriz and Tinta Barroca filling out the blend, all aged for 16 months in 50% new French oak. It comes in at 14% alcohol. This was last seen as an unbottled sample in Porto. It is now in bottle and in the USA. As this has settled in, it seemed a little less impressive—at first and on opening. A calling card here will be the intensity of fruit flavor. Yet, while it is certainly very ripe, it never seems jammy or sweet. It retains precision, and it becomes somewhat more complex as it airs out. The tannins are ripe enough so that this is actually approachable now, but there is some tannic pop, and this needs development. It would be a mistake to open it today. Come back around 2025 for better results. Yet it still seemed too understated on opening. In fact, the next day it seemed somewhat ordinary at first, ready to roll. I was wondering if it deserved more than a very low 90s score. Yet it woke up with an hour in the glass, gained weight and fruit flavor and coated the palate nicely. There were hints of seared beef and chocolate. Suddenly, it was mid-90s. As long as it was open, it kept getting better—and more powerful. It became impressive again. That's a good sign. It remained accessible, but it became more interesting. Overall, this looks like a beauty. At the moment, I'd favor the 2016, but both still need to settle down. It will be interesting to revisit both when they have about another five years of age on them.
About the producer
Product details
Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca/Touriga Francesa, Tempranillo, Other
Red
Dry