2018 Quinta do Crasto Reserva Vinhas Velhas

The 2018 Reserva Old Vines (average age of 70 years) was aged for 16 to 18 months, depending on vineyard plots, in 65% new (85% French) oak. It comes in at 14.6% alcohol. This represents 39 of Crasto's 42 plots and/or small vineyards of old vines, with Maria Teresa and Vinha da Ponte bottled separately. Notwithstanding that, this still looks like a super Reserva Old Vines, always a fine value point among Crasto's upper-level offerings. On opening, it seemed a bit leaner and a little more compact than its upper-level siblings, but that is somewhat misleading as a final verdict because this has other virtues. This might be the best of Crasto's offerings when it comes to mid-palate finesse. It is textured with velvet. It is precise and long on the finish. It is beautifully structured as well, showing surprising power. This looks like a great Reserva Old Vines, perhaps the best since the 2015 and perhaps superior to that. The only question now is where the ceiling is for this wine as it develops and tries to prove that it can be more complex and expressive. We'll need a couple of years for that answer to become clearer, as this is shut down a bit right now. At the price point, this is the one to load up on in Crasto's lineup. It's a perfect mixture of value, aging ability and quality. The Crasto Superior might be an even better value choice, but I don't think that has as much upside potential; the Superior today also has the advantage of another year in the bottle, thus showing a bit more development. There were 84,778 bottles produced, plus some large and small format bottles.