| 17.0 / 20 |
Region: Douro
Country: Portugal
I think I've been avoiding this wine for the past 5 years or so, ever since it failed to impress me at a dinner in a restaurant in the heart of the Douro. Maybe the bottle was too warm or the night too hot (it was August, after all) or we've just spent the day tasting Ports, but the wine left a negative impression in my mind - not that it was bad, just not good enough for the price tag.
Several years later, a bottle of the 06 vintage found its way into my collection and was dutifully tasted and drank. Nice dark ruby to the eye, the nose is intense, powerful, very Douro like - with flowers, dark fruits, a noticeable oaky feel and a hint of rocks in the background.
Nice, full body with an unctuosity that I usually associate with oak-staged whites - almost buttery, it is very well balanced between dark, ripe fruits, oak and spices, all laid down in firm, velvety and very structured tannins. A sensation of elegance pervades the taste. Good, persistent finish reveals yet another layer of tannins, enhancing the dryness and body of the wine.
Really well made, the only downsides being that there's maybe a little too much alcohol in the end, taking away some of the elegance and I didn't feel it would hold much longer - this is probably due to the vintage.
But anyway, it completely erased past bad experiences and I'm totally open to trying other vintages.
Tasted on 2012-04-26
No comments:
Post a Comment