Wine & Spirits - February 2018 - 74

YEAR'S BEST PORTUGUese WINes
plantings focused on touriga nacional. § Vintus, Pleasantville, NY
219401

92 | Qta. do Passadouro

$25

2014 Douro ^ A tight, floral red, this wine
buzzes with peppery spice, its tart blueberry
fruit providing a counterpoint to the structure, making the wine feel gentle, touched
with just enough sweetness to give it a generous, friendly grace. Pour it with roast
lamb. (W&S 4/17) § MundoVino/The Winebow
Group, NY
219165

92 | Prats & Symington

$75

2014 Douro Chryseia ^ After Bruno Prats
sold Cos d'Estournel, he began a partnership with the Symington family to reimagine the Douro from a table-wine perspective.
Since their first release in 2000, the wines
have often been more international in style
than this 2014. The selection comes from two
quintas in the Douro Superior-Roriz and de
Perdiz-as well as Vila Velha, a quinta neighboring Roriz owned by a member of the Symington family. Yes, this is richly oaked, with
the suppleness and perfume that comes with
aging in new French oak barrels (400 liters in
size). But there's also a black-raspberry note
adding complexity to the ripe blueberry flavor, and a lot of broken-schist detail to the
tannins. This is the best showing for a young
Chryseia in our tastings. (W&S 4/17) § Premium Port Wines, San Francisco, CA
226860

92 | Wine & Soul

$100

2015 Douro Pintas ^ There's a lot going on
in the 2015 Pintas, and the wine remains, as
yet, unresolved. Its old-vine concentration is
surrounded by new oak, lending some sweetness, chocolate richness and cumin-like spice
to the fruit. Meanwhile, that fruit is tense,
floral and complex, a riot of tart black raspberries, crunchy green olives and red licorice, to call out a few of the flavors in this
field blend of more than 35 varieties. Brash
for now, this lasts in a heady finish, the wine
needing ten years in bottle to meld and mellow. § MundoVino/The Winebow Group, NY
218268

91 | Duorum

$20

2014 Douro Colheita (Best Buy) ^ From a
partnership between João Portugal Ramos
and José Maria Soares Franco, this is a bright
and powerful Douro red that glistens with
freshness. The tannins are firm and stony,
buoying the fruit in scents of red plum and
pomegranate. As one taster noted, "It would
be easy to drink a bottle." (W&S 4/17) § The
Winebow Group, NY
226221

WINE & SPIRITS

FEBRUARY 2018

91 | Quinta de la Rosa

$20

91 | Quinta do Vallado

$65

2015 Douro (Best Buy) ^ An elegant, firmly
structured Douro red with a velvet-soft grip
of tannins, this layers scents of violets and
black raspberries over charry, meaty notes
that keep it savory and dry. The wine's clean
architecture holds its power in check. Firm
and complete, this is ready to drink and will
continue to improve with bottle age. § Winesellers, Niles, IL
219051
2014 Douro Reserva Field Blend ^ Francisco
Olazabal and Francisco Ferreira collaborate
on this selection from a mixed planting that
is now more than 100 years old. They count
45 varieties among the vines, which come
together in a compote of black-skinned wildblueberry flavor. The sweetness of the fruit
turns savory as mineral-rich tannins take
over in the end. Spicy and intense, this needs
years in bottle to show its best. (W&S 4/17) §
Quintessential, Napa, CA
219407

91 | Wine & Soul

$100

2014 Douro Quinta da Manoella Vinhas
Velhas ^ This is a rich vintage from vines
planted in 1900 at Manoella, a quinta in
the heart of the Pinhão Valley. It shows the
power and concentration of its old-vine fruit,
rounded and enriched by time in new oak
barriques. It's as gamey and fatty as a heritage pork chop, and needs a few years in bottle to absorb the influence of its oak. (W&S
4/17) § MundoVino/The Winebow Group, NY
226591

90 | Caves Transmontanas $28

2013 Douro Vértice Grande Reserva ^
There's a firm wine underneath the powerful tannins, but all it offers at the moment
is a mouthful of schist. This feels tense and
unapproachable, with muscular black fruit
that will emerge as the tannins mellow. § Wine
In-Motion USA, Union, NJ
226370

90 | Duorum

$45

2015 Douro Reserva Old Vines ^ José Maria
Soares Franco makes this wine in a partnership with João Portugal Ramos, working with
mixed plantings, some 100 years old, at two
vineyards, one in the center of the Douro,
the other in the eastern reaches of the Douro
Superior. It's an ambitious, modern style
with succulent red fruit that feels round and
racy against the tough young tannins. Cellar
it to let the fruit and tannins merge. § MundoVino/The Winebow Group, NY
226419

90 | Quinta do Portal

$45

90 | Ramos Pinto

$15

90 | Ramos Pinto

$15

90 | Ramos Pinto

$41

2015 Douro Tinta Barroca ^ Light, brightly
spiced, black and smoky, this brings to mind
some of the spicy reds from Spain's Galicia.
This grows in the Pinhão Valley, north of the
Douro, where barroca developed velvety tannins in 2015 to cushion all that spice, complete enough to convince the team at Portal
to bottle what is usually a blending variety on
its own. § M Imports, Fairfield, CT
226410
2015 Douro Duas Quintas (Best Buy) ^ A
terrific vintage of this classic blend, nesting
ripe fruit grown in the hot riverside slopes
of the far Douro Superior with cooler flavors
of grapes grown at high altitude, this is firm
and juicy, with dark purple-berry flavors and
black-olive notes. Earthy tannic power comes
up in the end, but those tannins have precision, adding to the wine's presence rather
than overwhelming it. The fresh flavors are
ready to enjoy with roast squab, turkey or
a simple grilled burger. § Maisons Marques &
Domaines USA, Oakland, CA
217350
2014 Douro Duas Quintas (Best Buy) ^
Spicy schist notes greet you when you first
smell this wine, the gentle warmth of sun on
stone that captures this wine's fruit at a fine
moment of ripeness. Designed as an estate
blend from a warmer schist site near the river
and a cooler, high-elevation granitic vineyard, this vintage of Duas Quintas is impressive for its jasmine-scented purple fruit and
lasting spice. Pour it with spicy braised pork.
(W&S 4/17) § Maisons Marques & Domaines
USA, Oakland, CA
219157
2014 Douro Duas Quintas Reserva ^ This
represents a tighter selection of fruit than
Duas Quintas (also recommended here),
and more sophisticated winemaking, including aging for 16 months in barrel (one-third
new oak). With some bright notes of orange
zest, some chocolate richness to the oak tannins, schist spice and a little barnyard funk,
the elements need a few years of bottle age
to come into focus. (W&S 4/17) § Maisons
Marques & Domaines USA, Oakland, CA
219768

90 | Rui Roboredo Madeira $17

2014 Douro Castello d'Alba Reserva (Best
Buy) ^ A simple Douro red with juicy strawberry and smashed plum ripeness, this has
a lovely texture with schist tannins in the
background. It's young and fresh, a wine to
pour with pork loin. (W&S 4/17) § M.S. Walker,
Somerville, MA
218622

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wine & Spirits - February 2018