Douro Reserva, Quinta do Crasto 2009
Price £19.75
Stock Level: 5
| Grape: | Field Blend of 25-30 old vines grapes |
| Strength: | 14.5% |
| Style: | Full bodied |
| Size: | 750ml |
| Cellar Notes: | Wine from parcels of old, low yielding vines with up to 30 different grape varieties are kept back for ageing in French and American oak barrels for up to 18 months. A high proportion of the grapes used in the blend are foot trodden in lagares. The wine may be drunk soon after its release but has the depth and concentration to develop in bottle over the long term. It is a complex, powerful wine with great intensity and a richly textured palate. It is always bottled without any fining or filtration. |
| Appearance: | A brick red colour. |
| Aromas: | Intense and lifted oak aromas of cigar box, tobacco leaf, spices, cedar and vanilla, combined with fresh dark berries and ripe plums. |
| Palate: | A rich full and round palate of great balance, displaying rich Douro berry fruit characters, with integrated oak tannins and a great length of finish. |
| Serving Notes: | Ideal with hearty stews and roasted joints. Also excellent with game. |
Vineyard:
Quinta do Crasto
Situated on the North bank of the river Douro, half way between Regua and Pinhao, Quinta do Crasto is arguably the finest estate for the production of red wine in Portugal. The top bottlings have achieved the highest Parker ratings so far of any wine in the country (2003 Vinha Maria Teresa – 96 points), but there is also great strength in depth all the way from the mid priced range (the 2005 Old Vines Reserva was voted third in the Wine Spectator’s global top 100 ranking in 2008) to the entry level Douro Red which regularly wins accolades for its exceptional value for money.
The winemaking philosophy is the same for all of the red wines, with pure ripe fruit from traditional Douro varieties, overlaid with clean barrique ageing and extremely smooth tannins. Complexity and concentration increase exponentially with the price tag, reflecting the age of the vines (Reserva and Touriga Nacional) and best vineyards (Vinha Maria Teresa and Vinha da Ponte), which were planted over a century ago with a field blend.
The winemaking philosophy is the same for all of the red wines, with pure ripe fruit from traditional Douro varieties, overlaid with clean barrique ageing and extremely smooth tannins. Complexity and concentration increase exponentially with the price tag, reflecting the age of the vines (Reserva and Touriga Nacional) and best vineyards (Vinha Maria Teresa and Vinha da Ponte), which were planted over a century ago with a field blend.
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