Douro Vintage Port
2018
While Quinta do Vale Meão only began bottling under its own label in 1999, the estate has an incredible history. Vale Meão was one of the shrewd acquisitions of the celebrated Douro landowner Dona Antónia Adelaide Ferreira. In 1877 she purchased 270 hectares of land near Vila Nova de Foz Côa in the Upper Douro, and over the course of the next decade established a model winery, planting all the vineyards from scratch. The Quinta remained in the family and is owned today by Francisco Javier...
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While this vintage was not generally declared by all producers, it has resulted in some very fine Ports from the great quintas. This is grandiloquently rich, layering thick tannins with dense black fruits. The texture is full and outwardly rounded—the result of the stone lagar fermentation—but underneath it is impressively structured.
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Juicy and wiry, with tension in its display of raspberry, blackberry and plum pâte de fruit notes thanks to riveting underlying acidity, this drives along with great cut, ending with a flourish of anise, bramble and juniper. Feels pretty tight too, so bank on this needing a little extra time. Touriga Franca, Touriga Nacional, Tinta Roriz, Tinta Barroca, Tinta Amarela and Sousão.
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