Quinta do Crasto Tinta Roriz, Douro, Portugal 2014

91 Points Wine Advocate

The 2014 Tinta Roriz (there will be no Touriga Nacional this year) was aged for 16 to 18 months (depending on plot) in new French oak. It was sourced from vines about 34 years in age. In one of Douro's worst vintages in the last 20 years or so, this is pretty respectable. Its structure is beautiful, but that is often not the problem with 2014s. The question centers more around the expression of fruit. There, this does not excel quite as much. It is a bit stolid, a bit lacking in fruitiness. That said, it has good concentration for the year and ample power. The question now becomes, How will it develop? I suspect this is always going to be a little lacking in fruit flavor, but it will always seem impressive as a food wine. Some extra years of development will give us a better idea in that regard. I can at least say that it will likely age better than I originally thought, perhaps even a bit more than now indicated. It will be helpful to give it another a couple of years if you can, although it is approachable.