Quinta do Crasto Vinha Maria Teresa 2020

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€239.00

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Quinta do Crasto Vinha Maria Teresa 2020

Quinta do Crasto Vinha Maria Teresa 2020 is one of the great icons of the contemporary Douro. Produced only in years of exceptional quality, it comes exclusively from the century-old Vinha Maria Teresa vineyard, on traditional terraces at low altitude, with excellent sun exposure. Since its first vintage in 1998, it has established itself as one of Portugal’s most prestigious red wines, always produced in very limited quantities. 2020 saw a very hot winter and high rainfall until June. July and August were hot, but the water available in the soil allowed for good ripening. Harvested: 17 August-25 September, with lower yields, small berries and excellent concentration, resulting in a full-bodied, fresh and very expressive wine.

Vinification: Rigorous sorting of the grapes on arrival at the winery, destemmed and crushed in a traditional wine press. Following fermentation in temperature-controlled stainless-steel vats, aged for 20 months in 100% new barrels, 90% French oak and 10% American oak. The final blend is the result of the best barrels.

Tasting Notes: Ruby colour, with aromatic depth: ripe wild berries, spices and fresh notes of the Douro woodland, with rockrose very much in evidence. On the palate, it is powerful yet elegant, with well-structured tannins and a smooth texture. The finish is long, enveloping and persistent, confirming a unique red, full of character and clearly made to age for years.

Grape Varieties: Old Vines

Wine Type: Red Wine
Format: 0,75L
Vintage: 2020
Country: Portugal
Region: Douro
The highest scoring: Great Choices 18.5 to 19.5 Points
Robert Parker: RP95
Great Choices: 19.5

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Concentrated and rich in aromas, dense with dark fruit, yet generous in its quality and polish, beautifully integrated with the oak notes. Black plums, blackberries, cocoa and toasted notes—all are present here in superb quality. Full-bodied, yet with perfectly balanced tannins, it delivers on the palate like a luxury red wine, the sort that does the country proud.

The austere and closed 2020 Vinha Maria Teresa, a single-vineyard red from a centenary plot with a field blend of 54 grape varieties, feels serious and fresh. It always has a low pH (around 3.5, and this 2021 was 3.59) even in a warmer year like this 2020. They get a level of complexity and freshness from the old vines that is exceptional, despite the high ripeness (14.5% alcohol). The destemmed grapes were foot trodden in lagares, the juice fermented in stainless steel with indigenous yeasts, and the wine matured for around 20 months in 100% mew oak barrels, 90% French and 10% American. The wine has been in bottle for a while, but it's surely going to benefit from many more years. It's generous, modern, ripe and generously oaked, with superb balance and fine-grained, abundant, chalky tannins. I find the oak is a bit too much. It was bottled on March 2, 2023.

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