Tasting of a couple of Quinta do Crasto wine samples at Premium Wine Exchange. We had 4 dry wines to start:
Crasto Douro Red 2013 - Ripe berries on the nose with a bit of heat. Dry, medium-bodied. Dried berries. Medium (+) tannins. A little menthol. Medium length. Not particularly complex but a good wine for rich food like barbecue or stews. Grapes are Tinta Roriz, Tinta Barroca, Touriga Franca and Touriga Nacional.
Crasto Superior Red 2012 - On the nose, ripe fruit tinged with some herbal notes. Mocha. Smooth and a bit syrupy. A little earthiness in there as well. Smooth and polished. Fairly soft tannins. The sweetness and softness make this a rather forward and friendly style. Made with Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, Tinta Roriz and Sousão.
Crasto Reserva Old Vines 2012 - Very dark. Some heat coming off of this. Sweet and ripe black fruit. Plum, blueberry and black cherry. A little mint and a touch of frying bacon to keep things interesting. Very smooth and rich. Toffee notes coming up as well after a bit of air. Lots going on here. Soft tannins and very long. Beautifully put together. Excellent and ready to drink. Vines for this wine have an average age of 70 years. Up to 30 grape varieties can be used to make this wine!
Crasto Tinta Rotiz - Very fragrant. Ripe berries and chocolate. Powerful tannins. Packed with black fruit. Black cherry, blackberry, black currants, blueberry and plum. Slight jamminess in the texture. No heat at all. Constructed for the long haul. Best to leave alone for maybe 3 years at least to soften the tannins. Quite impressive. 100% Tinta Roriz and only released in the best years.
We ended with 3 Ports:
Quinta do Crasto Finest Reserve Porto - Quinta do Crasto's Ruby Port. Very sweet and juicy. Rich and chewy. Violets, plums and fragrant wood. Very impressive for a ruby port. After an initial gentle pressing, the grapes are transferred to stone "lagares" where they are foot trodden.
Quinta do Crasto Late Bottled Vintage Porto 2008 - Very sweet, rich and syrupy. Tons of black fruit with a touch of wood. Very concentrated but velvety smooth. Dryish, bittersweet chocolate finish. Good length. A fantastic LBV. Foot-trodden in "lagares" after an initial gentle crushing. This is unfiltered so it should have some sediment after a few years of aging.
Quinta do Crasto Vintage Porto 2008 - 2008 was not generally declared so it's a single quinta year. Black, opaque. Very tight and concentrated. Tobacco, stewed fruit, chocolate, kirsch, sweet spices, fig and plum. Very complex. Smooth but powerful. Very long. Outstanding stuff and even if it is extremely young in port terms, it's drinking very nicely now. Brilliant wine. Foot-trodden in "lagares" after the grapes get an initial gentle crushing.
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