Pinteivera Tinto

Deep black with sustained crimson highlights. The bouquet is powerful, showing dark fruit at first, along with some 'garrigue' and spicy notes; aromas of fruit (cherries, prunes) macerated in 'eau de vie' can also be detected. The whole is underpinned by mineral notes (graphite) that bring a great deal of freshness. The palate is big and full on the palate supported by impressive velvety structure. There’s flesh, weight and depth, all rounded off by an incredibly long finish. The dark fruit comes through again, giving a crisp sensation underpinned by nice mineral tautness that endows this wine with freshness and remarkable balance.

Michel Chapoutier is a genius winemaker with the ego and intelligence to go with it. He loves wine and the land from which it is produced and this fascination has led him to look at various other regions in the world away from his homeland of the Rhone Valley where he produces some of the worlds greatest wines. Hence we have a Chapoutier wine from the Douro Valley a region best known for Port but with an increasing reputation for table wines. Here as is often the wine in the Rhone he produces a single varietal wine made purely from the beautifuly scented deep coloured Touriga Nacional. Like many wines from this area it has notable tanin structure which is just starting to ease now but Michel once told me one of his winemaking secrets, that a wine with no fruit and too much tannin will never come round, so you can be sure that this will.