2022 Casa Ferreirinha, Quinta Leda, Douro 1x75cl

JancisRobinson.com

Full bottle an unnecessarily heavy 1,507 g. A blend of 48% Touriga Franca, 41% Touriga Nacional, 7% Tinto Cão and 4% Sousão grapes grown on the 170-ha Quinta da Leda estate. Quinta da Leda is located in the far eastern reaches of the Douro Superior, just 12 km from the border with Spain. The vineyards are planted on rolling hills on the south bank of the Douro and are a complex patchwork of plots with different aspects and microclimates, each matched to a specific grape variety following a study that was carried out in collaboration with the Universidade de Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro de Vila Real. Soils are composed predominantly of schist, which fractures vertically and allows the vine roots to delve deep to access water and nutrients during the hot Douro summers. 2022 was especially hot and dry, making it a very difficult vintage according to head winemaker Luís Sottomayor. Gravity-fed winery, hand-harvested grapes, destemmed and crushed. Fermentation took place in stainless-steel tanks at controlled temperatures and the varieties were co-fermented. After a long maceration, fermentation took place in old oak barrels and the wines were then aged for 18 months in French oak barrels, around 50% of which were new. Lightly filtered just before bottling. TA 5.5 g/l, pH 3.6. Vegan. Black core with vibrant purple-crimson rim. Draws you in with intense black fruit and a combination of dark savour and sweet oak, plus a hint of violets. Firm, dry but extremely fine tannins, quite an achievement in this vintage. Way too young to drink now but the balance shows already. Chewy, dense but not heavy, and with enough freshness to balance. Needs time. It s a lot more expensive than the good-value Vinha Grande but has greater ageing potential. (JH)