TN: 2015 Carvalhas Tinta Francisca Douro -- Quinta das Carvalhas

Saw this at a local retailer and always fun to try new things. 100% Tinta Francisca and aged 12 months in oak (doesn’t say if new or used on the label). Decanted for about 2.5 hours. Elegant dark cherries are rather deceptive in that they aren’t over ripe. Instead they posses this wonderful bright freshness. Really good acidity pops out mid-palate and then it starts to put on a some weight when the graphite, moderate tannins, and tar start coming to the front. A light amount of white pepper on the soft and elegant, yet long, finish. This was rather tight at first and really become so much more expressive and impressive the longer it sat in the decanter. By no means a big bold flashy wine, instead this is a beautifully elegant wine that packs a punch.
91(+) Points

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Thank you for the note, Andy - sounds quite interesting. Not a grape that I’ve heard of before.

+1.

Thanks, Andy.

It’s usually used as a blending grape. Pretty rare to see it bottled in its own.

Andy, that sounds like textbook varietal Tinta Francisca - the elegance, the moderate tannins - and a great example to boot. An unfairly maligned grape on its own.

Agree. RCV has been quite successful at bottling some very unusual grape varieties in recent years. I’ve had a very good Rufete, Boal, and there was another white that escapes my memory at the moment.

EDIT: IIRC it was Samarrinho and it was fantastic.

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Of all those I would put Rufete pretty close to the mainstream. It is widely used in the Beira Interior and there are good varietal examples of it. The latest one I had was actually produced by Anselmo Mendes and I thought it was terrific. I love Rufete: it has the lighter texture of Pinot Noir with a more rustic, ferrous side to it. In the white grapes, I would love to see Vital get a bit more attention: it has this terrific steely, lemony character which is just delightful.

Portugal is an encyclopedia of grapes!

I love Vital. Casal Figueira’s Antonio, specifically, is one of my favourite Portuguese whites. 2011 is wonderful right now.

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Had the 2012 Antonio a year and a half ago and really liked it.