TN: Quinta do Crasto mini-vertical

WINE TALK
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QUINTA DO CRASTO MINI-VERTICAL - Will’s house, Forest Hill, London (2/18/2012)

I was interested to compare and contrast two wines from this well-regarded Portuguese producer. The rare (only a couple hundred cases produced) single-vineyard 2001 Maria Teresa won Decanter’s gold medal for Portuguese wines at its World Wine Awards, and the 2004 Old Vines Reserva is widely cited as an excellent value. I liked both, but not at the prices I paid to get them.

  • 2001 Quinta do Crasto Douro Vinha Maria Teresa - Portugal, Douro
    Dark crimson. Clearly a warm-climate wine–very full nose of blackberry and plum with a hint of palpable alcohol. But it is kept in check on the palate by a strong acidic backbone. Lovely soft mouthfeel, not much tannin present at this stage. Still primary, can go a bit further. Not much of a finish, and turns slightly sour with air. Overpriced. (90 pts.)
  • 2004 Quinta do Crasto Douro Reserva Old Vines - Portugal, Douro
    Dark crimson. Quite similar to the 2001 Quinta do Crasto Vinha Maria Teresa poured alongside, showing dark fruit and some heat, but with a different structure–more tannin, less acidity–and a less suave texture. With air it turn slightly (but pleasantly) sweet and porty, reflecting its country of origin. (88 pts.)

Posted from CellarTracker

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Hi Dan,

Thanks for posting these notes. I have a bottle of the '04 Reserva OV tucked away for consumption in the not-so-near future. Question for you: how much air did these get before tasting, and for how long did you taste them? My experience with many Douro reds is that they show their best on Days 2 and/or 3, so I’m curious if you gave them a chance on Day 2.

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They were decanted and consumed over the course of two hours. I definitely didn’t leave them around until the following morning. Perhaps that was a mistake, but we were thirsty. :slight_smile:

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Thanks for your response, Dan. I had a bottle of the '04 on 6/23-24/08, and remember it being significantly better on Day 2 than Day 1. If you can, try to save half a bottle of your next Douro red for Day 2 and see if the extra day of air brings a meaningful difference of expression.

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Yes a big mistake only giving them 2 hours but being thirsty is understandable [drinks.gif] . The 2001 Maria T. does best with at least 4-6 hours or more of decanting. I prefer it being on the longer side. This is an amazing wine which I’ve had many many times, late last year being the latest, and with a long decant was simply amazing. One of my favorite Maria Teresa, along with the ultra rare 1998.

The 2004 Reserva in 750’s is in a bit of an awkward stage at the moment, something which I first noticed early last year, and requires a longer than normal decant right now. I’ve had this wine about 2-dozen times since it was released. Otherwise the 2004 is an amazing wine and why it’s gotten such good reviews. Last October at the Quinta I had the 2004 Reserva out of magnum, which was decanted at lunch time and then consumed with a late dinner later that night, and it was beautiful. Personally, I’ve put away all the rest of my 2004’s for a couple years till it comes out of this phase.

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Dan, thanks for your OP. And thanks Andy and Brian for some general Douro/QdC wisdom. Any experience to pass along regarding the 06’s? I’ve got a couple Maria Teresa.

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Chuck,
While 2006 wasn’t a great overall year for the Douro for dry wines or Ports, the 2006 Quinta do Crasto Vinha Maria Teresa is a fantastic young wine. The Douro is a huge place with tons of micro climates, so even in tough years some producers will do very well and Crasto was one of them with this particular wine. I’d suggest leaving them it the cellar another 10+ years or give it a very long decant if you want to drink your bottles young.

As for some general Douro advise…A few houses are generally no-brainers for me when it comes to their upper end (and some lower end) wines. Crasto, Niepoort, and Vallado, to name a few. Some other houses are a little more hit and miss, such as Quinta do V. Dona Maria and Pintas. And some houses are still very new to dry wine but make some very good wines so far, such as Quinta do Vesuvio, Quinta do Noval, and Romaneira.

I’ve got to run to work, but will chime back in later…