2012 Quinta da Touriga-Cha Tinto

The 2012 Quinta da Touriga-Chã, the Estate Tinto, is mostly Touriga Nacional, with 15% Touriga Franca added in. It was aged in French barriques for 14 months (63% new) and comes in at 14.13% alcohol. Beautifully elegant – not an unusual description in 2012 for a lot of wines – this has a very Old World feel, but for the big hit of new oak up front. In its youth, that's a problem and too noticeable. When it settles down, it will not be an issue. A few hours of air proved that conclusively. Showing fine balance overall, this graceful wine could be a fine Bordeaux. It is certainly one of the most charming 2012s in this issue, with delicious and fresh fruit, plus impeccable balance. With ripe tannins to go with the elegant mid-palate, it is built to drink, not just to impress with size and power, but its finesse should not obscure its overall quality. If the restraint typical of the vintage is obvious, this wine shows rather well with it. It should be early-maturing; with air, it quieted down pretty fast. That, too, is not unusual in 2012. However, for best results, give it a couple of years to settle down and pull in the oak. There were just 3,500 bottles produced. This runs around 40 euros in Portugal.