2017 Quinta do Soalheiro - Primeiras Vinhas Alvarinho

The 2017 Alvarinho Primeiras Vinhas is partly (15%) oak aged for six months in used French barrels and comes in at 13% alcohol. It is, of course, dry with less than two grams of residual sugar and about six grams of total acidity. It comes in at 13% alcohol. Fresh and gripping, this shows its wood a bit early on, but there isn't all that much wood, and the fruit supersedes it easily. There is fine depth, plenty of power and a long finish. Dry, fresh, precise and graceful, this is not going to sear your tongue, but it does need a year or two of cellaring to allow it to become more expressive. Even the next day, it needed some warmth and air to show better. At the moment, the power is in charge—and there is a fair bit of it. It is rather intense. It looks like a big winner that should age brilliantly. Let's start here on all fronts, but I'm leaning up on this today. This is potentially a great Primeiras Vinhas. There were roughly 30,000 bottles produced from 1974 vines—the property's first vines.