Barca Velha, Casa Ferreirinha 2011

Extremely deep red with aromas and flavors that change all the time with blackberry, black raspberry, black licorice, floral and asphalt. Full-bodied with deep intensity, power and finesse. The tannins are wonderfully polished yet so much there. This is a tribute to the first great Barca Velhas of the 1960s. Drinkable, but better in three or four years.

The 2011 Barca Velha, the latest offering of this late-released wine, is a blend of 45% Touriga Franca, 35% Touriga Nacional, 10% Tinta Roriz and 10% Tinto Cão. This was aged in French oak for about 18 months. It comes in at 14.7% alcohol. The price of this tends to be set by the market (although it was around 250 euros with the producer's wine club), list prices having no resemblance to what might happen. I have heard of some retailers hitting 800 euros a bottle, which is frankly ridiculous.

Still, this is very fine. With the late release, this has acquired some maturity and balance. It certainly has a far darker and warmer feel in 2011 than, say, in 2008. But it has a beautiful finish, mature flavors and tannins that balance rather than overwhelm the wine, at least with a little air. It still has a lot of tannic pop, but that is not scary anymore. I also loved the tinges of cherry and chocolate. This is impressive and very serious but hardly perfect. For a big 2011, it is well balanced, but finesse is not its key calling card. If you tasted this 2011 next to the 2008, you might wonder if it is really the same wine. So go vintage styles.

Whether it is worth the money is up to you. Unfortunately, with cult wines, the discussion always winds up there. Most perform well, but it is often hard for them to justify the pricing compared to other wines that also perform well for a lot less money.

Drink date: 2022-2040.

A dense black opaque colour; quite viscous in texture. An amazingly intense and concentrated nose wafts from the glass. Black fruits, dusty wood shavings, some appealing vanillin, white chocolate and all backed by an exuberant and exotic ripeness, depth and complexity. The nose is multi-layered with some tar, liquorice, herbs de Provence, cacao, roasted coffee bean and even some white pepper and a hint of cloves and eucalyptus. Classic aromas of Portuguese grape varietals incorporating raisins, Christmas cake and an attractive waft of ginger. Leather and Cuban tobacco too. On the palate this is big, thick, textured, mouthcoating and structured but the core of ripeness is so compelling that the firm tannins are perfectly offset by the purity and power of the perfectly ripe fruits and velvety suppleness. Tiers of flavours incorporate bags of black cherry, some nutmeg, graphite and all-spice. A wine with such power and structure but somehow remaining, smooth, polished, rounded and light on its feet. What precision and length! It is tempting to drink this now but this wine will age and go on improving for many years to come. Winemaker Luis Sottomayor calls this an “extraordinary year” even in the context of Barca Velha (only 20 vintages declared since 1952) and says it reminds him of the legendary 1954 which apparently is still drinking brilliantly today!

45% Touriga Franca, 35% Touriga Nacional, 10% Tinto Cão, 10% Tinta Roriz. Grapes from the best plots on the Quinta da Leda in the Douro Superior and Quinta do Sairrão. The latter covers 111 ha and sits at 600 m in the Cima Corgo but close to the border with the Douro Superior. Head winemaker Luís Sottomayor describes the 2011 vintage as 'an extraordinary year – one of the best ever in the Douro – intense and exceptional in quality'. A cool and rainy winter replenished water reserves in the soil and sustained the vines through what was a dry growing season. Mild summer temperatures allowed the grapes to undergo slow ripening. Vinified at the Quinta da Leda winery, the grapes were fully destemmed, gently crushed and co-fermented in stainless-steel tanks followed by a lengthy post-fermentation maceration on the skins. Depending on the style of each lot, aged in new wood (60%), some in older oak, over 18 months in the cellar in Vila Nova. The final blend was a barrel selection which was then aged several years in bottle prior to release. In December 2019 Sottomayor decided that this would be a Barca Velha rather than a Reserva Especial. TA 5.4 g/l, RS 0.8 g/l, pH 3.6. 33,000 bottles made. Plus 3,000 magnums which have not yet been released.

Very, very dark, black almost to the smudgy black-cherry rim. Marked eucalyptus character on the nose and black-fruited, blackcurrant pastilles. Balsamic and floral, too. Complex, meshed. Big, firm, self-confident but so fresh. Concentrated, deeply structured but remarkably smooth, with layer upon layer of extremely fine tannins. Beautifully fresh and layered. Long, with clearly fabulous ageing potential. As Luís says, ‘a little bit closed’. With air, it becomes more silky and refined on the palate, though it is still a muscular, confident wine.

Terrific structure, depth of colour and flavour articulate an outstanding year. Great warp and weft of ripe fruit (blackberry, strawberry, plum, dried fig and jam) and signature savoury roast chestnut, smoky clove and leather notes, with hints of bergamot and white flowers. Unerring acidity and impeccably judged iron-filing tannins underpin and fan the flavours. Exceptionally long, retro-nasal finish. Prodigious. 2021-2045