A Day in the Duoro
Duoro Valley, Portugal
Tasted Sunday, June 2, 2024 by KeithAkers with 76 views
Introduction
I hired ML tours for this and Miguel had one day available, so I happily took him up on it to make 2 great visits and just experience the Valley on the whole. So, we focused on two top places that make dry wines (as that was my focus) with two different perspectives. One of them an up and comer that breaks the rules and is small while the other an old house that used to make a lot of Port but has more moved into dry wine production.
Flight 1 - Visit with Macanita (10 Notes)
Flight 2 - Visit to Quinta Nova (7 Notes)
Closing
This was a truly wonderful experience and one that I will keep with me forever. The Duoro is a truly special place and I certainly want to come back and explore even more as it is just that dramatic and beautiful.
2022 António Maçanita Touriga Nacional Douro Rosé 88 Points
Portugal, Douro
The nose is fresh and lively with red berries, melon, peaches, strawberries, lemon peel, and some pears. The Medium bodied feel is fresh and balanced with crisp, medium+ acidity. This is a fun and lively Rose that is perfect for drinking right now.
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2022 António Maçanita Folgasão Douro Branco 90 Points
Portugal, Douro
The nose is straight forward and balanced with pears, red apples, kumqaut, vanilla bean, stone fruit, and some jasmine. This is a fun nose, but it lacks a slight bit of depth. The Medium bodied feel is fresh and balanced with racy, high acidity. This is well balanced and fun with a real crispness to the nose and feel.
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2018 António Maçanita Quanto + ARINTO + gosto de ti 91 Points
Portugal, Douro
The nose is complex and intriguing with tones of custard, Meyer lemon, red apples, kumquat, honeydew melons, lanolin, spiced pears, and yellow flowers. There is good depth with it showing off some good complexity to the fruit. The Full bodied feel is balanced with razor sharp, high acid. This shows off some great texture. This is well balanced and aromatic while showing off acidity that cuts really sharply.
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2022 António Maçanita Douro As Olgas Branco 92 Points
Portugal, Douro
The nose is complex and balanced with vanilla beans, smoke, Bosc pear, nectarines, red apples, yellow flowers, and some mineral notes. The Full bodied feel shows off loads of texture and balance with tart, medium+ acidity. This is a really cool Duoro Branco as it plays into the yellow fruits along with loads of other secondary flavors.
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2019 António Maçanita Douro Pala Pinta 93 Points
Portugal, Douro
There is a ton going on here as the nose opens up beautifully with apples, Golden Grahams, nectarines, a touch of oxidative notes, yellow flowers, kumquat, toast, and spiced pears. The Full bodied feel has some quiet power behind it with racy, high acidity. This is a ton of fun to drink as it presents a beautiful dualitiy between freshness and something oxidative.
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2019 António Maçanita Douro Letra A 92 Points
Portugal, Douro
This kicks off the reds. The nose is richer and showing off intensity with notes of jam, blueberry compote, licorice, black cherries, raspberries, crushed rocks, violets, incense, and currants. The Full bodied feel is larger scaled yet balanced with silky, high tannins and crisp, medium+ acidity. The structure is clearly youthful and the fruit is vibrant. This could benefit from a few more years of aging but is really delicious right now.
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2021 António Maçanita Douro As Olgas Tinto Letra F 91 Points
Portugal, Douro
This is coming from higher altitude vineyards that aren't normally used for Port, but can make some interesting dry reds. And it shows here with fresh picked Berries, crushed rocks, violets, roses, strawberries, red cherries, and herbs. The nose is high-toned with good fruit and some lovely tension. The Medium bodied feel is well balanced and deft with crisp, m+ acid silky, medium tannins. This is yet another delicious wine from Macanita and for me, it shows what makes them so good. They take these terroirs that were ignored for Port production and turn it around into something really damned good for dry wine.
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2021 António Maçanita Douro Os Canivéis 91 Points
Portugal, Douro
The nose is heady and fresh with crushed rocks, fresh picked berries, red cherries, rose petals, Leather, raspberry, and camphor notes. There is good depth with an open-knit style to the nose. The Medium bodied feel is fresh and balanced with crisp, medium+ acidity and silky, medium tannins. This is a really pretty wine that leans more into elegance and perfume rather than brute force and I'm here for it.
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2022 António Maçanita Douro Cima Corgo 92 Points
Portugal, Douro
There is good intensity and understated power with black cherries, black raspberries, violets, crushed rocks, licorice, fresh liqueur, currants, and cranberries. The Full bodied feel is plush and polished with crisp, medium+ acidity and silky, high tannins. I love having this within the whole lineup of reds. It shows off the range of terroirs they work with and the different expressions of each. Some show more intense, while others (like this) show more plush, and we get wines with more tension from higher altitudes. It's such a great study in what makes the Duoro so special.
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2022 António Maçanita A Laranja do Norte 91 Points
Portugal, Douro
The nose is fragrant with tones of peaches, lychee, orange peels, nectarines, apricots, a touch of musk, yellow flowers, and meyer lemons. The skin contact adds a bit of extra complexity that doesn't exist in their regular whites, but it doesn't go too hard into the Orange Wine tropes that can sometimes happen. The Medium+ bodied feel shows off a good bit of texture while possessing a long almond paste finish with crisp, high acidity. This is a really good finish to a great and deeply informative tasting. I love what Macanita is doing and what an introduction!
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