Community Tasting Note
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mjwstickings Likes this wine: 88 points
October 29, 2016 - It's always nice when you find a more value-oriented wine from a famed producer whose wines are generally rather expensive, and this is certainly that, a high-value ($19 in Ontario) blend of three indigenous Portuguese varietals (Touriga Nacional, Jaen, and Alfrocheiro) from Niepoort, most famous for its ports and Douro wines (Niepoort, led by Dirk, is one of the so-called "Douro Boys," a group of five wineries that has sought to elevate dry Douro wine to the level of the more reputed ports of the region). The Rótulo is from Dão, reflecting Niepoort's expansion to other regions in Portugal, and the 2013 is just the second vintage. And while it's not great wine, to be sure, it nonetheless offers a marriage of the rustic and the elegant that points to the loftier possibilities of dry Portuguese wine, with well-integrated notes of blackberry, raspberry, dark cherry, black pepper, pomegranate, earth / forest floor, crushed-rock minerality, and balsamic vinegar (and there is a slight acetic note that detracts from the aromatic complexity). It's also surprisingly juicy at first but then thins out on the palate and turns somewhat severe, driven by ample acidity and a dry, mildly tannic finish, both of which suggest a need for additional aging (it was aged for 22 months in cement vats and so has no distracting oak). Solidly in the 88-89 range, this is certainly great value but also fine quality in its own right.
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2 Comments
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macaujames commented:
11/13/16, 1:10 AM - I like the sheer medium bodiedness and linearity of this wine. Good tasting note. Would you buy this again?
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mjwstickings commented:
11/13/16, 6:08 PM - Thanks. And yes, absolutely, I'd buy it again. There's just such great value in Portugal, and this really shows complexity and elegance well above the norm. It may be "entry-level" Niepoort, but that makes it all the more appealing.