2011 Companhia das Lezirias Tyto Alba Tinto

Community Tasting Notes (7) Avg Score: 89 points

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  5/25/2022 - forceberry wrote: 90 Points

  A blend of Touriga Nacional (50%), Alicante Bouschet (30%) and Touriga Franca (20%). Fermented in stainless steel, aged in a combination of American and French oak barrels. 14% alcohol. Tasted blind.
  
  Dense, concentrated and fully opaque blackish-red color with a somewhat youthful purplish hue. The nose feels ripe, dense and quite powerful with intense and quite complex aromas of sweet boysenberry-driven dark berries, licorice root, some herbal notes of minty lift, a little bit of blueberry, light smoky notes of toasted oak, a hint of eucalyptus and a touch of roasted spices. The wine is dense, ripe and quite robust on the palate with a full body and intense flavors of licorice and ripe boysenberries, some leathery notes, a little bit of tobacco, light earthy nuances, juicy hints of sweet plums and bilberries and a touch of minty greenness. The overall taste feels slightly more evolved than the nose, yet still it doesn't show any tertiary qualities yet, instead coming across as rather youthful still. The structure relies on both the moderately high acidity and ripe yet somewhat grippy medium tannins that pile up on the gums. The finish is rich, quite robust and moderately tannic with long, dark-toned and juicy flavors of licorice and ripe dark fruits, some blueberry tones, a little bit of tobacco, light minty green nuances, a hint of toasty wood spice and a perfumed floral nuance typical of Touriga Nacional.
  
  In the past this wine has left me rather unimpressed, coming across as quite modern, polished and often a bit too ripe and soft in character. However, this was my first touch with the 2011 vintage, which seems to have been quite superb throughout the whole length of Portugal! And I guess once again I'm met with the 2011 magic - this wine turned out to be very impressive indeed, showing only slightest evolved signs and having a relatively youthful overall character. Thanks to the age and quite intense fruit character, the toasty oak nuances seem to be surprisingly well-integrated here and the wine doesn't come across as oaky and polished as the subsequent vintages have been. The structure, on the other hand, is still very firm and impressively balanced with the body and the fruit. I was quite impressed by this wine and also very happy I tasted it fully blind, so I didn't get any preconceived perceptions based on my previous experiences with the label. Great stuff that still has lots of upside.

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  4/11/2017 - kistdg wrote: 91 Points

  Deep structured tannins and dark dry fruit. The nose of the Touriga Nacional is unique, whether in a vintage port or in this wine. Plan to open the next bottle in a couple of years as I believe this will continue to develop over the next 5 years.

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  8/22/2015 - Ombibulous wrote:

  Hard to describe, because unique. "Darker," so to speak, in flavour, than expected. It tastes "black," but in a pleasant, flavourful kind of way. Highly unexpected flavour given the high rating. Not conventional flavour. Dry (not sweet) molasses is how I would describe it. Tasted great the second day, with steak, after it had time to breathe. Drink slightly chilled. A food wine. $19.

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  8/2/2015 - Livermore wrote: 86 Points

  Concentrated and full of tannins. The oak lies on top and it bothers me a little. The alcohol is too prominent. Feels very young.

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  6/11/2015 - Ombibulous wrote:

  Rated 93 by one of the professional raters (Wine Spectator, Enthusiast, or Advocate). The name means "barn owl." It's a fairly typical blend of mainly Portuguese varietals: Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, and Alicante Bouschet. The first two are used in port wine. The last originated in France but is now widely planted in Portugal's Tejo region (where this wine is from), formerly called Alentejo.

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