2004 Batuta Tinto

The 2004 “Batuta” (Batuta means “conductor’s baton” in Portuguese) is aged for 20 months in French oak, and sourced from very old vines. The principal source of grapes is Quinta do Carril, a 70-year-old vineyard. In addition, grapes are sourced from older vines exceeding one hundred years in age. The first vintage of this bottling was 1999. Concentrated, intense, focused, impeccably balanced and beautifully structured, this beauty delivers on all fronts. To my mind, it is a much more complete, complex and successful wine than its Redoma sibling. The sweet mid-palate is obviously young and primary. The tannins are ripe, but clearly provide support for aging, and obvious intensity. The mid-palate remains elegant, but the sweet fruit shines through. This is elegant in the best sense of the word. I think this wine will be approachable fairly young, but its exceptional performance the next day suggests that it has the ability to age gracefully, too. In fact, it really did not show its stuff until Day #2. I think this is potentially one of the most complex wines I tasted in Portugal, and I hope its evolution in the cellar proves that conclusion to be true. Drink 2008-2021. Dirk Niepoort is the principal of this familiar, family-owned Port house. However, dry wines are hardly a sideshow for Niepoort, and he has become one of the region’s driving forces in establishing the table wine industry. His dry wines date back to circa 1990, which seems to be a very long time ago considering how many new wines, wineries and winemakers have emerged in the Douro in the last decade or so. It occurred to me that if the Douro has a Robert Mondavi, a relative pioneer who seems as interested in pushing the brand as himself, it is probably Dirk Niepoort. One ironic thought also occurred to me. While the winery is justly considered a quality house for reds and a driving force in the dry, red revolution, it ultimately may become most famous for another reason: Niepoort is perhaps without equal for whites. Importer: Eric Solomon, Charlotte, NC; tel. (704) 358-1565; Martine’s Wines, Inc.; tel: (800) 344-1801