2018 Quinta da Pellada

The 2018 Tinto (Quinta da Pellada), the estate flagship with Quinta da Pellada on the label, is a field blend (over 40 grapes) from old vines. It is principally, for identified grapes, Alvarelhão, Tinta Pinheira and Tinta Amarela. Plus, since 1991, Castro uses some Jaen and Touriga Nacional. It was aged for 24 months in well-used French barriques (five to seven years old) and comes in at 13.3% alcohol. Pellada is normally a blend of fruit from several different blocks (in years where individual blocks are produced, like 2017, there won't usually be a Pellada blend of blocks). This year, it includes Block (Mata) and Block 2 (Casa). Casa has "more compact soil with some clay besides the granite, the intense presence of rose/white quartz . . . and more sun hours per day. Mata . . . has less clay and more granitic sand," says the winery. Darker flavored than either the 2019 Alto or Casa in this report, this leans more to plums and blackberries. This is nicely done, firm on the finish but never astringent, and it's full of flavor. It lingers for a long time. This is an accessible estate wine, but it can certainly age, maybe more than indicated.