The 1994 Duas Quintas is part of our vertical. This is a blend of Touriga Francesa (45%), Tinta Roriz (40%) and Touriga Nacional (15%); about 20% of the juice was aged in 225-liter Portuguese oak casks (two- to three-years-old) for six months. It comes in at 12.5% alcohol. This is remarkably fresh for the regular Tinto at this age and surprisingly full in the mouth, too. Beautifully structured, it still has quite a bit of tannic bite, too. This was an era when the wines were a bit more rustic and Port-y, but they are impressive nonetheless and I sometimes like this style better. Now, to be sure, there are plenty of tertiary nuances and pretty much no primary fruit. But the chocolate and earth meld together well and the wine's lively, crisp and vibrant structure serves it in good stead. You will have to like wines on the more mature side with a little of that forest floor and weedy aspect, but if you do, this is simply wonderful. And it has more life left than seems apparent on first taste. It was better and more harmonious some 60 minutes (in the glass), later after the bottle had been open for an hour. If you're wondering, the Reserva in this vintage adds a little more flesh and cream and it is just a bit fresher, but they seem like variations on a theme. At this point, finally, it's hard to predict an end date. Every time I think I know where these are going, they fool me again. But I doubt it can improve more even if it holds, so drink up. Let's exercise some caution and take it stages.
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