The 2007 Duas Quintas Reserva was not part of the tasting at Ramos Pinto's lodge this summer—it was just pulled from the cellar. Remember in the producer introductory note that I was talking about how effortlessly these age? As has happened so many times, I start out conservative in rating these when they are young. Time makes it so much better. It has frequently made a fool out of me. It is a blend of Touriga Nacional (70%) with Touriga Franca (25%) and a dollop of Tinta Barroca filling out the rest. The oak I complained about early on is pretty much gone. The wine has fleshed out, become purer and shows gorgeous fruit at the moment. Sexy, delicious and balanced, it also has freshness that wasn't so easy to see in its oaky days. The tannins provide a bit of tightness still, but not much. In short, the one-dimensional demeanor is gone and replaced by nuance. This is pretty fine now. It has a long life ahead, much longer than originally anticipated now that I can better see what it has. This is a library wine. The price is merely the original release price as a "suggested retail" price.

A blend of fruit from two Ramos-Pinto quintas, this is a sleek, elegant wine, the fruit density finely masked by the firm tannins and the bright acidity. It’s a wine worth aging for two to three years.——R.V.(12/15/2009)—— 91