Prats & Symington Chryseia, Douro, Portugal

普拉茨酒莊黃金紅葡萄酒

點擊次數(shù)：22118

The 2019 Chryseia is a 75/25 blend of Touriga Nacional and Touriga Franca aged for 14 months in mostly (94%) new French oak. It comes in at 14.5% alcohol. The new wood certainly changes the profile here, as compared to its siblings in this report, but that's hardly the first thing you'll notice. More importantly, this shows superb depth, sensual texture, fine structure, a long finish and much more ability to age. This is a beautiful Chryseia, and it is not done improving yet. A polished wine, it can be drunk now, but you'll benefit if you give this a few years in the cellar. This should last 20 to 25 years from the vintage date, maybe more, so there is no rush.

The 2017 Chryseia is a 75/25 blend of Touriga Nacional and Touriga Franca aged for 16 months in mostly (80%) new French oak. It comes in at 14.1% alcohol. From a big vintage, this shows intense fruit, but the calling card here will be its finesse and focus. It is a beautifully crafted wine. Very precise, this has a long and tight finish. The aromatic fruit is in need of some development, and this really needs cellaring for a couple of years. With aeration, it does become more expressive, but this is not ready, even though the tannins are not really hard. The fruit needs to develop more than the tannins need to moderate. This looks like a potentially great Chryseia, but it is not showing all it has today. It is certainly the most refined of the Symington/P&S wines this issue, with a very Old World feel to it, if you'll pardon the stereotype. It showed beautifully the next day as well. At that point, the fruit demonstrated how concentrated it really is. The only remaining question is how well it does in the cellar. I'm betting that it does well.

The 2016 Chryseia is a 60/40 blend of Touriga Nacional and Touriga Franca aged for 15 months in mostly (80%) new French oak. It comes in at 14% alcohol. This adds concentration, finesse and intensity to the Post Scriptum this issue, but it is most impressive for its pure essence of fruit. It doesn't seem jammy in terms of concentration, but as you let it sit on your palate, it sure does show off its intense fruitiness. There are no holes in the mid-palate as it finishes. This doesn't seem to me as lifted and as fresh as the 2015, but the concentration level may exceed it. The next question is always the hardest one: Will it turn into really more special as it ages? There, I have some doubts. Let's start here and be a little conservative. It may overtake the 2015 in time—and then again, it may not. It is more or less drinkable now but giving it a bit longer wouldn't hurt.

The 2015 Chryseia is a 65/35 blend of Touriga Nacional and Touriga Franca aged for 15 months in mostly (80%) new French oak. It comes in at 14.2% alcohol. When last seen, this was not long in bottle, so let's check in. What does this add to the Post Scriptum? Concentration, expressive fruit and structure. The tannins are very ripe, but the concentration of fruit here makes this impressive. It tastes great and the finish is long. Then, it adds refinement, mid-palate finesse and an elegant, fresh feel. This is surprisingly approachable right now, but I anticipate that it will age well for another decade—or two.