Curral Teles Mu 2021

Curral Teles is the experimental project of Mateus Nicolau de Almeida and Teresa Ameztoy in the DOC Douro, the steep, terraced river valley of northern Portugal. Mu, named for the Greek letter, is their changing wine, reworked each vintage rather than repeated, drawn from a field blend of indigenous Douro red varieties grown together in old vineyards. The defining feature of the Douro is schist, the layered, heat retaining rock that the vines penetrate with deep roots to reach water in a hot, dry climate, and which lends the wines their characteristic mineral, stony savour. The old vine field blend, picked and fermented together, gives complexity from the mix of varieties and the low yields of mature plants. The wine ages for eighteen months in Austrian oak barrels, a slow maturation that firms the structure and adds a fine spice frame while letting the schist character through. It is elegant and savoury, with red berries, plum, cracked pepper and a smoky, earthy, mineral finish. Serve at 16 to 17 degrees and decant young bottles. It suits roasts, game and earthy dishes.