Niepoort Vintage 2019

Niepoort Vintage 2019 is made by Niepoort, a Douro port house founded in 1842 and now run by Dirk Niepoort, the fifth generation of the family. It is a blend of Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, Sousão, Tinta Roriz, Tinta Amarela and other native varieties, drawn from vineyards that include parcels of more than a hundred years. The fruit grows on schist soils in the warm, dry upper Douro, where the heat-retaining rock and old, low-yielding vines concentrate colour, tannin and aromatic depth. Fermentation is stopped by fortification at 19.5% alcohol to retain sweetness, and a Vintage port is bottled after only a short time in cask so that it matures slowly in glass over decades, building complexity reductively rather than through wood oxidation. The wine is deep and dense in colour. The nose is fresh and primary, showing dark berry fruit, plum and a contained spice and floral lift. The palate is concentrated and firmly structured, with peppery, liquorice-edged fruit and grippy tannin that needs time. Decant and serve at 16 to 18C.