Ramos Pinto Vintage 2000

Ramos Pinto Vintage 2000 is made by Casa Ramos Pinto in the Douro Valley, from the native grapes Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, Tinta Roriz and Tinta Barroca grown on the region's steep slate and schist terraces. A vintage port is declared only in the finest years and is made from a single harvest, judged good enough to bottle without blending across years. After picking, the grapes are trodden by foot in traditional stone lagares, a gentle method that extracts deep colour and tannin without crushing the pips. Fermentation is stopped early with grape spirit, fixing rich fruit and sweetness at around 20 percent. The wine spends only a short time in cask before bottling, so it matures slowly in glass over decades, building complexity while throwing a sediment that calls for decanting. The colour is deep, dense ruby moving to garnet with age. The nose is powerful, with ripe red and black fruit and an elegant spicy lift. The palate is dense and concentrated, with firm but well integrated tannins and a long, warming finish. Serve decanted at 16 to 18 degrees. It suits mature cheese, dark chocolate and rich roasts.