2018 Ramos Pinto

The 2018 Vintage Port Quinta do Bom Retiro is a blend of Touriga Nacional (53%), Sousão (10%), Touriga Franca (29%) and very old vines (90 years or so) for the rest. Tinta Barroca was not included this year. This was aged in a large, well-used French vat (7,500 liters) for 18 months and comes in at just 85 grams per liter of residual sugar. Jorge Rosas always says that for Ramos Pinto "a single-quinta Vintage Port does not mean that the wine is better or worse than the 'general' Ramos Pinto vintage, they simply have different styles and identities." This announces its presence by dramatic color and pungent aromatics with notable cistus nuances. The structure is impressive on opening, making this tight, tense and powerful. It's rather accessible, though, the next day. The mid-palate concentration seemed average at best on opening, but it did evolve a bit as time went on, particularly when tasted the next day. As this ages—and it needs some aging—it will be interesting to see if the fruit and mid-palate keep up with the power. It certainly has some notable potential, and it was in very good balance when tasted the next day. So, I think the answer will be a clear "yes." Overall, it has a suave, refined and sophisticated demeanor. There were 750 cases produced.