NOVAL NACIONAL

The 2016 Nacional is a vintage that I have feted previously, though on this occasion it is eclipsed by the 2017. It does not have the same complexity and finesse as the 2017; it's tight and unyielding at the moment having shut its doors since I tasted it four years back. Yet the palate delivers the intensity that you look for, quite saline and spicy on the entry; there's a lovely marine influence at play with a mercurial and vibrant finish. It's not faultless, yet it has plenty of charm. Tasted at the Quinta do Noval tasting at Spring restaurant in London. Drinking range: 2032 - 2075 Rating: 97 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Nov 2022)

This is a tumble of personalities right now, with intense blackberry, plum, fig and boysenberry compote flavors lending a showy feel, while a wave of bramble, tar and dark earth notes impart muscle and heft. Shows a brooding edge, with Turkish coffee and baker’s chocolate details dominating the finish, where formidable grip keeps things grounded and riveted. Got any kids born in 2016? Drinking range: 2035 - 2060 Rating: 99 James Molesworth, The Wine Spectator (Oct 2018)

The 2016 Vintage Port "Nacional" is a field blend, mostly Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, Tinto Cão, Sousão and Tinta Roriz, aged for 18 months in old wood. It comes in at 85 grams of residual sugar and was bottled April 13, 2018. This is plainly more intense than the regular Noval (not unusual), but that's not the most impressive feature. It is more impressive for the lifted fruit than the power. The fruit is carefully defined, precisely carved out of the mid-palate slab. The silky texture gives this a different demeanor than the regular Noval too, while the beautiful fruit has a different flavor profile. It is more red fruits than blue—it has far less Touriga Nacional, said winemaker Carlos Agrellos. It has more bright flavors like raspberries than plums. It adds that tannic pop and wonderful balance too. It is still oddly approachable—if you're a masochist, of course, and for the moment. It will be intriguing to see how this develops. It should close down pretty hard. Then, it will age gracefully for decades. Will it make people forget about that amazing nose on the regular Noval? Time will tell. Drinking range: 2029 - 2075 Rating: 97 Mark Squires, robertparker.com (Jul 2018)

The 2016 Quinta do Noval Naçional Vintage Port comes (of course) from the famous parcel of ungrafted vines. Comparing it side by side, the Naçional does not have the immediacy of the regular Noval. It is darker, more introspective, more complex and beguiling, the black fruit complemented by subtle desiccated orange and marmalade aromas. What strikes first on the palate is the fineness of the tannins. This is utterly harmonious, silky in terms of texture, and extraordinarily cohesive. You don’t know whether to drink this or stroke it. It is an understated Naçional that almost deceives you into thinking that there is not power, but that crashes across the senses in the final third and on the aftertaste. It is a Naçional with a latent effect, its virtues becoming apparent not during but after imbibing. It is a quite profound Port, even though at this juncture you are just reading the first couple of pages of a very long and engrossing novel. Drinking range: 2034 - 2080 Rating: 98+ Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Jun 2018)

According to AXA's wine man Christian Seely, 'Nacional shows you can make a great vintage port from one small 4.5-acre parcel.' Vines are all ungrafted with an average age of 50 years, including almost 20% 65-year-old Tinta Cão. They replace old vines with ungrafted cuttings with a success rate of hardly 50%. This little plot always looks thinner and a different green – less vigorous – apparently, producing fewer bunches and smaller grapes. Yields are tiny and only 170 cases of this were made, in exactly the same way as regular Quinta do Noval. We were lucky to be given a taste of it. Not all that blue; very dark concentrated crimson. Very rich and sweet with the rich, spicy aromas of the biscuits that used to be called gypsy creams. Broad, luscious nose. Rather complex and very dry on the finish. Massive tannins! No attempt to smooth or craft this wine. Very dense and wild. Though fresh on the end with just a suggestion of the heat of spirit. Wild and almost raw at this point. Drinking range: 2045 - 2080 Rating: 18 Jancis Robinson OBE MW - www.JancisRobinson.com (May 2018)

Tiny yields from these legendary ungrafted vines in 2016 with a total production of just 170 cases from this 4.5 acre plot. The average age of the vines is around 50 years old and grapes from these mixed plantings were supplemented by 20% Tinto Cão (approx. 60 years old) from the same Nacional plot: closed and dense initially but showing liquorice-like super ripeness as the wine opened up; dark chocolate intensity on the palate with layer upon layer of ripe, fleshy fruit and broad tannins all the way through to a gripping tannic finish. This is a wonderful wine, as rare as hen’s teeth and a privilege to taste at this stage. Rating: 19.5 Richard Mayson, www.richardmayson.com  (May 2018)

This is austere and tannic with reserve yet polish and finesse that is hard to come by. Blackberries, blueberries and hazelnuts and some fresh currants. Full-bodied, off-dry and extremely polished and focused. Only 175 cases made. Great length. Layers of tannic power. Perfect wine again. Try in 2025. Rating: 100 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (May 2018)