2020 Quinta da Fonte Souto Taifa Branco
Posted: 08:33 Wed 06 Dec 2023
This is the debut vintage of this limited production "ultra" white from the property. Whereas the previous flagship white was about 75% Arinto and about 25% Verdelho, this wine is 100% Arinto aged for 11 months in 100% new Hungarian and French oak barrels and then aged for an additional two years in bottle before being release a short time ago. The nose is deceivingly thick and creamy. The palate, however, couldn't be more different. The searing acidity initially dominates. With several hours of air it subsides a bit and allows the laser focused and complex citrus fruit to come forward. What remained constant throughout about 5 hours of tasting this was the most incredible precision of what is best described as a wet stone/flinty/minerality right down the center of my tongue that lingered for a very long time. Rather unusual, but fantastic, for a Portuguese white. I tasted this over about 5 hours and it was at its best at the end, and still getting better. I found it showed better at a cool, but not cold, temperature and in a Burgundy glass. This is a wine that I have no doubt will age nicely for many years to come and will be better off for it. While a big step up in price from it's brother, which is fantastic in its own right, this white is a big step up in quality as well.
95 points
95 points