Abandonado 2011 rood

he 2011 Abandonado is an old-vines field blend aged for 18 months in 100% new oak (60% French, 40% Portuguese). It comes in at 15% alcohol. This was released in February 2015. Tiago Alves de Sousa said via email: "For me, it's the most elegant and complete Abandonado ever...it will benefit a lot with more time in the bottle. It's a wonderful year in a very special vineyard, so basically great ingredients for something really special." The oak is very prominent just now, making the wine unusually perfumed on opening as a result of its oaky nuances. That will subside in time. Indeed, it was exceptional the next morning and the oak was no longer troublesome. It didn't begin to show well until after being open for a couple of hours on Day 2. This manages to be vaguely approachable–really, it should have five years in the cellar to show its best–yet it proves that it has a backbone, too, and it tightens with aeration. Impeccably balanced, it has caressing texture and fine flavor on the finish, which is quite dry and complex but not austere. It becomes more expressive with air. Always elegant and never jammy, it never seems thin, either. It fleshed out in the glass the next day, becoming a fairly typical 2011: elegance in the mid-palate, but subtle concentration; seeming dense, yet still remarkably graceful. It was also far more complex at that point, showing nuances of tar and beef. It is a lovely performance, combining finesse with flavor and harmony. This is never bombastic. It simply demands to be taken seriously. Note that not all importers import everything. In particular, the Vale da Raposa line is brought in by the Artisan Collection, the others by M Imports. Vinum and The Artisan Collection bring in Ports as well.