The 2011 Tinto is a blend of 30% Tinta Roriz , 30% Touriga Franca and 40% Touriga Nacional, 50% aged in used barrels for 12 months and coming in at 14.5% alcohol. Rather pure, yet quite rich and viscous in its youth for this basic Tinto, this seems like quite a delicious mouthful, bright, juicy and laced with sweet, young fruit flavor. What I always like best about this rather consistent bottling is its fresh demeanor coupled with fine balance. It won’t ever be the best ager (the Reserva will do better there and eventually separate itself) and there is not a lot of complexity, but it is a very nice entry level that should make a lot of friends in the short to mid-term if you like its exuberant, fruity and fresh style. With air, indeed, it shows it has a bit more structure than first seems apparent, as some tannic pop appears. Drink now-2019. Importer: Grape Moments, a Division of Sintra Imports, New Bedford, MA; tel. (508) 997-0100

The 2010 TINTO is a “big three” blend of Tinta Roriz, Touriga Nacional and Touriga Franca, all aged for 12 months in a 50/50 blend of stainless steel and oak (the latter half of which is a mixture of French and American). This is a pretty nice performance in this vintage. Juicy and bright, if not terribly concentrated, this has well integrated tannins and a sunny feel. Although, as noted, it is not the most concentrated wine, it does retain a certain solidity as it airs out, not thinning more and demonstrating some persistence on the finish. It seems to show more finesse and a little more gravitas with air, with some steel underneath, a certain “fresh” feel. Its charm and persistent delivery of fruit to the palate make it quite easy to like. Drink now-2018. Importer: Grape Moments, a Division of Sintra Imports, New Bedford, MA; tel. (508) 997-0100.

The 2008 TINTO, under Carm’s own branding from the Douro Superior, is often a nice value point in the Douro and this certainly delivers this year again. A blend of Tinta Roriz, Touriga Nacional and Touriga Franca, this regular Tinto is quite lovely this year, flavorful, but beautifully structured and quite intense, a very worthy competitor to the ‘07. A touch light in the mid-palate, it is nonetheless pure and delicious, with touches of strawberry and rhubarb, while seeming very serious and intense for its price range. Its sibling reviewed this issue, the ’08 Coa regular Tinto, is also nice, but I’d give the edge to this, which responded better and thinned less after about 2 hours of aeration. Drink now-2019. As previously indicated, note that I’ve dropped the parenthetical clarification I previously used for CARM’S producer name (explaining that CARM means Casa Agricola Roboredo Madeira). The “Roboredo Madeira” is clear enough on most of the labels now anyway.Importer: Grape Moments, a Division of Sintra Imports, New Bedford, MA; tel. (508) 997-0100.

The 2007 TINTO is a blend of Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca and Tinta Roriz. Stern and rather brooding for its price range, denser than the Quinta do Coa reviewed this issue, it surprisingly powerful and gripping. There is a hint of rhubarb, a note to the flavor profile that I’ve been seeing a lot of lately. Assuming that’s to your taste, this is an impressive performance by the regular Tinto, and is probably the best bang for the buck in this lineup. Drink now-2017. CARM is one of the Douro’s under-the-radar producers, which is unfortunate since they always provide some bang for the buck. The ‘07s are nice examples of that. Note that I’ve dropped the parenthetical clarification I previously used for CARM’S producer name (explaining that CARM means Casa Agricola Roboredo Madeira). The “Roboredo Madeira” is clear enough on most of the labels anyway.Importer: Grape Moments, a Division of Sintra Imports, New Bedford, MA; tel. (508) 997-0100.