The 2007 RESERVA, a blend of Tinta Roriz, Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca and Tinta Barroca, was aged in oak for just 12 months, but at this point in its life at least, it shows little but the sweet nuances and aromatics deriving from oak. Rather modestly concentrated in the mid-palate, but on the sexy side, this straightforward tinto does have some graceful charm, elegance and good structure that will win it some fans as it is fun to drink. The oak should and needs to integrate a bit better with a little time. Drink now-2016. This winery as yet has no importer in the USA. Its winemaker is Rui Cunha.

The 2006 RESERVA supplies much of what is missing in the regular Tinto reviewed here, and is well worth the extra few dollars it will cost retail. It has more flavor, depth and focus and is more seriously structured. It is still on the light and easygoing side and it is modestly scaled. It is, however, rather delicious, with exuberant aromatics. It makes the wine attractive and a lot of fun, even while acknowledging its lack of mid-palate concentration. It is a good effort for a modestly priced wine in this difficult vintage. The winery likes to feature what it calls “trendy” grapes on the Reserva (a blend of Tinta Roriz , Tinta Barroca and Touriga Franca) while using a broader field blend on the winery’s Alem Tanha offerings. There were 20,000 cases produced. Drink now-2014. The Nunes de Matos family, trading as Quinta Dos Avidagos, owns four old Quintas, including Alem Tanha and Avidagos. Avidagos has an average vine age of 25 years. The old vines bottlings from Quinta do Alem Tanha are from vines averaging 65 years. The wines are generally typical Douro blends.There is no USA importer for these wines.