Tapada de Coelheiros Branco 2017

The 2015 Tapada de Coelheiros is a 60/40 blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Alicante Bouschet, aged for 18 months in French oak of varying sizes. It comes in at 14.5% alcohol. This has fine depth, moderately ripe tannins and the lift to the fruit that the regular Colheita lacked—of course, they are neither the same level nor the same vintage. Dry, reasonably concentrated and serious, this is still approachable. It does lack in personality—you get two powerful grapes that tend to need time to open up as the blend, and it is not like Alentejo is really a star for Cabernet. It has no green, but it is hard to find the red fruits too. That said, this may just need a little more time to become more expressive. I think this will be fine if you give it a couple of years or some air. It is worth leaning up on it for the moment. - Mark Squires.