Barros Colheita Port 2005
£37.95
The wine
Bright brown with reddish hints. A complex nose characterised by wood notes wonderfully blended with aromas of spice, dried fruits and delicate hints of fruit jam. Well structured with good balance and firm, round tannins on an intense and velvety palate, with delightful persistence.
Colheita is a tawny from a single declared year rather than a blend, aged in cask for a minimum of seven years and usually far longer. Barros are the acknowledged masters of the style and hold one of the deepest reserves of old Colheita in the Douro, keeping the wines in wood well beyond what the rules require.
The producer
Barros
View all Barros winesBarros was founded in 1913 by Manoel de Almeida and José Barros, and celebrated its centenary a little over a decade ago. It sits among the most prestigious of the Port houses, and its reputation rests on one style in particular.
Colheita is Port from a single declared year, aged in cask rather than bottle for a minimum of seven years and frequently for far longer. It is the most demanding of the tawny styles, because a single vintage must carry the wine alone through decades of slow oxidation without the safety net of blending. Barros keep theirs in wood well beyond the legal minimum, and the house holds one of the deepest reserves of old Colheita in the Douro.
The lodges are at Vila Nova de Gaia, across the river from Porto, where Port has been aged since the eighteenth century because the cool damp air off the Atlantic suits long cask maturation far better than the fierce heat of the Douro valley itself. Ruby, White, LBV, Vintage and both tawny ages complete the range.
