a review of Terrus, from Sarah Ahmed, The Wine Detective

Terrus 2005 – the first vintage of this young vine but co-fermented (because the quantities are so small) blend of Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca and Sousao with 5% Cabernet Sauv, 5% Syrah. Aged in 100% new oak simply because it was the first year and everything was new, it sports a cedary, spicy, slightly gamey nose. A succulent palate shows juicy blackberry and blackcurrant on the attack, joined by red fruits on the mid-palate and minerals on the finish. [...] An impressive debut. A winery to watch.

Terrus 2007 – a deeper colour with lovely freshness to the nose, again blackcurrant very much to the fore. Very juicy in the mouth with firm but fine, polished tannins. Again, very promising.

Terrus 2008 – Touriga Franca matured very late in this vintage so it didn’t make the cut in 2008. A really classic mineral-sluiced, fresh and lifted 2008. It shows floral/white pepper notes to its predominantly red fruits, shot with minerals. Very bright, fresh, mineral and pure. Very good.

Sarah Ahmed, The Wine Detective, July 2010

The rest of the article, including reviews of other Douro4U wines, can be found here.

Passar ao lado

"Terrus 05 - complexidade aromática, acidez incrível, potência de boca, final muito longo, grande harmonia. Enologia do Francisco Montenegro. Um dos grandes vinhos produzidos no Douro em 2005 e um dos meus preferidos. Tem mais 10 anos pela frente. Surpreendentemente passou ao lado da crítica. Estavam distraídos? Nota 18,5 (noutra 18,5/17,5)."

Enófilo Militante, blog, Francisco M. Barão da Cunha, Abril 2011

A poem by CZESLAW MILOSZ, translated by Robert Hass

Late Ripeness

Not soon, as late as the approach of my ninetieth year,

I felt a door opening in me and I entered

the clarity of early morning.

One after another my former lives were departing,

like ships, together with their sorrow.

And the countries, cities, gardens, the bays of seas

assigned to my brush came closer,

ready now to be described better than they were before.

I was not separated from people,

grief and pity joined us.

We forget - I kept saying – that we are all children of the King.

For where we come from there is no division

into Yes and No, into is, was, and will be.

We were miserable, we used no more than a hundredth part

of the gift we received for our long journey.

Moments from yesterday and from centuries ago –

a sword blow, the painting of eyelashes before a mirror

of polished metal, a lethal musket shot, a caravel

staving its hull against a reef – they dwell in us,

waiting for a fulfillment.

I knew, always, that I would be a worker in the vineyard,

as are all men and women living at the same time,

whether they are aware of it or not.

From New and Collected Poems 1931-2001 by Czeslaw Milosz (Penguin)