Claudia’s Reserve White

This wood-aged wine is soft, with touches of spice and plenty of acidity. The wine is rounded and will soften and fill out with rich white fruits. It will be ready from 2023.

The 2021 Claudia’s Branco Reserve is a blend of Gouveio (52%), Viosinho (25%), Códega (18%) and Folgasão for the rest, all aged for eight months in one-third new French and Hungarian oak. It comes in at 12.9% alcohol. This handles its oak flawlessly, which means that the fruit shines through and the freshness takes control. There’s a juicy and tasty finish with just a little acidic bite. I’m not sure this will evolve much if you age it, but it might hold on and become more interesting over the next couple of years. There’s not a lot of concentration, but the rest is very fine. Drink this on its own or with lighter foods.