Luis Pato Quinta Do Ribeirinho Branco 2021

The 2021 Quinta do Ribeirinho is a Sercialinho aged for six months in third-use chestnut barrels. It comes in at 12.2% alcohol and was fermented with free-run juice. Sercialinho is a cross of Alvarinho and Madeira&s Sercial. The winery&s plantings date back to the mid-&60s. Big in power and full-bodied in mouthfeel, this has plenty of intensity and an acidic core. It grabs the palate and lingers on the finish, the acidity cutting through the whole, but this is never shrill, just stern and tense. It will continue to develop, and it probably needs some development, even if it is nicely balanced for drinking now. Pato says it is also capable of aging for some two decades. It just might well be. This hasn&t been around long, and I like to be careful, so let&s start here, but that may be just a starting point indeed.