Julia Kemper Red Reserva 2011

The 2011 Reserva red is a blend of Touriga Nacional 50%, Tinta Roriz 25%, Alfrocheiro 15% and Jaen 10%. It was aged for 16 months in new French oak and comes in at 13.9% alcohol. This is another beauty from Kemper, showing the most depth of this issue’s group, the same fine structure and the best fruit, too. Actually, even at this age – it is a late release – it is bursting with flavor and seems only primary. This will likely be released in September 2017. It’s so delicious now, you might want to dive in. It will reward those with patience, though. It easily shows its ability to age. It tightens with air, all the while being gorgeously balanced. Sophisticated and intriguing, if this improves notably with cellaring, it may even be entitled to an uptick. This is a great bargain. Drink date: 2017-2033. (Mark Squires,robertparker.com,Aug. 31, 2017)