L.A.S Vino Pirate Blend 2023

Stuart McCloskey, tasted 16 October 2026 “Good heavens, this really shoulders its way into the room. I poured my sample into a Zalto Burgundy stem and left it alone for an hour, which, as it turns out, was an hour very well spent. The aromatics are wonderfully festive, almost intoxicating in their complexity. Imagine plump maraschino cherries gently poached in a sweet, spiced syrup, infused with freshly pared orange zest, star anise, cloves and fragrant cinnamon bark. There is a glorious warmth to the bouquet, with layers of black plum, macerated cherries, dark chocolate and exotic spice unfolding with every swirl. A suggestion of dried orange peel, polished wood and something faintly earthy adds another dimension. It smells like Christmas in the most sophisticated sense. Make no mistake, this is a super-punchy, gloriously extravagant bouquet that could quite easily knock Granny off her chair.

The palate is equally commanding. Rich, deeply concentrated and generously proportioned, with an almost liqueur-like intensity to the dark cherry and plum fruit, yet there is nothing heavy-handed about the delivery. The wine possesses tremendous breadth through the mid-palate, its densely woven tannins providing a firm, muscular framework beneath the luxurious fruit. This is where the Portuguese varieties really assert themselves. There is grip, authority and a wonderfully savoury, almost ferrous quality that offsets the sweeter spice notes. A vibrant thread of acidity cuts through the richness, introducing freshness and remarkable definition. The finish is extraordinarily long, warming and persistent, leaving echoes of spiced cherries, orange oils, bitter chocolate and fragrant wood spice. And then there is the texture. Wonderfully tactile, almost velvety in places, yet underpinned by that unmistakable structural firmness. This interplay between richness, texture and precision is the hallmark of Nic's winemaking, and it is displayed here to magnificent effect.

For all its exuberance, this is a remarkably composed wine. Broad-shouldered, deeply flavoured and unapologetically expressive, yet held together by impressive structural discipline. There is something rather brilliant about a wine that can be so flamboyant on the nose, so generous on the palate and still retain such clarity and purpose. It is difficult not to be seduced by the sheer generosity of the thing. I would happily drink this now, although the concentration, acidity and formidable tannic structure suggest there is plenty more to come with patience. A little piracy, it turns out, can be a very good thing.” 

Ray Jordan, W.A. Wine Review "I was fascinated to see what Peterkin would do with this blend of Portuguese varieties — touriga nacional, tinta cão, and sousão, from the 2023 vintage. To say I was not disappointed is an understatement. It is a brilliant wine loaded with rich, vibrant fruit, displaying slightly spicy plummy notes and dark chocolate richness. There’s energy and life coursing through it, and that silky-soft, satiny finish is quite exquisite. I don’t think I could keep my hands off this wine. It’s screaming out to be drunk now, but you could certainly leave it if you wished."

Variety: 66.6% Touriga Nacional 26.6% Tinta Cao 6.9% Souzao