Natalia Jessa’s first career was wine buying for Tesco in England. When she moved to Portugal, she saw an opportunity to help small organic farmers throughout the country to get their wines to market. This appealing Dão Tinto is one result of her efforts, a remarkable wine for a very fair price. Farmed organically towards the bottom of the wide and warm Dão valley, this vineyard would be too hot to produce compelling wines without the daily Atlantic winds that filter through the region to restrain the summertime heat. The wine is a blend of Jaen – the Portuguese name for Mencia – with small proportions of Tinta Roriz, Alfrocheiro, and other more obscure grapes. Hand harvested and aged in a mix of cement and neutral oak, this is a sumptuously rich, fruit forward, and surprisingly complex wine. The aromas start with blackberry pie, blueberries, currants, vanilla bean, burnt orange peel, and cracked pepper. The palate is full and juicy, again with black fruits, blueberries, black pepper and cinnamon, before the finish comes with a burst of blackberries and granite soil. Serve with smoked meats fresh off the barbecue and dirty rice dishes of Portuguese origin.