Joao's Vale Vineyard

Finally! We were, since last year, anxious to vinify these grapes seperatly. This small spot at Soutelo in the Cima Corgo area of the Douro Valley, catched our eyes instantly when we first saw it. Last year unfortunately we couldn't do it seperatly and this year we bougth a small open top to do what we think can be a massive expression of Terroir.

This vineyard owned by one of our producers, Joao, was planted around 70 years ago. In those times producers used a mixture of grape varieties. This is what gives these old vineyard so much charater because in the same plot you have different berries maturations. Meaning that some of the vines maturate first than the vine next to it.

So in the end you have a very rich and complex kind of aromas and tastes. This is why these wines must age some years before they are ready to show all of its wonders.

Douro Superior - Foz Côa Vineyard

It is impressive how the harvest develops in this land. Our first red grapes came in the winery last week. This vineyard is at the entrance of Foz Côa in Douro Superior area. It has about 60 years of age and is a mixture of varieties.

It is one of the vineyards we blend into our Super Premium range. At this part of Douro the grapes easily give powerful and structured wines. We selected this one because apart from its power it adds complexity to the blend. The enormous mixtures of grape varieties (some of then are not even used nowadays) brings the wine from this origin to a level of fusion of vegetal and fruit aromas, like rock rose mingled in with spices an dark berries.

This year the must is showing so much fruit. The color is being very difficult to come out. 2009 is giving some fight to bring out the color (more time is needed comparing with last year) but the fruit is coming so easily.

That' why we love to be winemakers! You'll never know what you gone get...

>100 Years old vines

Impressive how vines survive generations. One of our wines is result from the vinification of grapes grown in a plot, surrounded by 3 floors buildings, in Padilha, Almeirim - Tejo region (formerly known as Ribatejo region).

This vineyard cacthed our eyes instantly! Cincinato da Costa wrote in 1900 (et al Portugal Vinicola) that the best sites for Fernão Pires are soils in the transition from "Campo" to "Charneca" where it is found very deep soils. When the surrounding buildings where elevated there were found vine roots at 7 meters. It seems we had found the perfect site for this variety.

2008 vintage is our first wine from this plot. We vinified from this vineyard 5 barrels. The alcoholic fermentation was done in french oak barrels (3rd use) and it aged for 12 months there. This Friday we bottled it.

This sites and vineyards have so much to teach and we are willing to learn. The harvest of the 2009 was on the 11th of August. 13 days earlier than than last year. The fresh 2009 Summer in Portugal helped the vines have a steady maturation. The Tejo region can reach at this time of year temperatures over 40ºC. Without these hot temperatures the vines never stop maturation causing one of the most balanced growning seasons at the Tejo Valley.

Also impressive are the huge troncs of these plants and their height reaching 2 meters without any trelessing system.