Cartuxa Colheita Tinto, Evora

Description

Cartuxa Colheita Tinto is a Portuguese red wine produced in the Evora sub-region of Alentejo, in south-central / southern Portugal. It is bottled as DOC Alentejo-Évora. It is one of the most famous wines of the appellation.

Cartuxa by the Eugénio de Almeida Foundation

Cartuxa Wines are produced by Eugénio de Almeida Foundation. The foundation was created by Vasco Maria Eugénio de Almeida in 1963 to develop important social and cultural organisations across the region, including Évora University, hospitals, social housing and numerous welfare institutions.

Religious Connections

The Cartuxa winery, Monte de Pinheiros, is located at Herdade de Pinheiros It is one of the oldest and most renowned wineries in Portugal. There have been vineyards at the Quinta de Valbom site since 1517, when the Jesuits established the second oldest university in Portugal. In the adjoining site, the Carthusians built the famous Cartuxa Monastery between 1587 and 1598. Eventually, both the Jesuits and Carthusians were expelled from Portugal and their properties were acquired by the government. The Eugénio de Almeida family acquired the estate in 1871 and set about rescuing it from ruin.

Vineyards Across Four Estates

Today the estate consists of 1050 hectares spread across four estates: 650 hectares of which they own and 400 hectares which are on long-term contracts. The vineyards are made up of the Pinheiros, Casito, Álamo de Cima, Álamo da Horta and Quinta de Valbom estates.

The winery produces several brands including EA, Foral de Evora, Cartuxa (including a Colheita Reserva) and the fabled Pêra-Manca. As well as excellent wines, olive oil production is extremely important and there are now some 400 hectares of olive groves producing fine quality extra virgin olive oils.

Cartuxa Colheita Tinto Winemaking

• Blend: Cartuxa Colheita Tinto is a blend of Alicante Bouschet, Aragonez, and Trincadeira.
• Vineyard Source: Sourced from estate vineyards.
• Harvesting: Grapes are carefully picked when judged to be perfectly ripened and taken to the winery.
• Initial Processing: Undergoes de-stalking and gentle crushing.
• Fermentation: Fermented in temperature-controlled steel vats.
• Maceration: Followed by an extended maceration period.
• Maturation: Matured in vats and oak barrels for 12 months.
• Bottle Ageing: Aged in the bottle for 9 months before release.