Quinta do Vale Meao 2018, Douro

Description

Quinta do Vale Meao 2018 is one of the very top red wines of the Douro. It is made at the famous Quinta do Vale Meao estate, one of the great wine estates of the Douro, if not the world.

Quinta do Vale Meao  was bought and established by the legendary lady of Port, Dona Antónia Adelaide Ferreira, in the early 19th Century. It has been the stage for many pioneering feats of winemaking and viticulture in the Douro. The estate remains in family hands, with descendant Francisco Xavier Olazabal (Vito), his winemaker son Francisco and daughter Luísa all devoted to the cause. This humorous and relaxed team has, since they started making wine at the quinta in 1999, pushed the boundaries of excellence in Douro reds beyond what was imaginable. The estate and its vineyards are perched on the river’s most dramatic meander, around 70 hectares of vines sweep before your eyes, planted with a host of local varieties including Touriga Franca, Touriga Nacional, Tinta Roriz and Tinta Barroca. A magnificent granite edifice houses the winery. It is remote and extreme in location but of outstanding beauty and the wines reflect this setting.

Quinta do Vale Meao is produced from  from a rigorous selection of grapes produced in the oldest vineyards of the Quinta: Vale Grande, Cabeço das Pulgas, Casa das Máquinas, Três encostas and Poente da Viola. This means the blend is mainly Touriga Nacional and Touriga Franca with some Tinta Barroca, Tinta Roriz, and Tinto Cão. Each grape variety is harvested and vinified separately. After being crushed the grapes are cooled down and trodden by foot during four hours in the granite lagares and then transferred to small stainless steel refrigerated vinifying vats where fermentation takes place for eight days. After the alcoholic fermentation, one part of the wine undergoes malolactic fermentation in barriques. The wine is aged for for 16 to 18 months in French Alliers oak barriques which are 60% new and 40% used.

Quinta do Vale Meao 2018 is a blend of 50% Touriga Nacional, 45% Touriga Franca, 3% Tinta Barroca and 2% Tinta Roriz.