Vintage
2018 started with several rainfall episodes, which built soil water reserves to nourish the vines through the hot summer. At the beginning of August a three day heat wave saw temperatures rise to above 46°C, resulting in grape burn on some of the fruit and delayed ripening. Consequently approximately 25% of the potential production was lost. However, the remaining grapes were healthy and balanced.
Vineyard
Vale da Mata is the name of a small, old vineyard located in the foothills of Serra de Aire, in Cortes. The parcel is just a few hectares and is situated on a steep terrain with rocky soil. The land is extremely hard to work and is cultivated manually, with winter pruning and green harvesting taking place by hand. Protected to the north, it has good sunlight exposure throughout the day and is surrounded by olive trees, fig trees, walnuts and shrubs. Vale de Mata is associated with several sustainable programmes; they are a member of the FSC and grow all their grapes according to organic philosophies. The vines are trained according to the Cordon Royat method and the grapes are manually harvested at optimum maturity.
Winemaking
The wine was made following a philosophy of minimal intervention. The field blend grapes were carefully sorted and then co-fermented using only indigenous yeasts. The blend was then aged in French oak barrels for six months, imparting subtle complexity, followed by a further six months in bottle.
Grape
Arinto 50%, Viosinho 25%, Vital 25%
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