portfolio ➜ origin
Portugal
Categories: White Wine, Red Wine, Carcavelos, Madeira
Sitting on the far western flank of the Iberian peninsula, and thus of Europe, Portugal simultaneously resides at the center and at the periphery of European wine culture: Its stands of Q. suber (cork oak) supply nearly all of the world’s natural cork stoppers—essential for fine wine—while, beyond Port, Portugal's own wines have been little known or understood beyond its borders. This is despite the fact that, owing to Portuguese exploration and trade, its wines were for centuries the world's most widely distributed. Indeed, it was the very reach of that global trade that informed the style of wine most associated with Portugal—Vinho Generoso: strong fortified wines, typically oxidative in character, able to withstand the rigors of trade under the mast. Today, there is a newfound appreciation of these wines beyond Port, especially those from Madeira and Carcavelos, while emerging table wine appellations like Bucelas, Vinho Verde and Douro suggest that Portugal is gaining renewed prominence in the wine world.
White Wine
Chão do Prado Bucelas 2020
Portugal ➜ Lisboa VR ➜ Bucelas DOC 12.5% ABV
12.5% ABV
This signature white wine is classic Bucelas, native home of Arinto, perhaps Portugal's greatest white wine variety. Here on the calcareous marl, loam and limestone soils locals call ‘caeiras’, Arinto absorbs the maritime influence of the nearby Atlantic, producing age-worthy wines of great vitality and savory mineral depths. Full details
Murgas Bucelas 2018
Portugal ➜ Lisboa VR ➜ Bucelas DOC 12.5% ABV
12.5% ABV
Murgas Bucelas highlights Arinto, one of Portugal'a oldest and most historic grape varieties. In the village of Frexial, twenty kilometers north of Lisbon, the Franca family farms old-vine Arinto organically from rocky calcereous marls known as 'caeiras'. Fermented with native yeasts in stainless steel tank (80%) and third-pass 350L Frech oak, its elevage likewise continues until bottling, resulting in a wine of great vitality and sapidity, its notes of grilled white peach and beeswax marked by the vibrant minerality for which Bucelas is renowned. Its lively character makes it a refreshing complement to all manner of fish and seafood, chicken and pork. It can be enjoyed now through 2035. Full details
Quinta do Avelar Bucelas 2015
Portugal ➜ Lisboa VR ➜ Bucelas DOC 12.5% ABV
12.5% ABV
Bottled after an extended, seven-year elevage in mid-2022, this stunning wine stands as avatar of the once common but now exceedingly rare tradition of long-aged Bucelas. Hand-harvested from the traditional calcario soils that flank the Trancão river as it bisects the Bucelas appellation, Arinto and Rabo de Ovelha are fermented with native yeasts in steel tank and undergo lengthy elevage on the lees. A small quantity of Sercial (Esgana Cão) is fermented separately, in tank and in ancient barrels, before final blending and bottling. Full details
Red Wine
Murgas Touriga Franca 2019
Portugal ➜ Lisboa VR 13.5% ABV
13.5% ABV
Murgas Touriga Franca DOC Lisboa is made from the grapes of the Arneiro vineyard, in Bucelas, in calcareous soils on a slope exposed to the west. Ruby in color, it shows aromas of raspberries and fresh currants, wrapped in notes of pink pepper and woodsy mushrooms. The mouth is enveloping, with very soft but structuring tannins. It ends long and very serious, bringing together the attributes of the great red wines of the region. Full details
Carcavelos
Villa Oeiras Carcavelos 'Nacional' 12-Year Old
Portugal ➜ Lisboa VR ➜ Carcavelos DOC 18.5% ABV
18.5% ABV • Fortified, Oxidative
Arinto, Gallego Dourado and Ratinho form the backbone of this benchmark 12-year-old blend, and the signature of the Atlantic Ocean features prominently in its expression. The wine is aged exclusively in Portuguese ('Nacional') oak, which lends a pleasing rusticity and generosity of spirit. Full details
Villa Oeiras Carcavelos 15-Year Old
Portugal ➜ Lisboa VR ➜ Carcavelos DOC 19.0% ABV
19.0% ABV • Fortified, Oxidative
Arinto, Gallego Dourado and Ratinho form the backbone of this benchmark 15-year-old blend, and the signature of the Atlantic Ocean features prominently in its expression. The wine is aged in a combination of Nacional (Portuguese) and French oak. Full details
Madeira
Belem’s
Portugal ➜ Madeira DOC 17.0% ABV
Saveiro
Portugal ➜ Madeira DOC 19.0% ABV
Henriques & Henriques
Portugal ➜ Madeira DOC 19.0-20.0% ABV
