As Tourigas 2007

Winery Quinta de Vale de Pios

Region Douro, Portugal

Grapes Touriga Nacional 50%, Touriga Franca 50%

ProfileTypical Douro old vine red. A bit more elegant due to increased floral aromatics. Ripe blue fruit still dominates the profile, but the wine has a layer of complexity that comes from bottle age. A bit more savory, forest floor profile comes through on the finish.

Grape GrowingA single parcel 1.5ha old vine plot is the source for this wine. The plants have less foliage and a smaller canopy. Because of the long days in the Douro, more sunlight is naturally available. If you trim the canopy, you are able to concentrate the efforts of the vine into the fruit, instead of the leaves. This slows down the physiological ripening process and allows for more phenolic ripeness. Dry farmed, hand harvested.

WinemakingNative yeast fermentation. The fermentation starts in lagars, with the must being transferred half way through into stainless steel. The pressing occurs just before malolactic fermentation, so the total maceration was four weeks. Aged in French oak barriques, 67% new, for two years. Filtered and bottled, then aged in bottle for 8 years until release.

More About the WineThe motivation to create this wine was to showcase the ageability of Douro reds. Too much of the region's wine is consumed too young. These two grapes are natural complements to each other. Touriga Nacional in 2007 was exceptionally fruity, elegant, floral and aromatic. 2007 being a cool vintage with a very long growing season provides an even bigger lift on the nose. Touriga Franca is much more dense, tannic, structured. It provides a backbone for the wine.