FitaPreta Vinhos Tinto (Red) Vinho Alentejano 2019

Wine Type:
Style of Wine:	Big & Bold
Country of Origin:	Portugal
Wine Region:	Alentejo
Grape Varietal:	Aragónez, Trincadeira, and Alicante Bouschet
Bottle Format:	750mL
Case Size:	12 bottles
$300.00 Per Case ($25.00/btl)

Tasting Notes

Varietals: 40% Aragones, 30% Alicante Bouschet, 30% Trincadeira

Alcohol: 14.5%

Yield: 40 hl/ha, 6,000 kg/ha, 2.7 tons/acre

Terroir: Grapes develop and mature in the hot and dry Mediterranean climate of the southern Portuguese plateau.The cool nights serve to retain acidity. Soils are infertile rocky schists, producing naturally low yields of concentrated, healthy fruit.

Vineyard Management: Production follows a protocol of sustainable agri- culture and yield is controlled and quality improved by hard pruning, removal of secondary shoots, and bunch thinning. At optimum maturity the grapes are handpicked in small boxes permitting the quality-control steps of bunch selection in the vineyard and on the sorting table.

Vinification and Ageing: After sorting and crushing the grapes are conveyed by gravity into small vats and fermented at 27oC by only indigenous yeast. Post fermentation maceration lasts for 15 days. 50% of the wine is matured in second and third year French oak barrels for 9 months.

Tasting note:

Deep ruby-violet, with a generous aroma of warm red fruits, discreet notes of toast and spice and a refreshing touch of eucalyptus. Mouth-filling, ripe and refreshing. Serve at 16C with well flavored grilled red meats.

Critical Praise

"Just love what this winery is doing in the south of Portugal. This is a lovely, very pretty, full bodied yet delicate blend of three local varieties. The nose is terrific with quite floral lilac scents, black raspberry, pepper and vague spice. Honest zinfandel crossed my mind aromatically. It is medium-full bodied, juicy, fresh and warm with fine tannin. Excellent flavour focus and length. Tasted July 2020." - 93 points (David Lawrason, WineAlign.com)

"A typical Alentejo blend of 40% aragonês (aka tempranillo) and 30% each of alicante bouschet and trincadeira, this is invitingly perfumed, featuring both ripe and dried red and black fruit, dried flowers, fresh leather and other exotic herbs and spices, also fresh and dried in a compelling combination. The palate is balanced and savoury-succulent, with firm acids and light and fine-grained tannins, gently dusty. Length is excellent in the price category. Superb value. Tasted July 2020.." - 91 points (John Szabo, MS, WineAlign.com)