Description
The PIOS cuvée from Quinta Vale de Pios is perhaps the most iconic wine of the Douro appellation. Aged for 14 months in French oak barrels, it develops aromas of black fruit and leather, with hints of cedar and tobacco. The structure and concentration are evident but do not detract from the wine’s balance and freshness. Already well-opened, the wine will continue to develop over the next few years if you have the patience to wait. Pair it with lamb for maximum enjoyment.
In the vineyard, in the cellar
Details of the Douro PIOS vintage from Quinta Vale de Pios:
- Appellation: Douro (Portugal)
- Winemaker: Joaquim Almeida
- Grape varieties: Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca and Tinta Roriz
- Viticulture: Natural
- Soils: Schist
- Altitude: 250 m
- Age of vines: 20 years
- Planting density: 4,800 vines/ha
- Yield: 30 hl/ha
- Yeasts: Indigenous
- Alcohol content: 14%
- Harvest: Manual
- Vinification: The grapes are foot-crushed in stone lagares on the night following the harvest. Crushing continues more gently over the following days. Maceration is long and gentle to produce a wine ready to drink
- Ageing: 18 months in French oak barrels
Biodiversity: the key to a unique ecosystem
The quality of the soil, the altitude of 200 metres, the temperature range and the watercourses foster significant biodiversity and explain the location of this very old vineyard. The existing slopes favour vertical planting which, combined with grass cover, allows for better erosion control. In this area with its extreme, very dry climate, sources of coolness are of major importance for the quality of the vines. The coolness of the night balances the heat of the day. The vines at Quinta de Vale de Pios are mostly low-yielding indigenous varieties; they were planted before the phylloxera epidemic on soil consisting mainly of schist.
What to eat with a Douro PIOS from Quinta Vale de Pios?
- Lamb in all its forms
- A cumin-spiced lamb stir-fry or a 7-hour leg of lamb, for example
- Slow-cooked dishes in sauce
