Quinta do Ataíde Douro Red, Quinta do Ataíde

"Winemaking: The Ataíde grapes are handpicked into small boxes to avoid crushing during transportation to the winery. On arrival, the bunches are hand sorted and then gently destemmed, after which the berries are placed into a small container that is lifted to the top of the fermentation tank, thus avoiding any form of pumping. Only then are the berries crushed as they fall into the tank. Fermentations are monitored individually and temperatures and maceration procedures; plunging, pumping over and delestage, are adjusted in accordance with each fermenting tank in order to maximize the grapes potential. Once alcoholic fermentation is concluded, post-fermentation macerations are employed so as to extract mature, soft tannins from the pips. The Year: Although 2018 started off very dry, with the soils parched by the previous year’s rainfall deficit, the spring heralded abundant rain with the months between March and June all recording above-average precipitation. Soil water reserves were amply replenished, a good position to be in for the vines’ growing and ripening cycles. The wet, cool spring and generally unsettled atmospheric conditions continued into the summer and resulted in a diminishing of the crop size. Inevitably, the growth cycle of the vine was delayed by a few weeks, but a hot and dry August put maturations back on track. Climatic conditions in early September favoured balanced ripening of the berries with good levels of acidity that are reflected in the wine’s balance. Yields were very low, but that favoured the high quality that the wines reveal."