Pêra-Grave

In Alentejo, the wines Pêra-Grave celebrate the memories of the Quinta de São José da Peramanca, with a unique terroir that goes back to the roman occupation and was recognized by the Portuguese Royal Houses from the 13th century onwards. Nowadays, the results of João Grave’s dedication, heirs to the favorite wines of the Aviz dynasty stand out in international festivals.

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It is an unusual remote story, the one that involves this estate of thirty four hectares five kilometers away from Évora. The first records of wine production in the region date back to the times of the destruction of Cartago; but no earlier than the 13th century, did D. Afonso II ordered the plantation of vineyards close to the Peramanca brook marking the terroir we all know. Recognition came soon. Later on, D. João II would order “peramanca wine and other good wines that existed in the county” to his son’s wedding.

Flowing through centuries, the illustrious genealogy of these wines seems like a piece of eternity. Elected by D. Manuel I, they were celebrated by Duarte Nunes de Leão that wrote the following on them: “In Alentejo there are the Evora city’s wines, among which the Peramanca ones are much cherished for their taste and subsistence”. During the reign of D. João V, the monarch eventually ordered that they would only be produced for royal consumption.

Not long before 1900, phylloxera ruined the growth of the vine in all the region of Évora, except for the area that surrounded the estate. The Pêra-Grave wines, created by João Grave, are the ultimate results of that terroir.

Today, the vine occupies fifteen and a half hectares, being fourteen of them of red grape. The vine varieties Touriga Nacional, Aragonez, Alfrocheiro, Alicante Bouschet, and Syrah are highlighted among the reds and Arinto, Verdelho and Alvarinho among the white ones.

The oenology team, led by Nuno Cancela de Abreu and Luís Bourbon, is responsible for a refined portfolio where Tinto Grande Reserva Pêra-Velha stands out. This wine combines the vine varieties Syrah and Alicante Bouschet in a harmony of ripe fruit, black pepper, spices and cocoa, with the elegance of French oak, round tannins and a good mouth volume. Recognized by its extraordinary personality, it is an excellent wine.

Among the Pêra-Grave’s wines, symbol of the house, there are a white, a red and a reserve. The first integrates Alvarinho, Arinto and Verdelho in an ensemble characterized by yellow fruits and lime, fresh, absorbing, with complexity and persistence at the end of the tasting. The red, a remarkable wine, presents a heavy color and a ripe grape and jam aroma, in a round and firm body with good tannins and a prolonged and pleasant aftertaste.

It is the Tinto Reserva that deserves a primus inter pares place among these exceptional wines. Distinguished with the gold medal Mundus Vini 2016, the silver medal Vinalies Internationales 2016, has been awarded a long set of prizes in previous years. Produced from Cabernet Sauvignon, Touriga Nacional and Syrah, it has a deep-purple colour, black fruits aroma and a violet floral touch, complex taste, round and soft tannins with an elegant and very persistent aftertaste, capable of rendering the connoisseurs speechless.

In Quinta de São José da Peramanca, among the baroque architecture old houses and the São José Church that the Quinta is named after, ancient traditions of the Évora region are honored in a way that ennobles its owners: through the creation of great wines that are recalled by centuries, challenging, also, eternity.