Conditions:

The viticulture year of 2013 started in the winter of 2012 with quite a bit of rain, particularly during January and February. March saw the strongest rainfall (176mm of rain). The soil had water replaced after two years of very dry weather. April and May were quite cool, which delayed the vegetative cycle for almost two weeks. June, July and August were nearly completely dry months, with higher than average temperatures. The little rainfall did not affect the vineyard too much, as the Douro vines are very adaptable to adverse circumstances and are able to find water in very deep soils. The grape maturation delayed almost 10 days in relation to the average annual registries and the harvest began in the 3rd week of September. By the end of September, it rained, which made us stop picking for a few days. Picking restarted after Eastern winds dried up the grapes and the harvest continued under sunny weather.

Grape Origins:

A blend of Touriga Franca, Touriga Nacional, Tinta Roriz, Tinta Barroca (all four 75% of the final blend) and grapes from a very old vineyard, with more than 20 varieties (25% of the blend).

Vinification and aging: All the vineyards of Quinta das Brôlhas are divided into different plots and each plot is harvested by hand. The grapes are carefully selected by hand before crushing. They are then put into traditional granite stone “lagares”, destalked and then foot trodden for 1 to 3 days before the start of the fermentation. All the fermentation occurs in the same “lagares” with foot treading being made at night and the cap manually broken during the day, with the use of the also traditional “macacos”. After the fermentation the resulting wine was stored in small stainless steel tanks until the end of the malolactic fermentation and where it aged for another 18 months.

Analysis
Alcohol: 13,30% vol
Total acidity: 4,70 g/l
Volatile acidity: 0,60 g/l

pH: 3,61
Total SO2: 94,0 mg/l
Total sugars: < 0,6 g/l

More Quinta das Brôlhas wines