Expert Review - Vintage 2023
James Suckling 93 Points | This has aromas of sliced green apples, orchard fruit, fennel and a touch of flint. Medium- to full-bodied and fresh, with texture and pleasant phenolics. Long and persistent. Incredible value. A blend of multiple vineyards in Douro Superior. 60% rabigato, 15% gouveio, 15% codega and 10% viosinho. Made from 30- to 45-year-old v...Show More >
Expert Review - Vintage 2023
James Suckling 93 Points | This has aromas of sliced green apples, orchard fruit, fennel and a touch of flint. Medium- to full-bodied and fresh, with texture and pleasant phenolics. Long and persistent. Incredible value. A blend of multiple vineyards in Douro Superior. 60% rabigato, 15% gouveio, 15% codega and 10% viosinho. Made from 30- to 45-year-old vines. Aged for 12 months in used barrels.
The Wine Advocate 92 Points | 2023 was not as warm as 2022, and the 2023 Xisto Ilimitado Branco feels very fresh and clean, with a shy nose and balanced palate with purity and precision. It was produced from the zone of Meda in the south of Douro Superior, close to Beiras, from purchased grapes, mostly Rabigato with 20% Arinto and 5% each Gouveio and Codega from 35- to 60-year-old vines at 500 to 700 meters above sea level on schist soils (hence the name!). The bunches were pressed and the juice let to settle and fermented with indigenous yeasts, and the wine matured in 228- and 500-liter oak barres for 10 months with the lees, with full malolactic but without bâtonnage. It has 12.5% alcohol and a pH of 3.35 denoting freshness and comes through as balanced and elegant. Excellent!
Winemaker Description
Bright straw yellow. On the nose, stone and orchard fruit abound, with flinty wet stone and white pepper laid over the dominant aromatics. On the palate, impressively bright and mineral driven, with a great balance between power and lift. Lemon, green apple, bosc pear flavors comingle with a touch of floral tone and slate minerals. Juicy and mineral-driven all at once.
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