Quinta do Noval : Vintage Nacional 2021

A port imbued with finesse and balance

The estate

As early as 1715, records mention the name of the Quinta do Noval. António José da Silva, a merchant at the port of Gaia in Porto, acquired Quinta do Noval in 1894, after it had been ravaged by Phylloxera. Subsequently, his son-in-law Luiz Vasconcelos Porto implemented a significant vineyard renovation programme. He notably expanded the narrow dry-stone terraces that shape the landscape of the Douro vineyard. Revolutionary at the time, this method promotes better use of space and sunlight exposure. Painted with lime, these white terraces remain a specificity and a pride of the Quinta do Noval vineyard, an emblematic reference of great Portuguese wines.

The vineyard

This wine comes from an exceptional terroir where the encounter between a remarkable soil and a microclimate offers the ideal conditions for the production of great Porto wines. On the south side of the Douro, in Portugal, the 138 hectares of vines of the Quinta, aged 30 to 40 years, cover a soil influenced by shale located at an altitude varying from 130 metres to 350 metres. The climate is dry and is characterised by its extreme peaks of coolness and heat.

The wine

The "Nacional" plot at the heart of Quinta do Noval is home to ungrafted vines resistant to phylloxera, symbolising the soul of the Portuguese terroir.

The vintage

The viticultural year began with a wet winter and early bud break in March. After a rainy spring, flowering took place in early May, announcing an early harvest. The month of June was punctuated by storms and hail, sparing the estate. The mild summer allowed for slow and regular maturation of the grapes. The harvest began at the end of August, but the September rains temporarily interrupted the harvests. Finally, the harvest ended on October 8 under favourable conditions, ensuring good phenolic evolution of the grapes.

Vinification and ageing

The grapes are foot-trodden to obtain the must, then they macerate in the lagares, the traditional stone vats of the Quinta, in order to guarantee the optimal extraction of aromas, colour and tannins during fermentation. The wine is aged for 18 months in wooden barrels in the air-conditioned cellars of Quinta do Noval before being bottled.

Blend

This Vintage Nacional 2021 from Quinta do Noval is made from a blend of touriga nacional, touriga francesa, sousão and tinta roriz.