Esporao Reserva Tinto Organic

Intro to Esporao Reserva Tinto Organic –

Esporao Reserva Tinto Organic is a complex wine full of layers of flavour of fruit and spice

Full tasting note and wine making –

Esporao Reserva Tinto Organic is intense ruby colour, and is full of blackberry aromas, nutmeg, licorice and notes of black pepper and is rich and complex with notes of black ripe fruit and spices on the palate with a persistent finish.

The first wine made by Esporão in 1985. A classic obtained exclusively from our organic grapes. The diversity of Herdade do Esporão, together with the different characteristics of the grape varieties, the soils, the maturity of the vines and the character of those who make this wine consistently over the years, results in a rich, intense but always harmonious wine.

It is made from a blend of grapes including Alicante Bouschet, Touriga Nacional, Aragonez, Syrah, Trincadeira, Cabernet Sauvignon, Touriga Franca. Each variety was vinified separately, destemmed, crushed, temperature controlled alcoholic fermentation in stainless steel vats, concrete tanks and small marble basins, pressed, followed by malolactic fermentation in stainless steel tanks. The wine is aged for 12 months in American (60%) and French (40%) oak barrels. After bottling, the wine aged 8 months in the bottle.

Esporão Reserva was the first wine produced by Esporão, in 1985. It was born from our desire to produce the best wines in Alentejo. Over the years, it has been a wine that has led us to innovate, to grow, to look at our origins, to care about nature and see beyond. We have adopted sustainable agricultural practices, more recently we have converted all our vineyards to organic farming, built new wineries and traveled to other markets, taking Alentejo and Portugal to the world.

Art accompanies Esporão Reserva from the first moment. Every year we invite a new artist to illustrate our labels and each work tells a story that is completed within.

WINE MAKERS

David Baverstock & Sandra Alves

The producer –

Founded in 1973 by José Roquette and Joaquim Bandeira, Esporão’s mission is to make the finest wines from what nature provides.

Forty nine years ago, Esporão was born from the desire to make the finest wines in the Alentejo region. What seemed like the dream of two friends, has become a project with international and generational perspectives. The motivation behind this family business remains the basis of everything we do, expanded today to new territories and products.João Roquette

João joined the business in 2005, following in the footsteps of his father José Roquette. His vision and strategy brought internationalisation and sustainability to the core of the  company’s culture and activities, resulting in Esporão becoming the market leader in Portugal, Angola and Brazil. Under João’s guardianship as Chairman, the transition to organic farming, together with their  holistic approach to sustainability and innovation, has now firmly established Esporão as one of the key sustainable companies in Portugal and abroad.

Esporão’s three wineries – Herdade do Esporão in Alentejo, Quinta dos Murças in Douro and Quinta do Ameal in Vinho Verde – are located within the vineyards, guaranteeing the best possible quality grapes at the harvest time, whilst following our philosophy of minimal intervention.

Herdade do Esporão is located 170km from Lisbon, integrated in Alentejo DOC in Reguengos de Monsaraz sub-region. Alentejo is characterised by hot and dry summers, mild springs and autumns and cold, dry winters. With a landscape dominated by vast plains and cork oak forests, it is the largest wine producing region in Portugal. A Denomination of Controlled Origin (DOC) region consisting of 8 sub-regions with a long tradition in wine production.

The estate, measuring 1840ha and with geographical boundaries that have remained unchanged since 1267, offers unique agricultural conditions – large temperature variations, 7 different types of soil and an extraordinarily rich biodiversity that supports the ecosystem.

Boasting 441ha of vineyards, 93ha of olive groves and other crops that are certified organic, the Estate is planted with approximately 40 grape varieties, 2 olive varieties, as well as orchards and vegetable gardens.

Within the  estate you can also find the 11ha ampelographic field: a living library where 189 different native and international grape varieties are grown. Here the team preserves unique varieties, studies their production  potential, and their adaptability to climate change.

From the 2019 vintage onwards, all wines produced with our own grapes have had organic certification