Ramos Pinto Duas Quintas Rouge 2018 (Portugal)

Description

• French oak
• Red berries
• Fresh spices
• Fine tannins

Dark red, with bright clean cherry reflexes. Enormous aromatic vivacity smelling of woods, damp earth, red berries and a number of fresh spices. In the mouth, the volume, freshness and fruit are well-balanced, with a long finish of soft, fine tannins. Duas Quintas Red 2018 is elegant, fresh and vivacious.

Duas Quintas Red is a wine from the Douro Superior, from Quinta de Ervamoira (altitude 150 metres) and Quinta dos Bons Ares (altitude 600 metres), made with the traditional varieties that express the potential of this outermost region.

After a dry, very precocious year, the cold winter of 2018 brought the vines’ growing cycle back to normal. Intense rains in spring and early summer and the cool temperatures until the end of July delayed the harvest. The two crucial months for grape maturation, August and September, were hot and dry, with grapes becoming ripe enough to be harvested. 2018 wines are surprisingly elegant and fresh.

Plot by plot, the grapes are tasted in the vineyard until the time is right for harvesting. Once in the winery, the grapes are crushed and destemmed and sent to different fermentation containers (granites lagares, big oak vats, concrete and stainless steel vats) by variety and plot. Our in-depth knowledge of our plots allows us to choose the most suitable vats and fermentation. The grapes are macerated for as long as is needed to obtain a wine with the desired body and structure. After malolactic fermentation, 20% of the wine is aged in French oak barrels, 30% in big oak vats and the remaining 50% stored in stainless steel vats for about 12 months. This wine was bottled between May and July 2020.

Food Pairing: An excellent companion when reading, chatting with drinks or to have as an aperitif. The elegance of the 2018 wine makes it a perfect match for a variety of dishes. We recommend grilled cod, vegetarian dishes and roast beef. It is also good with cured sheep’s cheese.