Herdade do Peso, Alentejo Reserva

For almost thirty years, Herdade do Peso has focused on making premium red wines in the white wine-dominant, cooler Alentejo subregion of Vidígueira. Today, Herdade do Peso’s wines are made by Luís Cabral de Almeida, who believes his primary role is to “interpret nature”. As a result, Luís is heavily involved in the estate's vineyard management, having mapped their 12 soil types and matched each variety to its ideal plot. Named ‘Winemaker of the Year’ in 2024 by Portuguese wine magazine ‘Revista de Vinhos’, Luis’ wines reflect Vidígueira’s sense of place, being exuberant, ripe and generous, yet kept in balance by refreshing acidity.

Comprising 457 hectares of gently rolling hills, including 160 hectares of vineyards and olive groves that date back to Roman times, Herdade do Peso is defined by its rich natural heritage.Since acquiring the property in 1997, Sogrape has continued to develop Herdade do Peso with a focus on sustainability and respect for nature. This is evident in the construction of a 20-hectare on-site reservoir to capture rainwater and feed the drip irrigation system across the vineyards, the building of a new eco-friendly winery (completed in 2022), and the planting of wildlife corridors of indigenous species of plants and trees, including cork and holm oak.

‘Sossego’ translates as ‘tranquillity’, referencing the peaceful Alentejo countryside. The ‘Sossego’ white blends Antão Vaz, Arinto and Roupeiro to create an unoaked expression defined by fresh and vibrant citrus and stone fruit notes. The ‘Sossego’ rosé blends Aragonez (Spain’s Tempranillo), Touriga Nacional and Trincadeira, harvested early to retain refreshing acidity. The ‘Sossego’ red combines Aragonez with Syrah and Touriga Nacional, aged for six months, in used French oak barrels resulting in ripe and juicy red and black fruit flavours with a subtle spiciness.

‘Trinca Bolotas’, which translates to ‘acorn muncher’, is a nod to the acorn-eating Iberian black pigs native to the Alentejo region. An unoaked blend of Touriga Nacional, Aragonez and the Alentejo’s infamous teinturier grape Alicante Bouschet, it is bursting with ripe and juicy blackberry, black cherry and plum flavours.

The ‘Revelado’ blends Alicante Bouschet with Cabernet Sauvignon and Touriga Nacional. Aged for 12 months in French oak barriques, 10% of which were new, it boasts delicious, spiced berry flavours, a subtle earthiness and velvety tannins.

The Herdade do Peso Reserva is a blend of hand-selected Alicante Bouschet, Touriga Nacional and Cabernet Sauvignon berries. Aged for 12 months in a combination of new and first-use French oak, the wine is brimming with intense aromas of juicy blackberries and raspberries combined with spicy notes of nutmeg and tobacco.

The ‘Parcelas’ 2019 blends Alicante Bouschet grapes from the clay-limestone plot 21 and Petit Verdot grapes from plot 101, which Luís deemed to be the best-performing plots of the vintage. The grapes were destemmed and underwent an individual berry selection on the sorting table. 30% of the stalks were added to the ferment to add structure and complexity, and the wine was aged for 12 months in 3,000-litre French oak ‘tonéis’, 50% of which were new. It is a wine of great power, complexity, structure and length, with violet notes from the Petit Verdot complemented by the characteristic dark fruit and subtle earthiness of Alicante Bouschet.