Quinta dos Carvalhais, Dão Encruzado

Quinta dos Carvalhais is credited with spearheading the quality renaissance of Dão wines in the early ‘90s and continues to make some of the region's finest wines today. After being purchased by Sogrape in 1988, significant investment was made in the winery and vineyards, including the replanting of near-extinct Dão varieties such as Encruzado, a grape now heralded as one of Portugal’s finest. Winemaker Beatriz Cabral de Almeida continues to champion these indigenous varieties, making an impressive range of estate wines defined by lovely depth, vibrant fruit and a signature elegance.

The 50-hectare estate is at an elevation of 465 to 500 metres above sea level on the classic granite soils of the Dão. The vineyards are farmed sustainably and a herd of sheep grazes in the vineyards over winter, boosting soil health and reducing the need for herbicides. Plantings are predominantly indigenous white varieties, with each matched to a specific vineyard plot.

The modern gravity-flow winery is filled with numerous small stainless-steel fermentation tanks, allowing individual plots to be vinified separately. Typical of the Dão, all of the Quinta dos Carvalhais wines undergo oak ageing, with Beatriz using a mixture of new and used barrels of varying sizes to ensure the oak influence is subtle and doesn’t overwhelm the fruit.

Quinta dos Carvalhais’s single-varietal wines are complex blends of different plots on the estate, vinified separately before blending. The Encruzado, partially fermented and aged for eight months in French oak barrels, marries the vibrancy of this variety with delicious toasty notes from the oak. The Touriga Nacional showcases this prized indigenous variety's signature black fruit and violet characters alongside a well-integrated spiciness from 12 months in French oak.

The Branco Reserva is a blend of Encruzado and Gouveio aged for 18 months in used French oak. It balances the citrus-fruit freshness of both varieties with a savoury complexity derived from time in barrel. The Branco Especial is a distinctive non-vintage blend of oak-aged whites from seven different vintages. It is hugely complex, combining notes of dried fruits and nuts with a honeyed complexity, all kept in balance by a linear acidity.

The Tinto Reserva is a blend of Touriga Nacional, Alfrocheiro and Tinta Roriz aged for 12 months in a combination of new and used French oak. It is a rich and sumptuous wine with pronounced black fruit aromas, polished tannins and a lingering finish. The ‘Único’ is a Touriga-Nacional-dominant blend, produced only in exceptional vintages from the best plots on the estate. Aged in French oak for 30 months, this wine treads the line between power and elegance. Intense and complex, the palate is layered with blackberry, black cherry and violet notes, with spicy nuances and a wonderful freshness.