2020 Quinta do Ameal Loureiro
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Louro is the Atlantic coastal name for the Laurel, or Bay tree. Loureiro wines are floral and smell deeply of lemon and bay. The basic characteristic is a linear, racy and acidic wine with low levels of both grape sugar and phenolic material
Wine Specs
Vintage
2020
Varietal
Loureiro
Wine Profile
Vineyard Notes
Vinho Verde Vinho Verde is both a regional appellation and a style of wine. The ‘green wines’ known as Vinhos Verdes come from north-west Portugal close to the Atlantic coast. The region commences immediately below the Minho (Rio Miño in Spanish, the Spain-Portugal border), and extends south towards Porto and the north shore of the Douro (Rio Duero in Spain). The region is cold, with high rainfall and a permanent Atlantic foggy damp. The vines are usually grown on elevated pergolas, which allow for ventilation to protect from fungal infections. Vinho Verde was demarcated as a legal region in 1908 and was confirmed as a DOC in 1984. There are 21,000 hectares and 19,000 growers!
Production Notes
Loureiro “loo-ray-ro”: Literally, “smelling Louro-ish” – Louro being the Atlantic coastal name for the Laurel, or Bay tree. Loureiro wines are floral and smell deeply of lemon and bay. The basic characteristic is a linear, racy and acid wine with low levels of both grape sugar and phenolic material. Loureiro differs significantly from Albariño (with which it is often blended) in its terpene character (the same compounds which inform the aromatics of Riesling and Semillon). When young, the nose presents a complex bouquet of lemon aromatics (leaf, pith, juice and flower) with laurel (bay leaf) florality. With age, complex toasty terpene aromas (similar to developed Eden Valley Riesling and Hunter Semillon) also become apparent. Loureiro ages really well. (It is occasionally referred to as Dourada – the golden one).
Winemaker Notes
After careful viticulture, winemaking is simple and tech-driven: low-cropped old vines are sorted twice (firstly to eliminate disease, then further selected for quality); whole grapes undergo penumatic pressing; must is cold-settled for 48 hours; a quite cool fermentation (max 15 degrees) takes place in stainless steel vats for 12-15 days; the wine is matured for 6 months in stainless steel. Over the past decade, organic and biodynamic viticulture has progressively added a deeper, richer, fragrant bay leaf character to the lemony precision of Pedro's outstanding crunch-yet-textured Loureiro white.