Quinta De Saes - Branco Reserva, Dao, Portugal (2018)

TASTING NOTES

A Burgundian-esque wine without the price tag! Lovely and expressive, a textbook example of the Dao region's tight tension between fuller-bodied and precise acidity wines. White pepper, ripe pears, white flowers and spicy top notes. This wine has minerality and excellent length with fresh baked bread notes from some bâtonnage. 

Quinta de Saes is located in the northern part of the Dao, in Northern Central Portugal. The plots for this vineyard are on granite at 500m (1640 ft) elevation.

The Dao has a temperate continental climate, protected from the cold winds of the Atlantic by the Luso Mountains, from the warm winds of Extremadura to the west by the Sierra da Estrela, and from the arid heat of the Douro by the Serra do Caramulo. Average temperature in the growing season is 57F (14C). Rainfall is 26 inches per annum, with no irrigation.