Bacalhoa Red Wine Palace

Reviews and awards:
18.5 points Grandes Escolhas Wine;
18 points Wine Magazine;
. Mundus Vini 2015 Gold Medal (Other colheitas );
Recommended by the Decanter World Wine Awards 2015 (Other colheitas );
Bronze Medal, International Wine & Spirit Competition 2015 (Other colheitas );
Bronze Medal, Decanter World Wine Awards 2013 (Other colheitas );
Bronze Medal, Decanter World Wine Awards 2012 (Other colheitas );
Recommended for the International Wine Challenge 2012 (Other colheitas ).

Deep red in color, it is powerful and highly concentrated on the nose, with strong notes of red berries combined with hints of coffee, mint and dried fruit, all within a full-bodied, complex, fresh and elegant structure.

Winemaking:
The grape varieties chosen for the Quinta (Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Petit Verdot) benefit from natural conditions that allow for slow and balanced ripening. Merlot, the first variety to be harvested, benefited from slow ripening and was in perfect condition for vinification. Petit Verdot, a slower-ripening variety, is usually harvested before Cabernet Sauvignon. As for Cabernet Sauvignon, it was colheita when its small black bunches of grapes showed good phenolic maturity, good acidity, and the required alcoholic potential. Primary fermentation takes place at a controlled temperature (25°C), followed by a one-week period of 'cuvaison' (post-fermentation skin maceration). The solids were separated, followed by 17 months of aging in new 225-liter French Allier oak barrels. After bottling, the Palacio de Bacalhôa 2008 aged in the estate's cellars until it was ready for sale 12 months later.