Mouchao 2016

Tasting Note: Intense garnet colour, aromas of black fruit, plum jam, mint, ripe olives, with fresh notes of mint, eucalyptus and slightly green stems.

Wonderfully fresh and structured, yet balanced, and with expressive, elegant tannins ensuring longevity. The ideal company for grilled meat or game dishes.

Country: Portugal  Region: Alentejo

ABV:14%   Bottle Size: 75cl Sustainable viticulture  YES 

Additional Information: The name Mouchao is synonymous with wines of distinction. The family-owned estate has been producing wine for over a hundred years and maintains the traditions established in 1901 when the winery was built.

The distinctive character of Mouchão wines derives from three principal characteristics: the Alicante Bouschet grape, the specific terroir, and adherence to traditional winemaking methods. in the winery, traditional techniques are adhered to,  the grapes are received in large open Lagares where they are hand crushed and delivered down chutes to be foot trodden in marble cement lining Lagares. Foot-treading is done twice a day for a period of 5 to 8 days, this encourages fermentation and optimum colour extraction.

The wine is racked off into wooden vats and barrels for secondary fermentation.

Mouchao Tinto, the estate’s main wine, is predominantly Alicante Bouschet, 80% or more, the rest being Trincadeira (perhaps more famously known as Tinta Amarela in the Douro.

It is aged for 24 months in large oak vats (known as foudres) and then aged for a further 24 to 36 months in the bottle before release for sale.

Production is small and Iain Richardson, who runs the estate, is unable to meet the majority of orders he receives for his extraordinary wine.

Mouchão wines are renowned for their longevity, maturing subtly as they age.