Alvarinho Parcela Unica 2022
Region: Vinho Verde
Producer: Anselmo Mendes
Why we chose this wine
Anselmo Mendes is undoubtedly the reference for the best Alvarinho. Great vintages can develop great complexity after a few years in the cellar.
The grapes are grown only in Monção and Melgaço, the vines grow on sunny slopes on poor granitic soils, this gives very mineral wines with body and structure while retaining a lot of freshness.
Produced by the "pope" of Vinho Verde and one of his best winemakers Anselmo Mendes. Parcela Unica is without a doubt the great wine of his range, and also one of the great whites of the country. It is only produced in the best years, when Anselmo believes that the vintage will produce an exceptional wine.
For years, Anselmo has been vinifying the grapes from the most promising plots in separate batches. Year after year, one plot proved to be systematically superior to the rest and with the harvest. In 2009, Anselmo decided to bottle this plot separately for the first time. With Parcela Unica, he has reached a high point in the history of the best Alvarinhos. Since then, he has been marketing a rigorous selection of less than 3,000 bottles only in exceptional years.
On the nose, this cuvée develops a great aromatic richness where notes of honey, salted butter and candied citrus fruit predominate. Very mineral, it offers fat and liveliness on the palate, accompanied by great purity as well as saline and iodine notes.
The grapes are grown only in Monção and Melgaço, the vines grow on sunny slopes on poor granitic soils, this gives very mineral wines with body and structure while retaining a lot of freshness.
Produced by the "pope" of Vinho Verde and one of his best winemakers Anselmo Mendes. Parcela Unica is without a doubt the great wine of his range, and also one of the great whites of the country. It is only produced in the best years, when Anselmo believes that the vintage will produce an exceptional wine.
For years, Anselmo has been vinifying the grapes from the most promising plots in separate batches. Year after year, one plot proved to be systematically superior to the rest and with the harvest. In 2009, Anselmo decided to bottle this plot separately for the first time. With Parcela Unica, he has reached a high point in the history of the best Alvarinhos. Since then, he has been marketing a rigorous selection of less than 3,000 bottles only in exceptional years.
On the nose, this cuvée develops a great aromatic richness where notes of honey, salted butter and candied citrus fruit predominate. Very mineral, it offers fat and liveliness on the palate, accompanied by great purity as well as saline and iodine notes.
| Volume | 75.0 cl. |
| Grape Variety | alvarinho |
| Drinking window | 2026-2029 |
| Alc. | 13.0% |
| Vinification | Gentle pressing of the totally de-stemmed bunches, long cold clarification, fermentation in new 400-litre French oak barrels. |
| Ripening | Aged in the same barrels for 9 months with stirring on the lees. |
Waar serveer je ’m bij?
At Anselmo Mendes one single plot gives the best grapes year after year, and since 2009 he has bottled them separately: Parcela Unica. Nine months in used wooden barrels, so texture and volume without vanilla landing on your plate. This is the top of his Alvarinhos and also the most built: deep yellow fruit, a salty minerality and a finish that carries on for a long time. Complexity twelve against a weight of ten — there is more to discover in it than there is weight in it.
Drie gerechten die werken
Grilled swordfish with gremolata
Pan-fried monkfish medallions with roasted garlic
Pork tenderloin with grilled peach
Pan-fried monkfish medallions with roasted garlic
Pork tenderloin with grilled peach
Vegetarisch
Roasted parsnip with miso and sesame
Minder geschikt bij
Light starters and fresh salads: it dominates them. Keep it for a plate with fat or with a roasted crust, otherwise you are paying for complexity you do not hear.
Voor de Portugees geïnspireerde kok
Arroz de polvo — creamy octopus rice with tomato, onion and plenty of coriander
Serveren op 11–13 °C
What the critics say
Robert Parker Wine Advocate
94/ 100
Published 02-04-2026
Drink: 2026–2036
Drink: 2026–2036
“The 2022 Parcela Única is an Alvarinho from a specific plot from the Quinta da Torre Quinta da Torre, 5.5 hectares of their oldest vines planted in a place with more boulders, a mixture of alluvial and fluvial terrace, where they also take the riper bunches, the lower ones on the vines. It fermented and matured in new 400-liter oak barrels with a minimal toast, where the wine matured with the full lees for nine months. It has a more balsamic, complex and evolved nose that is subtle and elegant, denoting more age and also more complexity and depth. The oak is neatly integrated in the wine. It has good ripeness, 12.5% alcohol, a pH of 3.32 and 6.3 grams of acidity, with a bone-dry and serious finish that is granite driven. 8,000 bottles produced. It was bottled in June 2023.”
— Luis Gutiérrez, Robert Parker Wine Advocate
The producer
Anselmo Mendes
We were there when Anselmo launched his first wines under his own name and we are still following him. Meanwhile, he grew to become 'mister Alvarinho'.
More about Anselmo Mendes →