Xisto Cru tinto 2019
Region: Douro
Producer: Luis Seabra
Luis Seabra worked for more than 10 years as an oenologist for Dirk Niepoort and finally went his own way in 2012. The name he gives to his wines is indicative of his vision of wine: Xisto (Schist). He makes very pure wines that reflect their terroir. Luis Seabra sets a new standard in the Douro with his pure wines.The Xisto Cru Tinto is one of a series of wines that Luis makes that illustrate and express the intensely terroir-oriented style in which he operates. He is a particularly gifted winemaker who sees wine as a means of communication that allows a piece of land to express itself. In this series of wines, he removes all variables except that of the terroir itself, and the resulting brutal expression of the terroir is extraordinary. He works exclusively with spontaneous fermentation, indigenous yeasts and large, tight-grained oak for all the wines in this series.
Rather than a single vineyard, it is a blend of two plots planted in the Cima Corgo sub-region of the Douro between 1920 and 1933. It is conceived as a clear expression of terroir and place. The vines are cultivated in a sustainable manner and vinified using only spontaneous fermentation and indigenous yeasts. In this way, it eliminates any potential variability other than soil type as an expression of terroir.
Vineyards located in Cima Corgo. The vineyards are cultivated in a sustainable manner. Micaceous schist soils at an altitude of 650-700 m. This is a sub-region with extreme highs and lows in terms of temperature, with one of the largest day-night temperature deltas in Portugal.
On the nose, mineral aromas of red berries, green herbs and smoke. On the palate, lively acidity runs through a core of wild strawberry, ripe strawberry and sour cherry, with excellent cut and precision in the wet stone and dusty mineral finish.
Decant an hour before serving and accompany grilled and roasted meats, mushrooms, smoked and cured meats.
| Volume | 75.0cl |
| Grape Variety | Blend of Rufete, Touriga Franca, Malvasia Preta, Alicante Bouschet and Donzelinho Tinto. |
| Drinking window | 2024-2031 |
| Alc. | 13.0% |
| Vinificatie | The grapes were sourced from 2 vineyards. The grapes from both plots were vinified separately with 50% of the stalks. Luis opts for a long skin soaking with gentle extraction. |
| Rijping | 2 years in wooden barrels |