2017 Quinta do Fojo - 斗羅河 DOC - 2 瓶 (0.75L)

2017 Quinta do Fojo Red 2 x 0.75L
2 Bottles
Douro Region

WINEMAKER: Margarida Serôdio Borges.

WINE VARIETIES: Tinta Roriz, Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca & Tinta Barroca.

VINIFICATION
From old vines in a field plot aged for ten months in French oak.

TASTING NOTES
A reddish-brown color with nuances. The aroma is clean, enveloping, intense, and somewhat complex, with notes of tobacco and charcoal, along with a layer of acidity. It's not particularly meaty, but it has plenty of tannins.

SERVING
Pair with red meats, codfish, cheese and game meat. Store in a cool and dry place, sheltered from light and temperature fluctuations. Keep the bottle in a horizontal position. Best served at a temperature between 16-18ºC.

HISTORY
The wines of Quinta do Fojo, which burst onto the Douro scene in 1996 and ceased production in 2001, are back. After a 12-year absence, Margarida Serôdio Borges, Rita Ferreira, and António Taveira joined forces to relaunch a brand that, in just five vintages, became a Douro icon.

The 1996 vintage was one of the most productive in recent decades in the Douro, and this negatively affected the overall quality of the wines. However, there is at least one great wine that was born and established its prestige during this vintage. Actually, there are two: Fojo and Vinha do Fojo. Both originate from Quinta do Fojo, located on the left bank of the Pinhão River, in the municipality of Alijó.
There are not many such estates in the Douro anymore. Of the approximately 13 hectares that the estate owns, seven are very old vineyards, arranged in an amphitheater and managed organically. It's a vineyard with numerous flaws, which give it a certain air of abandonment—but that's just old age. Many vines are dying, and it's very difficult to get new growth to thrive in old vineyards. The first impression isn't very uplifting. However, when we understand the vineyard's boundaries, its rarity and location within the terrain, and the setting of the winery and the estate's main house, built on small, strategic plateaus, devoid of life nearby, we realize the immense beauty and richness of Quinta do Fojo.
It was this enchantment that gripped Australian David Baverstock, then winemaker at Quinta do Crasto (now head winemaker at Herdade do Esporão), in 1996 when he visited the estate for the first time and immediately decided to accept the owner, Margarida Serôdio Borges,'s challenge to make a great Douro wine. Margarida's (sister of Jorge Serôdio Borges, the producer of the red Pintas, from the Douro) standard was the great Bordeaux classics, wines with a life of their own that always surpass the winemaker and even the owner himself.

PLEASE NOTE: This is a recurring auction. The seal number(s) you see on the photos might differ from the one(s) on your bottle(s).