Freire Lobo 2023 Vigno Branco Dāo, Portugal

750ml bottle

13% abv

50% Encruzado, 20% Bical, 20% Cercial and 10% Fernão Pires and Barcelo, sourced from Elisa Freire Lobo's 60+ year old vines. Biodynamic, organic.

Bright, light straw yellow with a nose of orchard fruit, white flowers, and dried herbs. The palate is delicate, filled with citrus-drenched pear and apple. The fruit is balanced by good acidity and a persistent minerality, finishing with refreshing length.

Elisa Freire Lobo started her winemaking journey in 1996 when she began working and studying at Caves São João in Bairrada. The following year she spent in the Douro region with Anselmo Mendes. Though given that she grew up in the Dão, Elisa returned to her roots, quickly becoming the first female winemaker in the region. After working with many of the most respected producers in Dão, her next step was to take over her family vineyards in Oliveira do Hospital, which she did in 2010. Today, she organically (non-certified) and biodynamically farms 15 hectares of vines at an altitude of 550-600 meters above sea level.

Biodiversity is practiced with a rotation of cover crops and sheep are utilized in the winter for grazing and natural fertilizer. Elisa works exclusively with traditional Portugeuse varietals (for reds... Touriga Nacional, Alfrocheiro, Tinta Roriz, Jaen, Alvarelhão, Baga, Tinto Cão and Rufete and for whites... Encruzado, Cerceal, Bical, Fernão Pires and Barcelo) grown in soils of sandy granite. Her goal is to craft authentic, terroir-driven wines that reflect their origin. Harvests are completed manually and Elisa practices minimal intervention in the cellar, allowing for spontaneous fermentation to occur with indigenous yeasts in stainless steel tanks. Wines are then allowed to age in the bottle.