Herdade Aldeia de Cima
Estrada Municipal, 531
7220-999 Portel, Portugal
At an altitude of 424 metres above sea level, Herdade Aldeia de Cima has a unique geological heritage. It is home to the Alentejo’s first traditional terraced vineyard. Agricultural practices in the 2400-hectare estate require little intervention. Here, 36 micro terroirs comprise 11 indigenous grape varieties. With its unique biodiversity, Herdade Aldeia de Cima’s glorious wines are designed in the vineyard.
Reserva Branco 2022
Viticulture and Winemaking
From clay-schist soils on the rugged landscape of the Serra do Mendro, this is an exotic blend of Antao Vaz (45%), Alvarinho (20%), Arinto (5%), Perrum (5%) and Roupeiro (5%). The wine is made using the characteristics of the local terroir, including a cooler climate and diversity of skeletal soils. Manually harvested, each wine varietal in the blend is aged for 6 months in different vessels, from 3000 litre wooden vats, cement vats and two-year old French oak barrels.
Tasting and Serving
Very well balanced, rich and concentrated, the aromas are highly fragrant with white fruits and florals. Fresh and vibrant on the palate with linear structure, exquisite texture and captivating minerality. It presents stone fruits, floral and spice notes. Complete and ever evolving in the glass. It has a full and persistent finish, with citrus, butter, peaches and pears. Extremely versatile with pastas, salads, seafood and grilled dishes.
Drinking window: Now – 2030
91pts - Wine Enthusiast
This is a powerful white wine. With its spicy aroma and tight citrus and toast flavors, the wine is rich, full of white fruits with hints of white peaches. The fruit is balanced with the toasty flavor and acidity at the end.
Reserva Tinto 2021
Viticulture and Winemaking
Made with the most traditional of Portuguese grape varieties, this is a wine of the singular terroir of Serra do Mendro and Vidiguiera. Comprised of Alicante Bouschet (60%), Trincadeira (10%), Arogones (10%) and Alfrocheiro (10%). Each grape varietal is aged between 6-12 months in two-year-old French oak barrels, Terracotta Tinajas, cement tanks and amphorae.
Tasting and Serving
Dark ruby. Red and black fruit aromas accompanied by florals and sweet spicy notes. The palate follows suit alongside tobacco and ripe berries. Refreshing acidity and velvety, fine-grained tannins. Fluid and deep, the wine is refined, with great structure and concentration. The finish is juicy and persistent, with earthy notes, plums and blackberries. Drink with roasted meats and hearty beef and lamb dishes.
Drinking window: Now – 2031+
92pts — Wine Enthusiast
Alicante Bouschet, dominant in the blend, gives licorice and vanilla aromas. A mix of cement and wood aging produces a balanced wine with rich, dense black fruits and spice flavors. Drink from 2026.
Myndru Tinto 2021
A real discovery. A truly unique wine made from ancient, indigenous Portuguese varietals.
Viticulture and Winemaking
Only the second vintage of this new bottling, Myndru is produced in the foothills of the Serra do Mendro, protected by shaded slopes. The wine is made from ancient thin-skinned grape varieties. Comprised of Alfrocheiro (50%), Tinta Grossa (30%) and Baga (20%). Manually harvested, the ageing process is 70% of the batch for 14 months in 1000 litre amphorae, 30% of the batch for 6 months in 150 litre terracotta tinajas.
Tasting and Serving
With translucent colour and round tannins, Myndru enables us to sense tradition and typicality, the fine and delicate aromas of red fruits grown in poorly structured soils in a cool climate, with balsamic notes of kermes oak and rockrose. The transparency of the delicately coppered grapes, aged in plaster and clay amphorae, reveal the texture and scent of the orange groves located further downstream. Medium-full bodied, it is a wine of intrigue that delivers a new taste sensation worthy of our attention..
Drinking window: Now - 2035
Myndru Branco 2022
Viticulture and Winemaking
The very first harvest of this organic beauty, with grapes grown in unique green schist on the gentle slopes of Vinha da Aldeya, graced by the gentle breezes of Serra do Mendro. The wine is comprised of 45% Roupeiro; 45% Perrum; 10% Alvarinho. Manually harvested, Myndru recaptures the delicacy of these very old grape varieties of Alentejo. Aged for 16 months in 1000 litre Cocciopesto Amphorae (a mixture of ground bricks or tiles, fine stone and sand, natural fiber binders, plus water) which preserves the profound aromas of the white flowers from the fields, the sap from the shrubs growing next to the vineyard, and the stone fruits that ripen slowly in the garden’s small vegetable garden.
Tasting and Serving
Rich and concentrated with a striking freshness, the classic structure and firm, unwavering texture reveals the fresh trace elements and the tension provided by the abundant sunshine. The luminescent gold colour leads to a precise nose of toasted almond, hay and citrus. On the complex palate is ripe stone fruit, vanilla and florals, accompanied by a dry, tension filled texture. It has a long finish, highlighting the ancestral roots.
Drinking window: 2025 - 2028
Garrafeira Branco 2021
Viticulture and Winemaking
A mirror of the singular richness of terroir of Serra do Mendro. A blend of Antão Vaz (70%), Arinto (25%) and Alvarinho (5%). Fermentation begins on lees in new French oak. After decantation at low temperatures in stainless steel, Fermentation in a new 3000L oak vat for 32 days at a low temperature of 12oC. Ageing for 9 months in an oak vat, for micro-oxygenation, with subsequent aging in bottle for 10 months.
Tasting and Serving
Pale lemon colour. The aroma shows richness with beautiful fruit and oak balance. A very textural wine with concentrated fruit and a natural elegance. Medium intensity, orange blossom, lime, honeycomb, butter and light wet stone. The flavour palate blossoms with stone fruit, particularly peach and apricot. A strikingly perfect acid line cuts through the fruity crispness with precision. Pairs beautifully with fatty fish dishes, Asian cuisine, chicken, pork and veal as well as hard cheeses.
Drinking window: Now - 2027
Lovely orange peel and lemon nose with a delicate mandarin richness and subtle aniseed. In the mouth this has lovely fruit expression, with a waxy edge to the lemon and pear fruit, showing a crystalline citrus core and some spicy warmth. This is a beautifully expressive wine with real precision and concentration. Very fine.
- Wine Anorak Global Wine Journal (2020 vintage)
Garrafeira Tinto 2019
Viticulture and Winemaking
A balanced blend of 50/50 Alicante Bouschet and Aragonez. The grapes were destemmed and fermented in new 3,000 litre vats at controlled temperatures. Aged in new French oak vats for 12 months, remaining in bottle for 18 months before being released onto the market.
Tasting and Serving
Deep vibrant red. The nose fills with the heady scent of crushed ripe berries, dark fruits and spices. Some complex young leather sneaks in too. The balance is impeccable. Texturally fine, the tannins are well integrated with the fruit and oak. It retains freshness and elegance. A superb example of the best of Alentejo. Serve with roasted meats, duck, game, poultry and richly sauced dishes. A great all-rounder.
Drinking window: Now - 2040
95 pts – Mark Squires, Wine Advocate
The 2019 Tinto Garrafeira is an equal blend of Alicante Bouschet and Aragonez aged in new French oak for 12 months and in glass bottles for another 12 months. This is the debut vintage of this brand. It looks like a new star. Delicious and fruity but remarkably fresh, this is multilayered. The freshness and the tannins segment the fruit into those layers and keep everything precise. It's subtle, but the fruit seems more concentrated here than on the Reserva, not particularly by fleshiness but simply by the expression of fruit. There's a big finish, and always elegance and mid-palate finesse.
94 pts- Wine Anorak Global Wine Journal
A blend of 50% Alicante Bouschet and 50% Aragonêz, this is a dense but well-balanced wine with concentrated blackberry and black cherry fruit with a savoury, spicy, grainy twist and some well-integrated cedar oak notes. There’s power here, with fruit intensity, oak and structure that make this an age worthy wine, showing a sense of restraint. This is a balanced, traditional-styled red, as is indicated by the Garrafeira designation. A wine to be cellared with confidence, but you can just about enjoy it now, too.
