2022 Herdade do Mouchão Branco 'Dom Rafael'”

Estate grown Arinto and Antão Vaz grapes are handpicked and cold fermented in stainless steel tanks for 2-4 weeks. After its initial filtration, the wine is left on its fine lees for 5-6 months before bottling, ensuring a generous mouthfeel. The cold fermentation temperatures largely contribute to the fresh tropical ‘secondary’ aromas while still young. 

Pouring a straw yellow with greenish hints, this delicious wine combines freshness and citrusy fruit. The Arinto grape adds citrus freshness and minerality, while the Antão Vaz is known for its body, texture, fruit, and character. Light to medium bodied and dry, with stone fruit, light tropical notes, citrus and a hint of honey. Long, fresh finish. 

The fine, rolling landscape of Portugal’s Alentejo region, set between Lisbon and the Algarve, is dominated by cork forests and olive groves. In the early 19th century, Thomas Reynolds moved here from Oporto, chiefly to become involved in the cork business. Three generations later, his grandson, John Reynolds, purchased a 2,250 acre  property with two small rivers running through it – Herdade do Mouchão. In addition to the family’s cork activities, he set about making wine. Vineyards were planted and in 1901 he built a high-ceilinged adobe winery (or “adega”) with white washed walls and a traditional red-tiled roof. Following the 1974 revolution, the estate was expropriated and only returned to the family in 1985. Today, the Herdade do Mouchão continues to be run by the descendants of the original family whose cellar and vineyard workers have been with them for generations. The process is, as it always has been, unhurried. The grape varieties are local, picked by hand and foot-trodden.