PORTUGUESE Wine Store
Portuguese Wine From The Herdade Grande Vineyard
Herdade Grande is one of the most emblematic family estates in Alentejo, with a historic tradition both in the agricultural sector as well as in viticulture. Century old cradle of the Lança family, which since 1920 has owned this property located 5 km from Vidigueira, the Herdade Grande started bottling branded wines from 1997 onwards, assuming itself as one of the oldest and most reputed family brands in the region.
Linked to the wine production for ages, and carrying on with a local tradition, the production of Talha, Herdade Grande has, since 1980, increased its strategic bet on viticulture. The initial thrust was provided by the current owner, António Lança, a charismatic agronomist, who has restructured the existing vineyards and refined the existing castes that thrive today along Herdade Grande’s 60 hectares (production capacity for 450,000 bottles). Herdade Grande also celebrates Lança’s family management for the fourth generation, thanks to the contribution of Mariana Lança, daughter of António Lança, also an agronomist, with Masters in Viticulture and Winemaking, and a passionate by the homestead her great-grandfather discovered in 1920.
TERROIR
Herdade Grande’s terroir is strongly influenced by the micro-climate which characterizes the region of Vidigueira, a municipality only 5km away and also the designation of one of Alentejo’s DOC eight sub-regions. Vidigueira is therefore synonymous with singularity. Thanks to the natural barrier caused by Serra Mendro (to the North), the local Mediterranean climate distinguishes itself by the high thermal amplitudes, with pretty cool evenings as far as wines of Alentejo standards are concerned.
The combination of a fresh climate with the strong predominance of poor shale soils provides the unique conditions to produce wines of character and elegance. Marked by freshness and minerality, they have brought Vidigueira such a remarkable reputation, Alentejo white wines included. In Herdade Grande, the specificity of the terroir is complemented by human intervention, in particular through the use of different national and international grape varieties, as well as by the results of different solar exposures (sometimes in the same varieties) and by a viticulture oriented to the best practices of sustainability.
Vineyards
The first vines of this project were planted in 1980. Since that time, the 60 ha of vineyards have been planted with a wide diversity of national and international grape varieties. Selected for their adaptability to the terroir, and with a view to preserving the typical characteristics of the wines of the Alentejo region. It is a wager on quality, from the grape to the bottle.
The main red varieties that produce their Alentejo red wines are:
Aragonez, Alicante Buschet, Trincadeira, Syrah, Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, Alfrocheiro, Tinta Grossa and Tinta Caiada.
The main white varieties that produce their Alentejo white wines are:
Antão Vaz, Arinto, Chardonnay, Perrum, Rabigato, Roupeiro, Rabo de Ovelha, Semillion, Viosinho and Viognier.
Winery
The combination of technology and traditional winemaking methods allows for the winery at Herdade Grande to ensure the best processes are followed. Enhancing the raw material and its terroir and honouring the family tradition in viticulture excellence. Between innovative methods and centuries old techniques aimed at recovering the tradition of wine production such as the ancient Talhas or Baterias de Lagares (with controlled temperature fermentation), Herdade Grande uses the resources that best enhance the identity of wines from the region. At the same time, the winery at Herdade Grande is equipped with state of the art climatisation systems fully adapted to the different stages of production. Particularly harvesting, ensuring the proper stabilisation of crops and the grapes’ quality optimisation.
Herdade Grande
The Portuguese Cellar
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