Vinho Verde Alvarinho from Monção e Melgaço

The Monção and Melgaço sub-region is famous for its unique wines, which are characterized by a special freshness, minerality, balance and lightness. This also applies to this Vinho Verde by Márcio Lopes, for which he used grapes from selected producers in Monção and Melgaço.

Thanks to fermentation in stainless steel tanks with yeast bâtonnage, the result is a wine with a strong varietal character: rustic, fresh, harmonious, fruity and with a pronounced minerality that we really appreciate.

This distinctiveness and elegance places this wine on a par with the best international white wines - which often cost twice as much.

Crystal clear with slightly green reflections, with green and lemony notes and pronounced minerality. Lively and juicy with a long finish. This Alvarinho is the perfect accompaniment to light summer dishes such as salads, sardines, picnics...

As a winemaker, Márcio Lopes really only intervenes as much as is absolutely necessary and trusts as much as he can in the natural processes of winemaking. For example, he lets his wines ferment exclusively with natural yeasts and - like many of the producers we work with - he firmly believes that if the grapes are of the right quality, he can produce excellent and harmonious quality wines that have the character reflect their terroir. And he seems to be doing quite well with it: Márcio Lopes' wines are unmistakably fresh and lively and are characterized without exception by bright and clear typical varietal aromas. They are present and clean, with crisp acidity and balanced texture. This makes the wine the ideal accompaniment to seafood and dishes with a creamy sauce.

• Vintage: 2020
• Grape Varieties: 100% Alvarinho
• Alcohol content: 13% vol.
• Total acidity : 6.8 g/L
• Production area: Monção and Melgaço
• Residual sugar : 2.5 g/L
• pH : 3.26
• free SO2: 25 mg/L
• Terroir: granite
• Contains sulphites
• Vinification: After manual harvesting and transport to the winery in small crates (18kg - 20kg), the grapes were destemmed and macerated for 4 hours. This was followed by a light pressing and decantation (48 hours). Fermentation at controlled temperature (14 - 15°C) for 15 days. Aging 6 months in stainless steel tanks on the lees with bâtonnage.

Marcio Lopes: The Rising Star in Vinho Verde.

Márcio Lopes was born in Porto in 1983 and spent many summer holidays with his grandparents in the hinterland of Porto where they grew corn and wheat and also produced wine. At the age of 6, his grandmother put him in a lagar (traditional Portuguese granite basin used for winemaking) to stomp the grapes inside, as is still traditionally done today. This was the first of many many wines that young Márcio has since produced. The rest is history...

A year before graduating in Agricultural Engineering in 2006, Márcio started working with the famous winemaker Anselmo Mendes in Melgaço. In 2008 he went to Australia, where he was responsible for two classes in Rutherglen and Tasmania. In 2010 he started his own project “Pequenos Rebentos” (Portuguese for “little offspring”) in the Minho region, home of the Vinhos Verdes.

Manufacturer: Marcio Lopes, Unipessoal, Lda. Rua da Barranha 797, 4460-256 SENHORA DA HORA, Portugal