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Esporão Reserva Red 2020: a wine with a story, both inside the bottle and out 18/10/22
Herdade do Esporão is releasing its 2020 harvest of Esporão Reserva Red, a wine produced exclusively with organic grapes. This true Alentejo classic expresses all the characteristic diversity of the estate where it is produced and has a rich, intense, and well-balanced profile. The label, illustrated by artist Abel Mota, depicts one of the most renowned images of the estate – the Torre do Esporão.
Over the past 30 years, Esporão Reserva Red 2020 has consistently expressed the characteristics of its grape varieties, soils, location, and the expertise of those who craft it with dedication.
Both the winter and spring of 2020 were mild and rainy, which replenished the vineyard’s water reserves and translated into better vegetative growth than in 2019. The summer was hot and dry, with especially high temperatures in July, which brought the harvest forward by two weeks compared to the previous year. During veraison the weather favoured gradual ripening that allowed for the selective harvest, to maximize the expression and quality of each grape variety.
Aragonez, Trincadeira, Syrah, Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, Cabernet Sauvignon and Alicante Bouschet grapes were grown in granitic to schist, loamy clay soils. Each variety was vinified separately at controlled temperatures in small marble lagares, concrete vats and stainless-steel tanks, and were then aged for 12 months in American and French oak barrels.
Esporão Reserva Red 2020 shows aromas of blackberry, cocoa, dark chocolate and liquorice, with hints of black pepper. Intensely ruby in colour, it is rich and complex on the palate, with intense notes of black fruit and spices. The finish is long and persistent.
Each year, a visual artist is invited to create the label of that harvest. This year’s label was illustrated by Abel Mota, the youngest artist ever to be invited to contribute to Esporão label collection.