Chocapalha Red

Red bottle image

Wine Description

Quinta de Chocapalha Tinto is a blend of indigenous Portuguese varietals sourced from 16th century vineyards 28 miles northwest of Lisbon. Fermented in traditional granite lagares and stainless steel, the wine is then refined for 18 months in French oak barriques.

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Acclaim
A mix of grapes from southern Portugal and the north along with a hint of Syrah, this is a stylish wine, feeling fresher and lighter than its alcohol would suggest. It has that cool feel of Lisboa wines, a touch saline, and balances firm, impressive fruit and tannins with juicy acidity.
— Wine Enthusiast, May 2015
“The 2010 Tinto, the estate red with just Quinta de Chocapalha on the front, is a blend of 45% Tinta Roriz, 25% Touriga Nacional, 15% Castelão, 10% Syrah and 5% Alicante Bouschet. It was aged for 18 months in French oak (60% second use, the rest third use). It comes in at 14.5% alcohol and a slightly elevated 4.5 grams per liter of residual sugar. Not quite an oldie (or vertical), which would be more in keeping with this issue's theme, it is nonetheless a rather late release with an old vintage date. It was just recently launched in the USA. This seems like a beauty that is in a very good place right now. It's a super value. Solid in the mid-palate, it has a fine, palate-coating mouthfeel with intense fruit flavor, no doubt the last third of the blend (Castelão, Syrah and Alicante) stating a case. It seems more like the Castelão, though. Very ripe, it is wonderfully fruity, but saved from being merely fruity by its beautiful structure and balance. It is rather gripping on the finish, although it is approachable right now. It evolves nicely with aeration. This is going to be a crowd-pleaser at an ‘everyone’ price that is still serious enough to impress the geeks.”
— Wine Advocate, Oct 2015
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Vineyard & Production Info
Vineyard name
Quinta de Chocapalha
Vineyard size
75 acres
Soil composition
Calcareous and Clay
Training method
Guyot
Elevation:
660 feet
Vines/acre:
1600
Yield/acre:
1.6 tons
Exposure:
Various
Harvest time:
September
Bottles produced of this wine:
32,270
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Winemaking & Aging
Maceration length:
10
Varietal composition:
45% Tinta Roriz, 25% Touriga Nacional, 15% Castelão, 10% Syrah, 5% Alicante Bouschet
Fermentation container:
Lagares
Length of alcoholic fermentation:
12 days
Fermentation temperature:
79 °F
Maceration technique:
Punchdown and Pumpovers
Malolactic fermentation:
Yes
Type of aging container:
Barriques
Type of oak:
French
Length of aging before bottling:
18 months
Length of bottle aging:
1 year
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Analytical Data
pH level:
3.7
Acidity:
6.1 g/L
Alcohol:
14.5 %
Residual sugar:
5.7 g/L