Chocapalha Castelão

Castelão bottle image

Wine Description

Castelão, one of Portugal's most famed and widely planted varieties, is known for its beautiful, fruit character. Quinta de Chocapalha's interpretation of this varietal is a stunning example. Fermented in stainless steel and aged in French oak for 12 months, this Castelão retains its fresh fruit essence long after its 6 month of refinement in bottle.

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Acclaim
“Aromas of ripe dark berries, toasted spices, dark chocolate and dried herbs. Medium- to full-bodied. Dense and concentrated with fine-grained tannins and a chalky texture. Fruity and savory finish.”
— James Suckling, Dec 2022
“The 2017 Castelão, from 30+-year-old vines, was partly (50%) aged in used French oak barrels for 12 months, the rest in tank. It comes in at 14.4% alcohol. Never a shy grape, this is a Castelão that predictably shows off the big strawberry flavors typical of the grape. It runs a little to black fruits, though, even if the strawberries are dominant. It is a cut above, though, largely because it has fine structure, precision and freshness. Never overripe, this is exceptionally well balanced. Plus, there's a firm finish. The tannins are very ripe, though, so this drinks perfectly today. This is a very nice bargain, a fair amount of wine for the money. You do have to like this high-personality grape, but many do. It should hold reasonably well too.”
— Wine Advocate, Dec 2021
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Vineyard & Production Info
Vineyard name
Quinta de Chocapalha
Vineyard size
25 acres
Soil composition
Calcareous and Clay
Training method
Guyot
Elevation:
660 feet
Vines/acre:
1600
Yield/acre:
2 tons
Exposure:
South-North and East-West
Harvest time:
third week in September
Bottles produced of this wine:
4,000
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Winemaking & Aging
Maceration length:
10
Varietal composition:
100% Castelão
Fermentation container:
Stainless steel tanks
Length of alcoholic fermentation:
10 days
Fermentation temperature:
79 °F
Maceration technique:
Pumpovers
Malolactic fermentation:
Yes
Type of aging container:
Barrels
Type of oak:
French
Length of aging before bottling:
12 months
Age of Aging Container:
Two years
Length of bottle aging:
6 months
Total SO2
123
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Analytical Data
pH level:
3.72
Acidity:
5.57 g/L
Alcohol:
14 %
Dry extract:
29.9 g/L
Total SO2
123
Residual sugar:
0.8 g/L
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Wine Production

The grapes, which are previously de-stemmed, go through a pre-fermentation maceration at low temperatures for 12 hours. Fermentation takes place in stainless steel tanks for 12 days, not exceeding 25ºC. The aging and malolactic fermentation occurred 50% for 14 months in used French oak barriques.