Casa Ermelinda Freitas Dona Ermelinda
Winery Dona Ermelinda
Grape Castelão
Year 2009
Country Portugal
Region Palmela
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Casa Ermelinda Freitas is part of a wave of ambitious Portuguese wineries making modern dry reds from ancient local grapes.
What You Need To Know
Portugal’s winemaking revolution, in which an explosion of new estates started turning out exciting dry wines (as opposed to Port), has rippled out from the Douro Valley to the rest of the country in recent years. A case in point is Casa Ermelinda Freitas, located less than an hour from Lisbon. Leonor Freitas’s grape-growing parents sold the wine they made in bulk; today, Leonor oversees an impressive estate winery turning out everything from award-winning Syrah to traditional reds, like this cuvée made from the native Castelão variety. Named for her mother, Freitas’s plummy bottling shows the refined side of this rustic grape.
Smell It
Ripe red fruits—raspberries, currants—inflected with vanilla and spice.
Taste It
Warmly spicy, with juicy red and black fruit flavors and firm tannins.
Serve It
Cellar temperature—the bottle should be cool to the touch.
Pair It
Herby, fruity or gently spicy red and white meat dishes.
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