From our importer: Grapes: 60% Encruzado, 25% Bical, 15% Cerceal-Branco From vineyards in Vila Nova de Tazem, sub-region Serra da Estrela. 3 different parcels. 25-60 year old vines grown in granite soils Vinification: Decantation for 48 hours was proceeded after destemming and pressing the handpicked grapes (only the gently pressed juice was used to this wine). Wild fermentation took place 60% in a 2500L François Freres foudre, 30% in 500 L François Freres oak barrels and 10% in stainless steel tanks. The wine aged for 11 months “sur lie” without batonnage and other 10 months in stainless steel tanks.

The world has had a fair share of vanity projects foisted upon the wine map as massive investments for ego’s sake. These are often grand estates built by powerful men, provided with exceptional wealth and access from some illustrious first career, who eschew any sense of patience or attention towards the harmony around them. The investment involved generally includes complex marketing plans to tell the world the importance of it all, perhaps overwhelming the voice that makes the location unique or the imperfection magical. Nothing is left to chance. Very little is terroir. It is not part of the business plan.

Happily, very little of this is reflected in how Marcelo Araujo, a well-financed retiree from Brazil (and no foreigner to some of the above mentioned wines) started his new winery life tucked under the Estrella range in Portugal’s bucolic Dão valley. “Terroir” was probably the first word on his yellow pad, with a list of things to learn before he turned dream into concrete reality: place, culture, weather patterns, soil personality, grape identity, history & traditions as well a full grasp on oenology and what it means to be a farmer. Patiently, he gained access by building relationships within the community, huddling together Luis Seabra with a team of inspired graduates and arrived at a place that is as much a home to observation and imagination as a monument to achievement.

Textura formally launched in 2018. It is still in the adolescent phase, learning where to grow and how exactly how fast. in order to find the meaning of their terroir, they have modeled, in a sense the study pattern of Burgundy: an appellation scale with wines representing their regional Dão expression, then more single village identity and nearing single vineyard Crus. Single varietal wines are also starting to emerge, with character all their own. We are eager to follow them in stride, on their way to becoming a humble benchmark of a region quickly gaining fame.

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