Arribas Wine Company
Arribas Wine Company was founded in 2017, in Bemposta, Mogadouro. They aim to produce authentic wines based on regional varieties, old vineyards, traditional techniques, and a degree of innovation. Thus, strive to farm their vineyards as sustainably and respectfully as possible and make their wines in a minimalistic way.
The varietal mix found in the old vineyards has grown to reflect these hot growing seasons, with varieties that resist the heat and drought quite well and that can reach maturity early in the season.
Origins
Arribas Wine Company began to take shape in May 2017 on a visit to Bemposta, a village in the municipality of Mogadouro.
The richness of the region wine heritage, due to its old vineyards and the edaphoclimatic conditions, led them to decide to move forward with a wine production project.
They started this project in a small garage that functioned, for many years, as a private cellar.
The winery is in the old part of the village of Bemposta, and because it is on mother rock, it allows them to keep a cold and constant temperature. They opted for traditional production methods, and the winery equipment is limited to a vertical basket press and oak barrels.
They aim to produce authentic, light, easy-to-drink wines. For that reason, they try to make them as pure as possible.
Great Wines Start in the Vineyards
The quest for diversity and a spot with unique characteristics took us to Bemposta, a small village from Mogadouro, where the grandparents of one of the founders were born. There we found old vineyards, some recently abandoned, due to the elderly age of the owners with great potential over a breathtaking landscape.
Their first brand – Saroto – came up after seeing all this potential not being fully explored. If the word Saroto, is the local term to designate an animal with its tail cut off, the image of a lizard pretends to symbolize the capacity of regeneration, thus representing the will to recover and preserve such a rich and diverse heritage that otherwise would be lost.
X-Factor
The grape varieties as Tinta Gorda, Malvasia, Bastardo, Verdelho, Rufete, Bastardo Branco, Verdelho Vermelho, Tinta Serrana (among other grape varieties yet to be identified), the altitude, different soils and exposures, traditional and sustainable viticulture, and minimal intervention winemaking are the conducting wires of this project, which aims to reveal the full potential of “Arribas do the Douro” and its vineyards.
Frederico Machado
“There are no limits on what this region can provide as it offers such a vast amount of possibilities in terms of winemaking. We favour a minimalist style to extract the best of what our vineyards have to offer.”
Ricardo Alves
“The wine is 90% made in the vineyard, and the rest is all about not messing up what nature has given us. We know our wines since the bud breaks up in the vine to the moment they are bottled.”
Environment
“9 months of Winter and 3 months of hell” – This popular sentence expresses how hostile the conditions in the region are. Winters are extreme cold and dry and seems eternal. Summers are extreme hot during the daytime and cold at night.
Equipment
In line with their minimal philosophy, they have open fermentation vats, a vertical press, one pump and oak barrels.
Soil
In geological terms, their bedrock and soil is igneous granite or granodiorite with some metamorphic rocks such as schist and gneiss. Typically, the soils are poor and hard to work since due are on cliffs facing the Douro River.
Picking
Grapes are handpicked and carried into the cellar in 20 kg cases to avoid damaging the fruit.
Old Vineyards
At Arribas Wine Company, they work exclusively with old vineyards, with the average age of the parcels ranging from 70 to 100 years old. One essential aspect of these vineyards is the mix between red and white varieties in the field, sometimes reaching fractions as large as 70-30 (reds/whites). The main varieties are Tinta Gorda, Bastardo, Serrana, Verdelho Vermelho for the reds and Verdelho, Malvasia, Posto Branco and Bastardo Branco for the whites.
Arribas do Douro
Bemposta is in the northeastern, characterized by a Mediterranean temperate climate of continental influence. Hence, it has cold and wet winters and short and dry summers. Even though Bemposta in the Trás-os-Montes sub-region Planalto Mirandês, they feel more connected to the Spanish Arribes DO as they have observed similarities in terms of soil, climate and even vineyards. Is why they believe that their region should be called “Arribas do Douro”.
