Wine Concept

Private Selection White was created in 2001 with a desire to challenge the classic profile of great Alentejo white wines. To achieve this, we decided to base the wine on the underated Semillon variety and the use of new French oak barrels for fermentation and maturation. With growing the vineyard maturity and a careful selection of barrel suppliers the solid, rich and complex style of this wine has been reinforced over the years.

Awards

2017, Wine&Spirits – Year’s Best Portugal Whites, 91 points

2016, Wine Spectator – 91 pontos

Agriculture

Integrated Production (certificate)

A damp winter followed by a mild summer with high diurnal temperature variations, allowing for a long, even maturation, with good fruit intensity and balancing acidity.

SOIL TYPE
Deep free draining clay soils predominate, ideal for balanced yields and the evolution of fresh aromatic grapes.

Grape Varieties

Semillon

Vinification / Maturation

The grapes are handpicked in the cool of the morning and crushed directly into the membrane press. Long, low pressure pressing cycles are used allowing for careful juice extraction. Short decantation times are used to allow for a richer must and more complex fermentation in large new French oak barrels (550 litres) in a temperature controlled cellar (18ºC).

Ageing on lees in barrel for 6 months with regular stirring allows for optimum oak integration and adds volume and creaminess to the palate.

More Information

Private Selection Red:

Over time, we have been expanding the knowledge about our land in Alentejo. We have a better understanding of its potential and make the most of the uniqueness of the vineyards to produce fine wines, at nature’s pace.

That knowledge takes shape in Private Selection, through a combination of select parcels from the different territories, along with separate vinification and ageing, according to each variety’s profile. This is a full-bodied wine, with texture, intensity, and vitality, that reflects the diversity and richness of Esporão’s territories in Alentejo and, in exceptional years, results in Torre do Esporão.

Private Selection White:

Esporão Private Selection white was launched in 2001 under the name “Garrafeira”. The desire to make a distinctive white wine that would challenge the classic profile of the great wines of the Alentejo, led winemaker David Baverstock to bring the Sémillon grape variety from Australia to our Herdade dos Perdigões estate. This French origin grape variety is iconic in the Barrosa Valley region of Australia, where it grows in a climate similar to that of the Alentejo.

Planted in granitic soils, clayey and deep, the Palmeiras vineyard has adapted well to our soils and the Alentejo heat. It is from this vineyard that the Private Selection White was born.

Every year we invite a new artist to illustrate our labels, and every piece of artwork has its own individual story to tell.

Vineyard

The Semillon grapes used in this wine were planted on the Herdade dos Perdigões estate, which belongs to Esporão, in 1996, using northwest/southwest exposure in order to maximize fruit protection from extreme sunlight.

Wine Makers

David Baverstock and Sandra Alves

Colour

Crystal clear straw.

Aroma

Ripe fruits with tropical notes and well integrated discrete toasty french oak, complex.

Palate

Rich and unctuous, with elegance and balance, long and persistent.

Sizes

750 ml

Bottling

June 2015

Alcohol/Volume

14.5 %

Total Acidity

7.1 g/l

pH

3.2

Reducing Sugar / Baumé

2.2 g/l