ProducerAlves de Sousa
RegionDouro
GrapesMalvasia Fina, Rabigato, Viosinho
AgeingAn average of 20 years in wooden casks
Alcohol19%vol

Producer	Alves de Sousa
Region	Douro
Grapes	Malvasia Fina, Rabigato, Viosinho
Ageing	An average of 20 years in wooden casks
Alcohol	19%vol
Serving	15°C
Scores	95/100 International Wine Challenge

20 Years White: dried fruit, white chocolate, nutmeg and amaretto-soaked raisins.

Tasting note

Great elegance and individuality, with intoxicating complexity of dried fruit, white chocolate, nutmeg and amaretto-soaked raisins. A fine sweetness of maple syrup, walnuts and orange marmalade on the palate. Smooth and incredibly complex, with beautifully woven flavours.

The story

An old white Port ages for a long time in wooden casks, which gives it its amber colour. This Port has an average age of 20 years.

Winemaker Tiago Alves de Sousa recommends it with a warm apple strudel and vanilla sauce. It comes from a field blend of very old vines.

Quinta da Gaivosa lies in the Baixo Corgo, on the right bank of the Corgo, not far from Vila Real. It is the family’s home base, with old vineyards where dozens of varieties grow together. The winery, designed by architect Belém Lima, has won several architecture and wine tourism awards.

Food pairing

Chilled as an aperitif or at room temperature as a dessert wine. Lovely with white chocolate and Queijo da Serra.

The producer

Winemaking is a family tradition for Domingos Alves de Sousa: his father Edmundo and his grandfather Domingos were already Douro winegrowers. Trained as a civil engineer, in 1987 he devoted himself fully to the quintas he had inherited. For years he supplied grapes to big houses such as Casa Ferreirinha and Borges. After the crisis of the late 1980s and the disastrous 1988 harvest, he decided to make and bottle his own wine. He built a winery at Quinta da Gaivosa and in 1992 released his first wine, the Quinta do Vale da Raposa Branco 1991.

Revista de Vinhos named him Producer of the Year in 1999 and 2006: he was the first ever to win the title twice. Since 2002 his son Tiago, who holds a doctorate in viticulture, has been the winemaker. The family uses only grapes from its own six quintas: Gaivosa, Vale da Raposa, Caldas, Estação, Aveleira and Oliveirinha.

Critics & Awards

95/100 International Wine Challenge
Nutty dried fruit, honeyed caramel and toffee. Superbly luscious, with a long, tangy honey finish and hints of orange.