Quinta do Romeu

This 25-hectare family farm, currently helmed by João Menéres, dates to 1874, when founder Clemente Menerés expanded his cork oak interests outside of Bragança into Jerusalém do Romeu in the remote northern reaches of the Upper Douro for wine production. Indeed, this is the northernmost estate in the Douro appellation, a geographic fact evident in the freshness and relatively low alcohol in the wines. He and his descendants proved both tireless globetrotters and rooted investors in the local culture of the Douro, cultivating olives and cork in addition to grapes to this day.

The estate has proudly cultivated its all-indigenous varieties on rolling schist/granite exposures without the use of any synthetic pesticides since 1995. The winemaking is sensitive minimalist—fermentations are spontaneous, oak is second or third-pass if used at all, and sulfur is employed with a sparing hand. The wines show bright acidity, floral sapidity, and consummate drinkability.