Our final day was not just a run to Lisbon airport as we had a late flight so were able to pack in one last visit.
In Redondo, to the east of Évora is the family owned estate of Casa Relvas. This is one of the most important estates in the Alentejo and they have grown considerably over the past 20 years.
With 8 million bottles of production, they export to over 30 different countries.
We were hosted by the excellent Ana Santos who kindly agreed to come in 25th April – Democracy Day in Portugal and a major public holiday.
After a quick tour of the extensive facilities, barrel cellar and a short video, we tucked into some cold meats, cheese and bread with a cracking array of contrasting wines – all from magnum.
This was a brilliant chance to see how the wines aged both white and red. Their Herdade de Sao Miguel Branco Colheita 2022 and 2016 eminently demonstrated the evolution of Antao Vaz and Arinto;
The Tinto Herdade de Sao Miguel Branco Colheita 2021 and 2014 showed how Aragonez, Trincadeira and Touriga Franca develop Bordeaux style nuances and a Reserva 2009 was a revelation as to how well these Alentejo wines could age.
We rounded it off with a red blend not even released onto the market – just called 17 – it was 17% alcohol from 2021 and was somewhat intense and youthful to say the least.
A great finish to our tour!