XXVI Talhas "Branco do Tareco" Alentejo, Portugal 2023

FROM GROSSBERG/KOPMAN SELECTIONS:

THE WINE: A blend of mostly Anto Vaz, Roupero, and Dona Branca from old, mixed planted vineyards. Fermented and aged on the skins for just over two months.

THE PRODUCER: XXVI Talhas are a group of friends from the tiny, 500-person village of Vila Alva. While there are other estates in Portugal working with amphorae, XXVI Tahlas is the leader in championing and pushing the boundaries of quality of this traditional style of talha wine. They work in an ancient adega, where the high ceiling and thick stone walls seem to miraculously tame the Alentejo sun. They organically farm old, local vineyards and seek out and refurbish nineteenth-century talhas. And they preserve memory and tradition, from restoring Daniel and Alda’s grandfather’s adega, to learning talha winemaking techniques from Ricardo’s father, to finding and learning from the best pês expert in Alentejo, to tinkering with their technique until the grandparents of Vila Alva proclaimed that XXVI Talhas had finally succeeded in recreating talha wine as they remember it from their youth. Like the traditional style, these wines are all about freshness, but perhaps more importantly, the estate represents the sense of community and conviviality that is inherent in the talha tradition!