Casa Da Passarella, Dão

Casa da Passarella came as a result of an MW trip to Portugal. I’ve loved the best wines from the Dão for decades. The 1963 reds from the Nelas Wine Research Station, a historic state-run viticulture research centre located in the region, tasted when 40 years old, remain one of the most memorable wine experiences of my life. It’s a sunny, warm region, and produces wines with some muscle and structure, but, at its best, Dão can bring perfume and charm. There are sometimes notes reminiscent of Burgundy.

Dão was totally dominated by co-operatives until the late 1980s, so to learn that Casa da Passarella has a history as a wine estate since 1892 came as a surprise. But it has a well-documented history as a wine producer and, not surprisingly, some very old vines. The total vineyard area covers 62 hectares. It’s located in the slopes leading up to the Serra da Estrela, Portugal’s highest peak. Vines are planted at about 600-750 metres above sea level. It’s a cool sub region, and harvests are late. The sandy granitic soil, so common in the area, is here too. But the soils are not poor, and water from the mountain is plentiful.

Winemaker, Paulo Nunes, has looked after winemaking for the past 20 years. Paulo passionately loves old vines, so the grapes here are in safe hands. The old vineyards are planted with field blends, so site counts for more than grape variety. Vineyards are all picked and vinified separately; a typical harvest will vinify 200 different lots. The cellar is a quaint blend of ancient and modern – granite lagares and concrete tanks next to stainless steel and barrel. Large oak is preferred to small barrels, and new oak is rare.

The appeal here has much in common with many of the fine estates we represent – pride in great old vineyards and a tradition as one of the oldest estates in the area, balanced by a modern understanding of how these vines can be made to shine from the bottle with freshness, elegance and complexity.