Quinta Sanjoanne

We are in the Vinho Verde region, an area traditionally known as Entre-Douro-e-Minho and the largest Demarcated Region in Portugal, and one of the largest in Europe, by the way!
It has high exposure to the Atlantic influence and, seen from a distance, is like an amphitheatre rising gradually towards the interior.
Nearer to Amarante, we can find Quinta de Sanjoanne, bought at the end of the 19th century by João Araújo’s great-grandfather so that his wife could have a house close to the place where she was born.
He inherited his mother’s love of agriculture, and that’s how João Pedro Araújo is part of the fourth generation of winegrowers on this estate and the person responsible for the technological updating that took place in the 1980s upon his return from France, where he studied.
He is a producer who only makes wine from his own grapes; each year is, therefore, a leap in the dark. They started the activity with four grape varieties and increased to 12. However, in the search for the best varieties to express Casa de Cello’s identity, they reduced and are now using eight varieties.
As a curiosity, contrary to what was customary in the production of wines from this region, he chose not to introduce CO2 into the wine. And he went even further, arguing that Vinho Verde had the capacity to evolve when worked with a focus on quality, like any other wine of character and did not have to be drunk young.
When speaking with the producer, it’s easy to understand the mastery of knowledge that has taken root for so long and the irreverence of someone who doesn’t want to follow the status quo just because.
The mineral terroir of this wine’s name takes us to the granite soils that dominate the landscape, which you can taste in the first sip.
The Loureiro and Avesso varieties coexist in a balanced way in the bottle in front of you.
This wine seems to grow in the glass, so open it beforehand and give it time to show itself fully!

Cheers!