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2022 Susana Esteban - Foudre Alentejano (750ml)
Susana Esteban
SKU 100259

2022 Susana Esteban - Foudre Alentejano (750ml)

$109.00 - $109.00
$109.00
$109.00 - $109.00
$109.00
Availability:
Only 2 left!

Susana Esteban launched her own project in 2009 after a two-year search across Alentejo for the right vineyards, eventually settling on two small sites that became the foundation of her earliest wines. In 2012 she was named Oenologist of the Year by Revista de Vinhos, the only woman to have received that honor, and her work since has focused on coaxing a more precise, mineral style of wine from the granite soils of Portalegre in northern Alentejo, a marked departure from the region's traditionally richer reputation.

Foudre is sourced from an eighty-year-old vineyard in the Serra de São Mamede, planted at 700 meters and farmed as a field blend of traditional local varieties. The grapes are hand-harvested in small crates with careful sorting, then fermented with native yeasts in a single 1,150-liter Alsatian foudre dating to 1961, the same cask Esteban once used for a collaborative project with a wine journalist. Because she owns only that one vessel, the wine ages in it for roughly sixteen to twenty months and is only produced in even-numbered years.

The result is intense and mineral, with aromas of dried herbs, white flowers, orchard fruit, and a touch of camphor. The palate is broad, deep, and bone dry, with bright acidity carrying a long, saline finish. It pairs well with fried foods, fresh seafood, or braised dishes.

95 Points
"The 2022 Foudre is only the third vintage after the initial 2018. It was produced with a field blend of traditional varieties from the Serra de São Mamede, from a centenary plot at 700 meters in altitude on granite soils. It fermented with indigenous yeasts in the same 1,150-liter Alsatian foudre from 1961 that was used for the previous vintage and for the Sidecar wine produced in collaboration with journalist Jorge Lucky. It matured in that foudre for a period of 20 months. It has a serious and elegant nose with the classical dry herbs and flowers, a touch of camphor and white fruit. It comes in at a moderate 12.5% alcohol, keeping a pH of 3.19 and 5.9 grams of acidity, and has a bone-dry finish. It's balanced, fresh, tasty and very clean. This has turned into an icon in Portugal, as both vintages have received very high scores from the local press. 1,349 bottles produced. It was bottled in August 2024."
—Luis Guttierez-Wine Advocate
Appellation: Alentejano
Vintage: 2022
Variety: White Blend
Region: Alentejano
Country: Portugal
Bottle Size: 750ml
Producer: Susana Esteban
Susana Esteban

Susana Esteban launched her own project in 2009 after a two-year search across Alentejo for the right vineyards, eventually settling on two small sites that became the foundation of her earliest wines. In 2012 she was named Oenologist of the Year by Revista de Vinhos, the only woman to have received that honor, and her work since has focused on coaxing a more precise, mineral style of wine from the granite soils of Portalegre in northern Alentejo, a marked departure from the region's traditionally richer reputation.

Foudre is sourced from an eighty-year-old vineyard in the Serra de São Mamede, planted at 700 meters and farmed as a field blend of traditional local varieties. The grapes are hand-harvested in small crates with careful sorting, then fermented with native yeasts in a single 1,150-liter Alsatian foudre dating to 1961, the same cask Esteban once used for a collaborative project with a wine journalist. Because she owns only that one vessel, the wine ages in it for roughly sixteen to twenty months and is only produced in even-numbered years.

The result is intense and mineral, with aromas of dried herbs, white flowers, orchard fruit, and a touch of camphor. The palate is broad, deep, and bone dry, with bright acidity carrying a long, saline finish. It pairs well with fried foods, fresh seafood, or braised dishes.

95 Points
"The 2022 Foudre is only the third vintage after the initial 2018. It was produced with a field blend of traditional varieties from the Serra de São Mamede, from a centenary plot at 700 meters in altitude on granite soils. It fermented with indigenous yeasts in the same 1,150-liter Alsatian foudre from 1961 that was used for the previous vintage and for the Sidecar wine produced in collaboration with journalist Jorge Lucky. It matured in that foudre for a period of 20 months. It has a serious and elegant nose with the classical dry herbs and flowers, a touch of camphor and white fruit. It comes in at a moderate 12.5% alcohol, keeping a pH of 3.19 and 5.9 grams of acidity, and has a bone-dry finish. It's balanced, fresh, tasty and very clean. This has turned into an icon in Portugal, as both vintages have received very high scores from the local press. 1,349 bottles produced. It was bottled in August 2024."
—Luis Guttierez-Wine Advocate
Appellation: Alentejano
Vintage: 2022
Variety: White Blend
Region: Alentejano
Country: Portugal
Bottle Size: 750ml
Producer: Susana Esteban