One of the most productive oenologists of the Alentejo region has proved to be one of the most stimulating ones. In Vidigueira, the center of the world he has chosen for himself, he vigorouslydefends the Portuguese vine varieties displaying an exuberant portfolio that has conquered the wine lovers.
After getting a degree in agricultural engineering, a post-graduation in Oporto and Australia and some years as an oenology professor and researcher, Paulo Laureano has become a consultant, contributing with unusual energy for the creation of dozens of wines, among which we can find some legendary ones - such as Mouchão- in the Alentejo region.
In the end of the millennium, with prophetic clarity, he took to himself 110 hectares, a bunch of Portuguese vine varieties, the prestige earned along years of remarkable creations and fulfilled the mission of sketching a set of contemporary, distinct and indispensable wines.
It is in Vidigueira, the village he loves the most in Alentejo, that Paulo Laureano grows his vine varieties, mainly Portuguese ones. Among the red:Alfrocheiro, Aragonês, Trincadeiraand Alicante Bouschet that so well adjusted to Alentejo; among the white: AntãoVaz, ArintoandRoupeiro.They thrive in a terroir of warm climate, scarce rain, poor soils (a unique spot of schist) and good solar exposures that allow the making of wines with ripe aromas and silky textures, with great minerality and freshness.
Paulo Laureano was also responsible for the recovery of a high quality ancient vine variety – the TintaGrossa. Rescued from oblivion it now integrates the first varietal, Paulo LaureanoTintaGrossa, a superpremium wine. Grenadine colored, with exotic wood, wild fruits and spices aroma it gives a smooth tasting, elegant with an obvious acidity and a long marked finish.
Other remarkable use of a Portuguese vine variety embellishes the Verdelho Maria Teresa Laureano, made from old graft nurseries from Ilha da Madeira. After fermentation, it ages under fine lees that give it unctuosity. The white flowers and tropical fruits aroma and the minerality of the Atlantic hints provide a well-balanced tasting.
It is only fair to highlight the AntãoVaz, present in several creations of the portfolio such as Paulo Laureano Reserve or the DoliumEscolhaBranco. In the Vidigueira terroir, this vine variety acquires a mineral and ripe expression that winds up in an explosion of freshness and gastronomical potential.
Among the red, Alfrocheiro is probably the one that stands out by the originality with which it develops in the terroir. With fresh fruit and spices aroma, it is exuberant, with lively tannins, freshness and wild blackberries. Its fullest expression can be tasted in the several editions of Paulo Laureano Genus Generationes Miguel Maria LaureanoAlfrocheiro, a very limited edition.
Finally, just one word for an iconic series of the author: the wines DoliumReserva and Escolha. The first is a blendof red vine varieties that is composed of several parcels of Aragonês, Trincadeira and Alicante Bouschet. Fermented in French oak barrels, it ages there for 18 months and in the bottle for 12. It has a grenadine color, hints of dark jam fruits, spices and tobacco leave aroma and gives a smooth tasting with balanced acidity, marked by the spices.
The white DoliumEscolha is, in the 2014 edition, anAntãoVaz varietal, aged in French oak barrels for 8 months with batonage followed by a year in the bottle. With an elegant tropical fruits aroma, strong minerality and spices, it is a soft, elegant, unctuous and structured wine, with a long and challenging finish.
For his remarkable career path as a consultant and designer of some dozens of the most exceptional wines, it is not difficult to anticipate a radiant future for the mission that Paulo Laureano has undertook in Vidigueira, in the deep lands of Alentejo. Being the expression of his strong personality, of an absolute respect for the terroir and the passion he consecrates to the discovery of the noblest expressions of the Portuguese vine varieties he loves so much, Paulo Laureano’s wines defy eternity.
