Quinta da Romeyra Espumante Bruto 2023
£26.25
The wine
Pale lemon. Expressive fresh apple and white stone fruit layered with subtle notes.
A traditional-method sparkling from Arinto, whose natural acidity makes it one of the better Portuguese grapes for the purpose. Bucelas is a tiny appellation given over almost entirely to Arinto, and it has a long history in Britain: the wine was shipped here as Lisbon Hock through the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and was a favourite of Wellington, who encountered it during the Peninsular War. Arinto holds acidity better than almost any Portuguese white, which is why it survived in a warm country and why it ages. Quinta da Romeyra work the Bucelas appellation, fifteen miles north-east of Lisbon.
The producer
Quinta da Romeyra
View all Quinta da Romeyra winesQuinta da Romeyra is a leading estate of Bucelas, the tiny, historic appellation just north of Lisbon devoted to the Arinto grape. The quinta has been instrumental in reviving this once-celebrated region, whose crisp whites were prized across Europe centuries ago.
The vineyards sit on limestone-clay slopes cooled by Atlantic breezes, ideal conditions for Arinto to retain its razor-sharp acidity and mineral bite. Careful, modern winemaking preserves the grape purity and translucent sense of place.
The range runs from the fresh, zesty Prova Regia to the barrel-aged, single-vineyard Morgado de Santa Catherina and a vibrant traditional-method sparkling, each a distinctive expression of Bucelas Arinto.
Crisp, mineral and thoroughly individual, Quinta da Romeyra offers some of Portugal most food-friendly and characterful whites, a rediscovered classic worth seeking out.
