# Branco de Talha (2025)

- **Producer:** António Maçanita
- **Colour:** white
- **Type:** still
- **Grapes:** Alicante Branco, Trincadeira-das-Pratas, Roupeiro, Rabo de Ovelha, Fernão Pires
- **Region:** Alentejo, Portugal
- **Style:** Classic
- **Alcohol:** 11.5%
- **Average price:** €22
- **Vegan:** No
- **Contains sulphites:** Yes
- **When to drink:** Now or Later
- **Serving temperature:** 10–12 °C
- **Aromas & flavours:** peach, apricot, lemon, grapefruit, fennel, herbaceous, resinous, biscuit, butter, honey, mushroom, forest floor

## About this wine

Branco de Talha is a remarkable historical recreation by revolutionary winemaker António Maçanita at Fitapreta. Sourced from the ancient, over 50-year-old Chão dos Eremitas vineyard at the southern foothills of Serra d’Ossa in Alentejo, this wine is a tribute to traditional Roman-era winemaking. Unlike modern amphora wines that rely on heavy skin contact, this white wine is crafted using the historic 'bica aberta' (open-spout) method, prioritizing freshness and mineral elegance over tannic extraction. The vineyard's unique granitic soils and natural mountain stream irrigation yield grapes of exceptional tension and character.

## Interesting facts

- The antique clay talhas used for fermentation date back to between 1906 and 1946 and are lined with natural pine resin and beeswax.
- Unlike most amphora whites, this wine is made with zero skin contact, reviving a nearly forgotten traditional Alentejo method.
- The grapes come from the historic Chão dos Eremitas vineyard, where vines are over 50 years old and naturally irrigated by mountain streams.

## Food pairing

This amphora-aged white wine thrives on its high natural acidity and unique earthy, resinous undertones. It pairs beautifully with dishes that mirror its forest-floor and mineral characteristics, such as those featuring wild mushrooms, truffles, and root vegetables. The lack of skin contact keeps the wine elegant and fresh, making it an excellent partner for delicate white fish and light poultry, while its texturized mid-palate can handle light cream sauces and earthy cheeses.

## Wine making process

The winemaking process begins with a manual night harvest of the field blend grapes. After careful sorting, the grapes undergo whole-cluster direct pressing without crushing (bica aberta). No sulfites or additives are introduced during the spontaneous fermentation, which occurs via native yeasts in antique Alentejo clay amphorae (talhas) dating from 1906 to 1946. These vessels are traditionally lined with a mixture of natural pine resin and beeswax. Only the second-press juices are used, and the wine is aged for six months on its fine lees inside the talhas before bottling, with no oak contact.