Luis Seabra Douro Xisto Cru Branco 2021

	From Portuguese winemaking icon Luis Seabra
	Complex, focused and extremely refined
	Embarrasses many a white Burgundy

Description

Avant garde winemaker Luis Seabra couldn't have chosen a better name for his breathtakingly beautiful white Douro. Xisto is Portuguese for schist and refers to the typical Douro terroir that the wine reflects. Cru is not only a nod to the French classification system, but also Portuguese for 'raw', which is a wonderful epitome of Luis' pure, honest, non-interventionist approach.

Luis' mission is to show that the Douro – traditionally famous for its fortified port wines – with its schists and granite soils has the ultimate terroir for the production of top-class still white and red wines. To let that terroir speak as clearly as possible in his wines, Luis chooses to work with as little make-up as possible during the vinification process.

Luis harvests the grapes (predominantly rabigato, supplemented with other local varieties) by hand in various plots in the eastern Douro Superior. The common denominator between the different plots is a soil consisting of mica schist. The average age of the vines is 80 years old. After the harvest, Luis lets the grapes ferment spontaneously in used barriques. Subsequently, the wine matures for a year in large barrels and another five months in tank. The wine does not undergo lactic acid fermentation and does not receive bâtonnage.

And so Luis proves that 'less' is definitely 'more' in this case. The Xisto Cru is an impressive, layered and refined white wine, with notes of citrus and stone fruit, flint, cream and subtle oak, an unprecedented precision and focus and an endless aftertaste. In short, Chablis Grand Cru level from the Douro! At its best with fish, crustaceans and shellfish, or soft, creamy cheeses.