The Quevedo family’s Dry White Port is a classic expression from the Douro Valley, expertly crafted by winemaker Cláudia Quevedo, who represents the fifth generation of a family with deep viticultural roots in the region, particularly around São João da Pesqueira. Cláudia, a formally trained oenologist, steers the modern era of the Quevedo brand, which was established only after the 1986 legislation allowed Douro growers to bottle and export their own Port.
Quevedo maintains a foundational commitment to sustainability and quality across their 112 hectares of family vineyards, integrating these practices into their production chain. The viticulture is characterized by hand-harvesting the traditional white Douro varieties—a blend dominated by Viosinho, Malvasia Fina, Gouveio, Rabigato, and Moscatel Galego. Importantly, the grapes are largely dry-farmed, a practice that enhances the concentration and resilience of the fruit while conserving water resources in the hot, arid Douro climate. In the cellar, a nod to natural methods is seen in using native yeasts for fermentation, allowing for a more authentic expression of the estate’s terroir before the fortification process occurs. The process for this specific Port is a "bica aberta" style—the grapes are fully destemmed and crushed. Still, the must undergo a slow, temperature-controlled fermentation without skin contact to achieve a cleaner, less oxidized profile before adding grape spirit halts fermentation, leaving a lower residual sugar level consistent with a 'dry' classification. The Port is then aged for approximately three years in stainless steel tanks, ensuring the retention of primary fruit character, followed by a gentle filtration before bottling.
This young, unaged Dry White Port presents with a pale straw colour and a distinctly fresh, aromatic complexity. The nose is inviting and vibrant, offering primary fruit aromas of ripe pear, golden apple, and sweet peach, intermingled with delicate honeyed notes and a subtle floral lift. On the palate, the lower residual sugar content provides a drier, more elegant entry than its sweeter counterparts, creating a desirable tension and sharp freshness. The flavours mirror the aroma, showcasing a purity of fruit—poached pear and baked apple—balanced by a lively acidity and a hint of spice, culminating in a clean, precise, and lingering dry finish that makes it ideally suited for service chilled as an aperitif or in the traditional Port Tonic cocktail.
