A spotlight on the Dão region, currently making some of Portugal’s most interesting wines
Portugal is a diverse wine country, and of late it has been making increasingly accomplished wines. In the north we have the Minho region, home to Vinho Verde: whites from here used to be light, a bit fizzy and with some sugar, but now there are some serious dry whites from the likes of the Alvarinho, Loureiro and Avesso grape varieties. Move inland and there’s the Douro, famous for Port, but now home to an increasing band of ambitious table wines in both red and white. Down south we have the Alentejo, with accomplished blends of interesting grape varieties, and even a revival of clay vessels – the talha wines. To the coast there’s Lisboa, vastly improved over the last couple of decades, and it’s a similar story for the Tejo region. And sitting below the Minho we have the Beiras, with two of Portugal’s most exciting fine wine regions, Bairrada and the Dão.
It’s the Dão that’s the focus of this article. A region defined by granitic soils, a moderate climate that doesn’t get too hot, and an area where there’s enough rain but not too much. Rolling hills, fringed by mountains, create ideal terroirs for making balanced, accomplished wines. Vineyards aren’t back to back here: this creates a biodiverse landscape, which is good for sustainability.
Some people have described the Dão region as Portugal’s Burgundy, and the comparison is apt. Both reds and whites show a sense of balance and elegance when made well, and they are bottled in the Burgundy shape bottle.
Traditionally, wines have been blends, but of late the grape varieties have begun to be used as hooks, especially the most famous white variety, Encruzado.
The key red varieties are Touriga Nacional, Alfrocheiro, Jaen (the same as Spain’s Mencia), Tinta Roriz (Tempranillo) and Baga (the red grape of Bairrada). Whites are Encruzado, Cerceal Branco, Bical, Arinto and Malvasia.
The key to understanding these wines lies in the geography of the region. Dão is surrounded by mountains, and the vineyards themselves are at altitudes ranging from 200–900 m. This means that the region is protected to a degree from the vagaries of the Atlantic weather system to the west, but not fully exposed to the harsh continental climate to the east. As a result, rainfall is high, but most of this falls in the winter months, leaving mostly hot, dry weather for most of the grape growing season. The altitude also helps temper the heat and allows the grapes to retain their all-important natural acidity.
So this climate, coupled with the granitic soils, creates terrain perfect for making fine, elegant wines with good acid. And, as with so much of Portugal, the relatively untapped potential is now beginning to be realized on a large scale.
If you get a chance to visit Dão, you’ll probably have to look hard to find the vineyards. For an important wine region like this it comes as a bit of a surprise that vineyards don’t dominate the landscape. Just 5% of the region is under vine, with pockets of vines planted in clearings in the pine and eucalyptus forests clothing the hilly terrain. It is still a common sight to see smallholdings with vines planted around the perimeter of small vegetable patches. Large co-ops from the region have traditionally dealt with literally hundreds of growers, some with just a few bucketfulls of grapes – not ideal for quality viticulture.
THE WINES
Casa de Santar Vinha dos Amores Blanc de Blancs 2017 Dão, Portugal
12.5% alcohol. This is traditional method sparkling made with Encruzado. It’s fresh and bright with nice acidity and a pithy edge to the pear and green apple fruit, with a bit of citrus. Linear and nicely compact, with lovely fruit focus. 90/100
Textura Pura Branco 2022 Dão, Portugal
12.5% alcohol. A blend of Encruzado, Bical and Cerceal Branco from100 year old vineyards. This is textural and fine with lovely fine spicy detail, showing pear ad peach flourishes as well as crystalline citrus fruit. It’s not heavy, but there’s lots of flavour. Fine and expressive. 93/100
Quinta da Gândara Grande Reserva Branco Encruzado 2020 Dão, Portugal
13.5% alcohol. This is an intriguing wine made from the Encruzado variety, with appealing notes of candlewax, grapefruit pith, vanilla and ripe pear fruit, with some subtle toastiness and fine spices on the finish. This has a lot of immediate appeal: it’s a very stylish barrel-fermented white, but there’s also some complexity here. It’s just so likeable. 92/100
Castelo de Azurara Encruzado Grande Reserva 2022 Dão, Portugal
13% alcohol. Attractive and fruity with appealing bright pear fruit with a touch of citrus, and good weight on the palate. Well balanced with some waxy, spicy complexity under the fruit. This is easy, but there’s a touch of seriousness. 89/100
Soito Encruzado 2024 Dão, Portugal
13.5% alcohol. Bright, expressive and lemony, but with some appealing tropical passionfruit notes on the nose as well as crisp citrus. It’s fruity, pure and lively on the palate with amazing approachability and lovely vivid fruit. A real crowd-pleaser, but still really well balanced and energetic. 91/10the fruit. Melon and aniseed, showing some complexity. Lots to like about this impactful wine. 92/100
Quinta das Maias Branco 2023 Dão, Portugal
13% alcohol. There’s real finesse here with a nice chalky edge to the focused pear and citrus fruit. It has some mid-palate depth with notes of sake and aniseed, then finishes fresh, pure and fine. This has really nice poise. Ripe but so well balanced, and quite fine. 94/100
Quinta de Lemos Dona Paulette Branco 2021 Dão, Portugal
13.5% alcohol. This is textural and expressive, with almond and pear as well as some fine spicy notes. There’s some richness here but also good balance, with a smooth flow across the palate. Really nice sleek texture, finishing rich and finely spiced. Nice sophistication here. 92/100
Terras de Santo António Grande Reserva Encruzado 2023 Dão, Portugal
14% alcohol. This is a rich, boldly textured white, but there’s some freshness, too. Bold and rich with a touch of spicy oak under the focused pear and peach fruit, finishing with a citrus flourish. Hints of aniseed and chamomile on the finish. Nicely balanced in this rich style. Not as vivid and incisive as some Encruzados, but rich and gastronomic. 91/100
Magnum Wines Envelope Dão Branco 2019 Portugal
13.5% alcohol. In a big, heavy, deep-punted bottle, this is a serious Dão Branco, offering bold pear and peach fruit with some crystalline citrus and also some spicy oak. It’s refined and potentially long lived, with nice intensity. Some stony minerality, too. Stylish and quite modern, with potential for development. 93/100
Quinta das Maias Single Estate Branco 2023 Dão, Portugal
13% alcohol. This is a blend of Malvazia Fina, Cerceal Branco and Encruzado from western foothills of the Serra d’Estrela. Lovely crystalline citrus fruit here with lovely green apple and pear as well as a slight saltiness. This has beautiful delicacy and refinement, showing the influence of granitic soils. Really impressive. 94/100
Quinta Dona Sancha Cerceal Branco 2022 Dão, Portugal
13% alcohol. This is really characterful, with toast, honey, lime and pear on the nose, and a vivid palate with good acidity, powerful citrussy fruit and then a lovely taut, mineral streak, together with well-integrated spicy oak. It’s powerful and dense, but has freshness with lovely fruit intensity meshing well with the savoury oak notes. Lively, with a long future ahead of it. 93/100
Morgado Silgueros Touriga Nacional 2021 Dão, Portugal
13.5% alcohol. From the Silgueros cooperative. Really appealing floral, aromatic nose with sweet cherries and berries as well as a hint of olive tapenade. On the palate this is fresh and juicy with nice brightness, showing a core of ripe berry fruits with some notes of pepper, dried herbs and tar in the background. Very Touriga Nacional, and quite delicious. 93/100
Quinta da Ponte Pedrinha Touriga Nacional 2018 Dão, Portugal
13.5% alcohol. At almost seven years old this is now in a good place, with some tar and spice as well as sweet plum and black cherry fruit. There’s a bit of pepper and olive savouriness, and it finishes juicy and fresh. Drinking so well, and captures Touriga Nacional so well. 92/100
Opta Reserva 2021 Dão, Portugal
13% alcohol. This is a blend of Touriga Nacional, Alfrocheiro and Tinta Roriz, and spends 9 months in oak. This is ripe and rich with nice spicy depth, as well as a hint of cedary oak, complementing the bold, focused cherry and berry fruits nicely. Midweight and quite polished, this is drinking very well now, with a spicy sheen to the fruit. 90/100
Carlos Lucas Ribeiro Santo Cimento 2021 Dão, Portugal
13.5% alcohol. 90 year old vines, raised in cement. This is powerful and concentrated but also very fresh with bold black cherry and blackberry fruit as well as good acidity and nice tannic structure. Brooding and dense but never heavy. This has some mineral, gravelly depth and there’s lots of potential for development. 94/100
Quinta de Reis Vinha de Reis Touriga Nacional 2020 Dão, Portugal
13% alcohol. Concentrated and dense with lovely black cherry and blackcurrant fruit with some pepper and graphite notes as well as subtle tar. There’s a nice savouriness here as well as robust dark fruits. Ripe but focused. 94/100
Adega de Penalva Touriga Nacional 2022 Dão, Portugal
13.5% alcohol. Lovely aromatics of black cherries, tar and pepper with a hint of rubber. Nice reduction. Very Touriga Nacional in character. Slightly rustic palate with a grippy edge to the sweet, ripe blackberry and black cherry fruits with firm tannins and notes of tar and earth. 91/100
Cabriz Reserva 2019 Dão, Portugal
13.5% alcohol. This is a blend of Touriga Nacional, Aragonez and Alfrocheiro. This has a brooding nose of black cherries and blackberries with some olive and pepper. It’s really refined and quite typical. The palate is grippy and grainy with some savoury elements brewing under the sweet cherry and berry fruit with a nice spicy, peppery, dried herb dimension. This still has good tannins, and is developing well, but there’s no hurry to drink this up. 93/100
Fidalgas de Santar Grande Reserva 2012 Dão, Portugal
14% alcohol. This is Touriga Nacional, Jaen, Alfrocheiro and Aragonez. With some age this has a complex, savoury, spicy nose with sweet black fruits as well as herbs and mint. The palate is broad and complex, showing ripe red and black fruits with some savoury spiciness and well resolved woody notes. Quite Autumnal. Drinking really well now. 91/100
Adega de Penalva Tinta Pinheira 2022 Dão, Portugal
13.5% alcohol. This is from the Penalva co-op and it’s from an old grape variety from the region, Tinta Pinheira, also known as Rufete. Beautifully aromatic with sweet red cherries and herbs, as well as a spicy dimension. The palate is bright with a core of focused red cherry fruit and some tart cranberry notes, as well as aniseed and herbs. Juicy and focused and quite brisk, this is a distinctive expression of the Dão with lovely elegance. 93/100
Quintas de Sirlyn Reserva Jaen 2017 Dão, Portugal
13% alcohol. This is sweetly aromatic with rich, warm, spice-laden cherry fruit as well as some tar and herbs. The palate is bright and tart with good acidity, and fresh cherry and raspberry fruit, with a bit of grippy structure. Focused and bright, with good structure, this has a touch of rusticity, but it’s nicely gastronomic. 90/100
