Casal Figueira Red 2019

The wines Casal Figueira are produced from old vineyards of Vital, grape variety autochthonous from the North side of Montejunto Mountain where soil, climate and grape variety are in perfect adequation for centuries. Practically unknown, this grapevariety was voted to extinction though its aleatory implantation on the limestone and due to its proximity to the Atlantic coast provides an exceptionally fresh and mineral character. It appears in old gobelet vineyards, aged between 50 and 100 years and all the work is made manually by old people from the local villages, to do their own house wine, knowing of this cultural tradition from his childhood.

António Carvalho (1967-2009) was the first winemaker to make and bottle wine of Vital and put it into commercer in the Casal Figueira - Vinhas Velhas 2008. Learning from his experience since 1991 with French and Portuguese grape varieties and the practice of biodynamic, since 2007 that he began working exclusively with portuguese autochthonous grape varieties like the Touriga Nacional for the reds (from Douro) and the Vital (from Lisboa) for the whites, António was a pioneer its his search for authentic and original wines, the ones that could express the lost identity of the region of Lisboa.

During the harvest of 2009, António deceased unexpectelly due to heart failure, leaving to his wife, Marta Soares and his children, the fermenting wines in the barrels.

Sharing with him the winemaking for over ten years and with the help of good friends, she has managed to continue the Casal Figueira wines, in honour to his memory and to a passion that has joined people together since its beggining.