At the entrance of Adega Cooperativa de Ponte de Lima there is a line of tractors loaded with vats and tin cans full of grapes. We are in the final stage of harvesting white grapes. From there, the Loureiro wine will come out, which, starting in January, will be in the wine cellars of many Portuguese – and not only.
But until the grape that arrives on top of tractors and small trucks turns into wine, there is still a complex and interesting process.
Tractors line the entrance to the Adega Cooperativa. Photo: Paulo Jorge Magalhães / O MINHO
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Tractors come in at the turn. The membership card is read. A probe enters the vats and takes a sample that gives the probable degree of alcohol. Then, the receipt indicating the discharge pier is issued, according to the degree of alcohol and the quality of the grape.
Probe takes a sample of the grapes to determine the degree of alcohol. Photo: Paulo Jorge Magalhães / O MINHO
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However, before moving on to the next phase of the process, remember that there has been previous work.
To set the harvest date, Adega Cooperativa de Ponte de Lima collects berries from winegrowers in a representative quantity to understand the evolution of the grape.
Probe takes a sample of the grapes to determine the degree of alcohol. Photo: Paulo Jorge Magalhães / O MINHO
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“We made more than 600 harvests to set a harvest date”, explains O MINHO Ricardo Silva, engineer responsible for supporting members in the viticulture area. “We see the evolution week by week and we plan a harvest date”.
The grape starts with a very high level of acidity and little sugar, then the values start to invert and it is important to catch them in the spot.
Ricardo Silva, engineer responsible for supporting members in the viticulture area. Photo: Paulo Jorge Magalhães / O MINHO
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“It’s complicated, because we have to set the harvest date too early to inform all members of the dates we have scheduled for them to come here”, stresses Ricardo Silva, noting that “this year went well”.
“We were right on target”, reinforces the engineer, adding that the Ponte de Lima Cooperative even started “earlier than most wineries” (on September 8) to receive the grapes from the associates.
First, it is the pre-harvest call, with the selected producers – who were accompanied by the viticulture department – and then it is general.
“The associate makes the appointment consistent with the quality of the grape and the availability of labor, which is a difficulty that is also encountered at this time of year,” says Ricardo Silva.
“Loureiro is a brand from Ponte de Lima”
The trucks go to the respective docks, where the teams wait to hoist the vats and the tins and dump them on the scales. The grapes are weighed, a receipt is issued to deliver to the partner with the identification of the taxpayer number.
Tractors go to the respective docks to unload the grapes. Photo: Paulo Jorge Magalhães / O MINHO
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Tractors go to the respective docks to unload the grapes. Photo: Paulo Jorge Magalhães / O MINHO
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Tractors go to the respective docks to unload the grapes. Photo: Paulo Jorge Magalhães / O MINHO
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The destemmer separates the berries from the rest of the bunch. The grape then goes to the press. “The pressing is done smoothly”, points out Ricardo Silva, which allows for a better quality and flavor of the wine.
Teams empty vats and tins for scales. Photo: Paulo Jorge Magalhães / O MINHO
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Teams empty vats and tins for scales. Photo: Paulo Jorge Magalhães / O MINHO
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Teams empty vats and tins for scales. Photo: Paulo Jorge Magalhães / O MINHO
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Teams empty vats and tins for scales. Photo: Paulo Jorge Magalhães / O MINHO
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Teams empty vats and tins for scales. Photo: Paulo Jorge Magalhães / O MINHO
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Teams empty vats and tins for scales. Photo: Paulo Jorge Magalhães / O MINHO
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The must – the liquid part – is being extracted into the vats where it will ferment, while the solid part of the grape – from which the marcs and spirits come out – goes out on conveyors to the outside of the cellar.
The pleasant smell emanating from the vats gives account of the different stages of fermentation – the earlier the fresher and tastier the aroma. In the more evolved, the aroma so characteristic of Loureiro is already well felt.
Grapes are ‘destemmed’. Photo: Paulo Jorge Magalhães / O MINHO
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Grapes are ‘destemmed’. Photo: Paulo Jorge Magalhães / O MINHO
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This variety is the ex-libris of the Cooperative and represents 95% of the whites produced there. The rest is divided into the Trajadura, Arinto, Fernão Pires and Alvarinho varieties.
In the reds, which represent around 25% of the Adega’s production, Vinhão is predominant, but there are also Borraçal, Espadeiro and Espadeiro de Basto. Some of them are also used for Rosé that the Cooperative started to bet on four years ago.
Grape is pressed to extract the must. Photo: Paulo Jorge Magalhães / O MINHO
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“Loureiro is a brand from Ponte de Lima. It has a long history ”, begins by explaining Ricardo Silva, giving an account of the specificities of this variety in the Lima valley, namely in that village“ where there is greater production ”.
“We have a very strong Atlantic influence here. The Lima valley is very open to the sea, and the freshness that comes from it influences the production of grapes, which, consequently, will be marked in the production of wines ”, contextualizes. “It is a very aromatic and very refreshing variety. And Ponte de Lima is Loureiro’s house, is where we get the best out of the grape variety ”.
Loureiro grape in BC Cincinnato da Costa’s “O Portugal Vinícola”. Photo: Paulo Jorge Magalhães / O MINHO
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References to this grape variety are more than a hundred years old, mentioned in BC Cincinnato da Costa’s “O Vinícola Portugal”, from 1900, whose commemorative edition of the I Centenary is prominently on the shelves of the administrative area of the Cellar. On the walls are displayed diplomas for the participation of members in the Universal Exhibition in Paris in the late 19th century.
Wort is extracted into the vats where it is fermented. Photo: Paulo Jorge Magalhães / O MINHO
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Wort is extracted into the vats where it is fermented. Photo: Paulo Jorge Magalhães / O MINHO
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“It is a white grape variety widely grown in the municipalities of Arco de Valdevez, Vila Nova de Cerveira, Ponte do Lima, Ponte da Barca, Melgaço, Monção, Caminha, Vila do Conde and Póvoa de Varzim. (…) It is one of the sweetest grape varieties in Minho, showing even greater saccharine wealth than Doçar, which among the red grape varieties is one of the most saccharine ”, reads in“ O Portugal Vinícola ”about Loureiro.
Variety of wines from Adega Cooperativa de Ponte de Lima. Photo: Paulo Jorge Magalhães / O MINHO
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This year’s wine will be good, says Ricardo Silva: “We are expecting, but due to the first impressions we exchanged with the winemaking department, we are waiting for a very, very good year in terms of quality. We started the harvest at the right time and we are waiting for great Loureiro wines ”.
Loureiro wine for masses. Photo: Paulo Jorge Magalhães / O MINHO
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Loureiro means so much to the Adega Cooperativa de Ponte de Lima that it even produced a mass wine with this variety – which has to be approved by the ecclesiastical authorities.
It was a request made by the recently deceased bishop of Viana do Castelo, Anacleto Oliveira. “He liked Loureiro and there was no Loureiro for masses”, recalls the president of Adega Cooperativa, Celeste Patrocínio.
Harvest in pandemic times
The prospect of excellent Loureiro wine is the best news in a very complicated year because of the pandemic. “In the months of April and May we suffered a huge, irrecoverable break”, notes the president, adding that from June onwards sales returned to “last year’s values”.
Celeste Patrocínio, president of Adega Cooperativa de Ponte de Lima. Photo: Paulo Jorge Magalhães / O MINHO
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In addition to the drop in sales, the pandemic forced a “very complex” process of adapting to new and demanding health rules. Adega created the contingency plan as early as March and, for the harvest, created a recommendation guide for wine growers and another intern.
Diploma of participation of Adega’s associate in the Universal Fair of Paris. Photo: Paulo Jorge Magalhães / O MINHO
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Asked about Adega Cooperativa’s billing volume, Celeste Patrocínio prefers not to advance amounts. “We only make wine with grapes from our associates. Exclusively. Which means that we are always dependent on nature. We can have six million liters, or five or four, depending on the year. The average is around six million liters, but varies every year ”, says the official.
Ponte de Lima Cooperative Winery. Photo: Paulo Jorge Magalhães / O MINHO
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With about 2,000 associates, Adega Cooperativa receives grapes from large producers as well as small ones that only take “a pipinha”, highlights Celeste Patrocínio. “A large company does not seek wine from a small producer just for the work and costs it has”, he stresses.
“The good thing about the cooperative is that we give people freedom. The small producer has an option, Adega offers that possibility [de vender o vinho]”, Complements Ricardo Silva.
“Our red is very coveted”
However, the white grapes are all already inside doors, followed by the reds. “Now, as there are fewer red wines in the Vinhos Verdes region, ours is very coveted. We sell all red wine even with the pandemic ”, stresses the president of Adega Cooperativa.
Ponte de Lima Cooperative Winery. Photo: Paulo Jorge Magalhães / O MINHO
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The reds will start to be commercialized in December, the whites in January. They will refresh the palate of many Portuguese, but also of many foreigners.
The Adega Cooperativa de Ponte de Lima exports to the United States (where rosé is doing well), Canada, Colombia, Brazil (small amount due to the country’s political instability), United Kingdom, Germany, France (“only for the Portuguese community and we sell well ”, points out the president), Holland, Russia (where he is selling“ a lot ”), Poland, Japan (“ a very demanding market ”) and Sweden (who is buying Vinhão).
Adega Cooperativa wines can be found in other countries through its exporting customers.
It is Ponte de Lima – in this case, literally – at the mouths of the world.
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