Adega Cooperativa de Monção
 Visiting Portugal's Vinho Verde region, part 3
 

The Adega Cooperativa de Monção is one of Portugal’s best co-operatives, making a decent range of wines at very good prices. Yes, the packaging is rather dated (and not really suited to the UK market), but the wines are very good.

We met with Antonino Barbosa, president of the Co-op (incidentally, his daughter Antonina is one of the winemakers with João Portugal Ramos’ impressive Falua winery in the Ribatejo).

There are 1600 growers in the co-op, many of whom have very small vineyard holdings. In all, the total area farmed by these growers is just 900 hectares. The price set by the co-op varies according to the variety (Alvarinho fetches the most, typically just over a Euro per kilo) and by the potential alcohol of the grapes (how ripe they are; in a cool region such as this, riper = better).

Varieties used here include Tajadura (the same as the Galician Treixadura; a speciality of the Monção subrejion) and Alvarinho (another speciality of Monção).

Production is around 5.5 million bottles/year, and harvest varies from 6000–9500 tons. It's not a pretty winery, but good quality co-ops like this are hugely valuable because they make good, typical wines that all can afford.

THE WINES

Adega de Monção Vinho Verde Branco 2007
Lemony, bright, fresh and minerality with hints of peach. Bright and delicious with some spritz. 86/100

Muralhas de Monção Vinho Verde Branco 2007
Lovely fresh, aromatic, fruity nose. Some peach/apricot richness on the palate as well as bright citrus fruit. 87/100

Alvarinho Deu la Deu Vinho Verde Branco 2007
Slightly sulfury, mineral  nose. The palate is bold and fruity with a nice citrussy edge to the peach and pear-like fruit. Bright, crisp and delicious. 88/100

Alvarinho Deu la Deu Estagiado 2006
The same as Deu la Deu but aged in barrel. Toast, vanilla and lemon on the nose. Creamy palate with noticeable oak as well as peachy fruit. Doesn’t work for me. 82/100

Adega de Monção Vinho Verde Tinto 2007
Vibrant, fresh raspberry and blackberry fruit. Vivid with a hint of meatiness. Juicy and fruity with some spritz and some green sappy notes. A lovely food wine with a strongly savoury character. 85/100

VINHO VERDE

Wines tasted as 11/08  
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