Adega Viúva Gomes Collares Tinto

Description

The wine region was demarcated in 1908, making it the second oldest demarcated region in the country. Located in a dune zone along the coast of the municipality of Sintra, between the mountains and the Atlantic Ocean, from Cabo da Roca to Magoito. The link between Colares and wine is lost in time, but it is known that during the Roman occupation wine was already produced in this area, and later in 1230 King D. Afonso III granted lands to nobles on the condition that they cultivate vineyards. Colares became famous in the late 19th century, specifically in 1865, when its greatest threat to world viticulture, phylloxera, devastated it. This tiny insect, originating from the Americas, began to arrive alive in Europe when travel times shortened due to the introduction of steam-powered ships. Interestingly, vineyards in Colares were the only ones that survived phylloxera, thanks to the depth of their roots, sometimes up to 8 metres, preventing the microbe from spreading as it did in other soils. Throughout Europe, except in this region, American rootstocks (resistant to the insect) grafted onto European grape varieties were used.