Sandeman Unfiltered Late Bottled Vintage Port 2015

LBV Port for grown ups! Unfiltered (best decanted, or pour carefully!) so nothing taken away. Lots of super rich liquidised berry fruits with intensity yet smooth drinkability.

Wine Maker Notes

2015 was a dry year for the majority of the vegetative cycle, the month of March receiving 50% less rainfall than usual. Between April and May, the average temperature was higher than average. Three heatwaves were recorded in June and July, with temperatures exceeding 40ºC and this impacted on the vine and the maturation of the grapes. These weather conditions resulted in the vegetative cycle being delayed by around one to two weeks.

The soil in the Douro Valley is made up of schist – a slate-like metamorphic rock that is rich in nutrients and has useful water retention properties. The vines are grown on terraces cut into the steep hillsides of the Douro Valley. The terraces are walled with cut schist to prevent erosion, otherwise torrential rains would wash loose stones down the slopes and into the river.

Sandeman LBV was produced by the traditional Port method, with a long, intense maceration during fermentation to extract tannin, colour and flavour from the skins. This was done both by foot-treading in traditional granite lagars (shallow vats), and by pumping over. Fermentation temperatures and densities were carefully monitored to choose the ideal moment to fortify. The wines remained in the Douro until the spring when they were transported to Vila Nova de Gaia to mature in large oak vats. The final blend was created from wines that had been carefully selected by regular tasting and analysis.