C.N. KOPKE 10 YEARS OLD TAWNY PORT 750ML

Porto Kopke (Cop-key) is universally recognized as the first Port house in Port wine history. Kopke was founded in 1638 by the Germans Cristiano and Nicolaus Kopke. In 2013 Porto Kopke is celebrating 375 years of continuous production of fine wine from its famous Quinta Sao Luiz._x000D_
The house offers excellent examples of cask-aged and bottled-aged ports. Most wines are available in full and half bottles and showcase the distinctive hand-painted bottles long the tradition in the Port region._x000D_
Additionally Kopke is the global leader for Colheita also known as/u0022/gsingle year tawny ports/u0022/g exceeding 25% of the global share of this high quality classification of Port. No wonder that these vintage dated ports rank among the top releases since grapes are harvested from very old vines (up to 100 years old) yielding small amounts of very intense fruit from Kopke’s famous Font Santa vineyard at the Quinta Sao Luiz with its many gold-medal winning vintages. The Qunita of Sao Luiz is located in the left bank of the Douro River near Pinhao in the parish of Tabuaco. It was acquired by Kopke in 1922 and in 1999 an investment of 1.6 million € made the estate one of Porto’s most modern facilities._x000D_
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KOPKE 10 YEARS OLD TAWNY _x000D_
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VINE _x000D_
The rows of vines are traditionally planted across the slope in horizontal terraces. More recently vines have been planted up the slope (called “vinha ao alto” meaning vertically planted)._x000D_
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SOIL _x000D_
Schist-sandstone (greywacke) interspersed with granite in some place_x000D_
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HEIGHT _x000D_
Up to 600 metres_x000D_
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GRAPE VARIETIES _x000D_
Traditional Douro grape varieties_x000D_
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WINEMAKING _x000D_
Hand-picked at the optimum time the grapes are then destemmed crushed and converted into wine through a process of careful maceration to extract their colour tannins and aromas enhanced by constant churning during fermentation. This takes place in vats (lagares) at a controlled temperature (between 28-30°C) until the right degree of sweetness (baume) is achieved. At this point grape brandy is added to create the final fortified wine. A wine of high quality made by blending wines of different harvests to achieve the array of sensory qualities that are typical of these aged tawny Port wines. These wines have each matured in oak casks for varied periods of time with the average age of all the wines in the blend defining the age on the label. The resulting blend expresses the characteristics given by the ageing in wood._x000D_
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TASTING NOTES_x000D_
An appealing golden colour with an amber rim. Elegant and complex it shows aromas of spi-ce with prevailing notes of dried fruit and elegant hints of wood and honey. Smooth and rou-nd on the palate it shows complexity amidst intense flavours of dried fruit. An excellent persistent finish.