On June 7th (Tuesday), the Alvarinho brand Dona Paterna invites you to celebrate Monção & Melgaço Day at the Miradouro do Castelo restaurant, in Castro Laboreiro. At lunch or dinner, all customers will be treated to a glass of Dona Paterna Alvarinho wine.
June 7 marks the achievement of producers in the sub-region of Monção and Melgaço. On June 7, 2017, the Exclusive Guarantee Seal for Monção and Melgaço was created, certified by the Viticulture Commission of the Vinho Verde Region. Since then, all wines that have the Vinho Verde designation of Origin, from grapes harvested and vinified in the Monção and Melgaço sub-region, with mention of this on the label, and bottled by agents of the sub-region, can use this seal that certifies the authenticity and genuineness of the products from Monção and Melgaço, as a way of guaranteeing that it is this sub-region that is the origin of the Alvarinho variety with unique characteristics.
«The sub-region of Monção and Melgaço has natural microclimate and soil conditions that make it a unique terroir in the world. Monção and Melgaço is the origin of Alvarinho. We, producers, have to know how to leverage what the territory gives us, and that’s a lot. We are able to make excellent wines from here, recognized all over the world.”, says producer Carlos Codesso, considering that “this initiative is intended to be a way to offer visitors to the territory, as well as the population, with the best that it has, which is the alvarinho and the excellent gastronomy, combined with the nature so characteristic of the Alto Minho, where we are located.»
The Alvarinho Dona Paterna wine is a classic.
A nectar full of delicacy, freshness and minerality, with delicate white fruit, citrus, saline tones and flowers. Ideal as an aperitif or to accompany seafood, fish dishes or poultry dishes. It should be drunk between 10-11ºC.
With this action, the Dona Paterna brand is once again investing in synergies with local producers. «It only makes sense to create experiences that involve the territory. The various agents that work here. The sub-region only makes sense that way, and for that we have to work together. The visitor, the customer, does not want just an experience or product, but a variety of experiences.”, considers Carlos Codesso. Those who visit the Miradouro do Castelo restaurant on this day will also receive another treat from the Dona Paterna brand, as a way of thanking them for choosing the sub-region of Monção & Melgaço.
The Miradouro do Castelo Restaurant is the oldest in the village of Castro Laboreiro in the Peneda mountains, in the heart of the Peneda-Gerês National Park. The most popular dishes on the menu are castrejo smoked meat (as a starter), cod à D. António or with cornbread, oven-baked kid, and for dessert bucho doce or rice pudding. Address: Vila de Castro Laboreiro, 4960-061, Melgaço. Reservations can be made by calling 251 465 469.
A unique terroir in the world
Thanks to the Atlantic exposure and a climate characterized by high rainfall, atmospheric humidity, mild temperatures and small thermal amplitudes, the Alvarinho variety reaches its maximum potential in this terroir.
Alvarinho wine is a noble wine. This variety is only produced up to 200 meters of altitude, and it is here that this variety finds the ideal conditions for cultivation and maturation. Hence its rarity and low production. Monção e Melgaço is not only the birthplace, but also the home of Alvarinho.
The sub-region of Monção e Melgaço was created in 1908, part of the Vinho Verde Region, but the Alvarinho variety has existed in Portugal for over 700 years.
