Quinta do Vale Meão was established in 1877 by Dona Antònia Adelaide Ferreira. She is the Port equivalent of the widow Clicquot in Champagne, except instead of popularizing a wine making technique she fought phyloxera, established almost 30 estates (Quintas), modernized and helped save the Port region if not all of Portuguese wine. She was an amazing. Now in the late 1990’s her great-great-grandson, Francisco “Xito” Olazabal, took one of her estates and created a benchmark dry red from this historic region. Xisto has been awarded wine-maker of the year and this bottling regularly appears on top 100 lists. This is a blend of 55% Touriga Franca, 35% Touriga Nacional, 5% Tinta Roriz and 5% Tinta Barroca. After being crushed, the grapes were cooled down and trodden by foot during four hours in granite lagares and then transferred to small-refrigerated stainless steel vinifying vats. Each grape variety and vineyard is vinified separately. The final blend is only made before bottling. All the wine was matured in French Allier oak barriques (225 litres), 60% new and 40% second usage. This is a chance to taste a great dry red wine from a great Port vintage.