The Gouveio variety has historically been relevant in the Douro, especially for blends of white wines, mainly because it’s a variety with an excellent relationship between its acidity and its saccharine richness, giving rise to highly graded, well-structured and very acidic wines, which are therefore very fresh and have excellent conditions for ageing in the bottle.
These characteristics led to the spreading throughout the country, having established itself quite successfully in the Alentejo region, where it came to be called Verdelho.
But don't confuse it with the Verdelhos from Madeira or the Verdejos from Spain, which are completely different varieties.
These Verdelhos in the Alentejo or Gouveios in the Douro are the equivalent of Godellos in Spain and you can easily see in these wines the very personalized and intense aromatic profile, where notes of tropical fruit, chamomile, hay and dried flowers stand out. In addition to the great balance between alcohol and acidity, these wines have a good structure in the mouth and a slight bitterness that is very characteristic of the variety, giving it a certain exoticism and identity, but without detracting from the wine.
All this aromatic richness and structure, as well as the recent commitment of producers to release single varietal whites, leads us to believe that this will probably be the white grape of choice in the Douro, whose whites are traditionally blended wines from several varieties, such as Rabigato, Arinto, Códega, Viosinho and Gouveio.
It's also an important variety in the Alentejo, whether combined with the native Antão Vaz or as a monovarietal, given the region's tradition of releasing mono varietals of the best grapes in the best harvest years.
We've selected some 100% Gouveio Douro / Verdelho Alentejo whites, as well as some of the best examples of this variety blended with other white grapes of great oenological value.
These are all wines of excellence, and for those looking for whites with a more gastronomic profile or the so-called ageing whites, you'll find the perfect selection here.
