Central Portugal

Question 1

Barriada

Answer 1

Named after the Portuguese word for clay (Bairro). Damp and rainy maritime climate. Heavy clay soils with high limestone content. Red wines are usually 100% Baga, a local variety, with some similar characteristics to Nebbiolo (restrained fruit, high acid, high tannin, but tannin tends to be quite harsh). Traditionally fermented with stalks, highly tannic, and some wines needed decades to be approachable. Modern styles are less tannic, high in acidity with pepper and berry flavours.

Bical- local white grape giving high- acid, nutty whites.

Question 2

Ribatejo

Answer 2

North-east of Lisbon, alluvial river plains. Maritime influence and cooling morning mists around the Tagus estuary. Inland the temperature is relatively hot. Broad range of soils. River plains are rich alluvial soils, left bank of the Tagus is clay with sandstone and limestone. From left bank of the river south and east the soils are sandy and poor.

Fernao Pires- Large yields of neutral white wine, mainly local market.

Castelao Frances (also called Perquita)- red with crisp acidity, raspberry fruit and firm tannins.

Question 3

Central Portugal- History (Bairrada)

Answer 3

• 18th: tannic reds from Bairrada very popular in Britain and sometimes blended with Port from Douro -> Marquis de Pombal ordered the uprooting of all Bairrada’s vineyards in 1756. It took 2 centuries to recover.
• 1970-80s: DOC and EU entry

Question 4

Central Portugal- Typography and Soils (Bairrada)

Answer 4

Directly west of Dao DOC; Heavy clay soils (Bairro in Portuguese)

Question 5

Central Portugal- Climate (Barriada)

Answer 5

Damp & rainy maritime climate. High vintage variation.

Question 6

Central Portugal- Grape Varieties- Red (Barriada)

Answer 6

Baga (2/3 of production)

• Vigorous variety, resistant to powdery mildew that ripens late and has a tendency to rot
• Deep coloured, hi acidity, hi tannins wines w restrained fruit intensity
• Tannins can be astringent if fermentation w stalks as still quite common.
• Good years -> ageworthy top reds

Others: Touriga Nacional, Cabernet Sauvignon & Merlot

Question 7

Central Portugal- Grape Varieties- White (Barriada)

Answer 7

Bical

• Local white grape
• High acidity nutty flavoured wines

Question 8

Central Portugal- Viticulture (Barriada)

Answer 8

Mainly smallholdings

Question 9

Central Portugal- Winemaking and Wine Styles (Barriada)

Answer 9

• Reds traditionally fermented with stalks (-> harsh tannins). Require decades to be approachable
• New style less tannic, hi in acidity with bell pepper and berry flavours. More immediate consumption.

Question 10

Central Portugal- Production (Barriada)

Answer 10

• 0.25m hl/yr
• Key producers:

o Caves Alianca – 10m btls/yr
- One of the largest family wineries; restructured since 90s with Michel Rolland as consultant

Question 11

Central Portugal- Typography and Soils (Ribatejo)

Answer 11

• North-east of Lisboa; known as Portugal’s orchard; either side of the Tejo river
• Broad range of soils with:
• fertile alluvial soils on the river plains
• clay with sandstone & limestone on Tejo’ left bank - sandy & poor soils south of the river

Question 12

Central Portugal- Climate (Ribatejo)

Answer 12

Maritime influence and cooling morning mists around the Tejo estuary. Hotter temperatures inland.

Question 13

Central Portugal- Grape Varieties- Red (Ribatejo)

Answer 13

Castelao aka Periquita

• Versatile vine that thrives in sandy soils but can adapt
• Wine with crisp acidity, raspberry fruit and firm tannins

Trincadeira

• Prone to rot -> performs better in hot, dry climate
• Wines are full bodied w aromas of plum, coffee & chocolate
• Commonly used for Port; mainly grown in Alentejo

Question 14

Central Portugal- Grape Varieties- White (Ribatejo)

Answer 14

Fernao Pires (40% of all plantings)

• Most planted white grape in Portugal
• Does well in relatively warm climates with large volumes of simple, honeyed, slightly spicy dry whites

Others: Malvasia Fina, Arinto

Question 15

Central Portugal- Viticulture (Ribatejo)

Answer 15

23,000ha recently restructured

Question 16

Central Portugal- Production (Ribatejo)

Answer 16

0.5m hl/yr w Falua Vinhos, project of oenologist Joao Portugal Ramos, dominating w 1.5m btls/yr.

Question 17

Dao

Answer 17

Região demarcada since 1908, this dop in north central Portugal produces some of the country’s most elegant, mineral red wines (see map under portugal). Locked in on three sides by granite mountains and sheltered from the Atlantic, Dão benefits from long, warm summers and abundant winter rainfall. (which supports the pine forests whose resin notes can be detected in mature Dão wines, especially reds, but also those made from encruzado). Granitic sandy soils are well drained (sometimes too well drained—water stress can prejudice ripening in the lead-up to harvest). Vineyards are stocked with a wealth of indigenous grape varieties, including Portugal’s flagship red grape touriga nacional which is thought to have originated here. For much of the second half of the 20th century however, the wines rarely lived up to expectations, a consequence of heavy-handed government intervention since the 1940s. In a laudable attempt to impose some form of organization on the highly fragmented, largely subsistence economy in the north of Portugal, the Salazar government introduced a programme of co-operativization. Ten co-operatives were built in Dão between 1954 and 1971 to much the same design. To make the programme work, the authorities passed legislation giving co-operatives the exclusive right to buy grapes. Private firms were effectively restricted to purchasing ready-made wine. The system served Dão badly. Wines became ever more standardized and, as co-operatives were poorly equipped and paid scant attention to hygiene, standards fell. This monopolistic legislation was felt to be incompatible with Portugal’s membership of the eu and the law institutionalizing Dão’s co-operatives was overturned in 1989. Some enterprising initiatives followed, led by sogrape, which built a modern winery in the heart of the region and an influential band of single estates whose rising numbers has helped consolidate Dão’s revival of fortunes. Although about 80% of Dão wines are still red, thanks to the modern era’s introduction of planting varietally blocked vineyards (traditional vineyards comprised field blends) high-quality Touriga Nacional, Tinta Roriz (tempranillo), Jaen (mencía), and alfrocheiro preto have become the mainstay of the region’s leading wines. Efforts are also underway to revive some of the region’s more obscure varieties. Alhough tannins are accentuated by the high acidity in the region’s wines, modern reds are fruitier—much less austere and tannic—than in the past when many wines suffered from excessively prolonged maceration with stalks and protracted ageing in old casks or cement tanks. New French oak and overripeness can mar terroir expression but the pendulum (in some quarters at least) is swinging back in favour of greater restraint. As for white wines, in line with national trends, they improved markedly in the early 21st century, becoming fruitier without sacrificing varietal complexity or the region’s hallmark freshness. Encruzado is without doubt the jewel in the crown, making ageworthy varietal wines that may be crisp and fragrant wines or more Burgundian if barrel fermentation is employed. Encruzado may also be blended with less structured varieties such as Malvasia Fina and Bical, known here as Borrado das Moscas (‘fly droppings’).