Portugal Flashcards
Are the climates of Portugal’s wine-growing areas all maritime?
No, much of inland is continental.
Large differences of average temperature accounts for diversity of wine styles in Portugal.
The seven regions from north to south are?
Vinho Verde Douro Dão Bairrada Tejo Palmela (Seúbal Peninsula) Alentejo
Talk about Vinho Verde.
North west Portugal. From north of the Douro up to river Minho (frontier with Spain). Largest region. Dramatically improving.
- moderate maritime climate
- granite bedrock, granite and sand topsoil
- high annual rainfall makes canopy management important. Traditional pergola now giving way to spur-trained VSP to give same airflow and allow for mechanisation.
Classic white Vinho Verde wines
- are pale lemon
- high acidity
- basic Vinho Verde low alcohol (8 to 11.5 % abv) - lower ones usually off dry.
- Vinho Verde labelled with a single variety, or one of the 9 subregions, or one of the 4 quality levels will have a higher minimum alcohol level up to a maximum potential alcohol of 14%.
[4 quality levels: Escolha, Grande Escolha, Superior, Colheita Selectionada].
Traditionally light effervescence came from MLF; this now avoided and CO2 injected.
- Grapes: Loueiro and Padernã
- Alvarinho made entirely from Alvarinho grapes and only in subregion of Monção e Melgaço (this can be up to 13% abv, has no CO2 and is relatively expensive)
Talk about light wines and DOC Douro.
Warm continental climate. Hotter and dryer in the east than the west.
- frosts in spring
- heavy downpours can disrupt both flowering and harvest
- schist bedrock which fractures vertically and allows roots deep penetration to water reserves
- steep terracing; labour intensive and therefore expensive
- the same 5 varieties as are used for port:
Touriga Nacional
Touriga Franca
Tinta Roriz (Tempranillo)
Tinta Barroca
Tinta Cão
plus many others.
Several varieties used for white including Arinto
Talk about Arinto.
Full name Arinto de Bucelas.
Portuguese white grape variety.
- most commonly seen in Bucelas (a tiny white DOP just north of Lisbon) where it is produced as a rare Portuguese sole variety wine
- as an ingredient in Vinho Verde it is known as Pedernã
- an ingredient too in the white wins of Douro
Talk about Dão.
A DOC south of Douro.
- mountainous and sheltered on all sides my mountains
- vines on lower slopes and gentler hills
- continental: hot summers but wide diurnal range; wet winters
- pine forests the resinous notes of which can be detected in mature Dao wines
- wide range of red and white varieties including Touriga Nacional (thought to have originated in Dão), Tinta Roriz (Tempranillo), Jaen (Mencia), and Alfrocheiro (this makes wines deep in colour with intense strawberry and blackberry aromas).
- Dão suffered badly under Salazar govt imposed monopoly of grape purchasing given to co-operatives. Overturned by EU in 1989.
White wines also improved - the star grape is Encruzado
- Encruzado used to make ageworthy varietal wines (Burgundian in style if barrel fermentation is employed), but also blended with Malvasia Fina and Bical
Talk about Bical
Portuguese white variety. Grown mainly in Dão and Bairrada.
- in Dão known as Borrado das Moscas (‘fly droppings’)
- has good acidity and some potential to age in bottle
Talk about Bairrada.
Immediately to the west of Dão and abutting it.
Maritime climate; heavy clay soils with high limestone content. Bairrada takes its name from Portuguese for clay.
Marquis de Pombal had its vines uprooted in 1756 when he delimited the Douro.
- used to pump out cheap wine to African colonies until 1974.
- 2,000 growers mostly on very small plots (900 sell to Sogrape for Mateus Rosé - Sogrape has large winery in the region)
- Baga the predominant variety (90% of dark skinned varieties). Its very high tannins and acidity tamed by lower yields and gentler extraction (stalks no longer automatically put in the fermentation).
- rule change in 2003 allowed blending more approachable varieties with Baga (including Cab Sav, Pinot Noir and white varieties) and this has helped too.
- good single variety Baga is some of the finest red wine produced in Portugal
White made from predominantly Bical and Maria Gomes
- can be of bottle-aged Burgundian quality
Talk about Tejo.
On both sides of river Tagus inland from Lisbon.
- move away from co-operatives and from fertile alluvial soils to marginal soils has been underpinning of rise in quality
- Fernão-Pires for whites
- Castelão Frances and Trincadeira for reds
- international varieties and Touriga Nacional have been introduced
Talk about Trincadeira
Portuguese red grape variety.
- drought-tolerant
- spicy red berry flavours
- high levels of tannin
Describe Alentajo.
A DOP and a Vinho Regional
