Portuguese Wine Classifications And Grape Varietals Flashcards
What are the classifications of Portugal?
—Denominação de Origem Protegida-(DOP) Superior classication and it includes all DOC wines. Traditionally labeled DOC- Prescribes allowed styles, max yields, min alcohol, and aging requirements.
—Indicação Geogràfica Protegida-(IGP) Traditionally labeled VR (Vinhos Regional)
—Indicação Geogràfica (IG)-These wines with “geographical indication” are considered IGP for EU protection and VR if traditionally labeled within Portugal; this replaced the IPR (Indicação de Proveniencia Regulamentada) which has been eliminated as an official category, and former IPRs have been upgraded to DOP status.
–minimum 85% of grapes grown in stated region under IG/VR category.
—Vinhos de Mesa/Vinho- Table Wine: Variety and vintage may appear on the label.
What are the 14 IGPs in Portugal? (N-S)
Minho "MEEN-yo" Transmontano Duriense "Door-EE-ance" Terras de Cister "SHES-tare" Beira Atlântico "Bye-da" Terras do Dão Terras da Beira Lisboa "LEESE-boa" Tejo "TEH-shja" Península de Setúbal "Se-TOO-ball" Alentejano "ah-LEN-two-SHJAN-no Algarve "ALL-garv" Terras Madeirenses "Ma-DEEREE-ance" Açores- "a-sordge"
What is garrafeira? What are the requirements?
Portuguese table wines may be labeled as garrafeira if produced as vintage-dated DOP or IGP
—Tinto (red) garrafeira wines must age for a minimum 30 months, including at least 12 months in bottle.
—Branco (white) and rosado garrafeira wines must age for a minimum 12 months with at least 6 in bottle.
—Alcoholic strength must be .5% above the legal minimum for the respective DOC/IGT region.
—Also has a different connotation that means “Private wine cellar” or “reserve”.
—additional and different garrafeira requirments for Dão
What is the vintage garrafeira for Port and who pioneered the style?
A separate connotation from “garraferira” pioneered by Niepoort. The style consists of a few years aging in barrels, followed by a period of at least eight years in glass demijohns.
What are the requirements for traditional method sparkling wines, which may be applied to any of Porgutal’s demarcated regions?
Reserva: min aging of 1 year on lees prior to degorgement.
What is Colheita Seleccionada?
Indicates a minimum 1% higher alcohol content than that established by the regional appellation in Portugal.
What is casta?
Grape variety
What is the most widely planted variety in Portugal?
Castelão- producing typically full-bodied, tannic wines with meaty, red-fruit aromas.
-popularity due to adaptabilty in a wide range of environments, from the arid south to the damper, Atlantic influenced west, and to its general hardiness.
What is Periquita?
Who created it?
Portuguese word meaning ‘parakeet’ that is both a Setúbal name for Castelão and a branded red wine from José Maria da Fonseca.
The brand was a great success, leading other producers to adopt the “Periquita” moniker as a synonym for the grape.
What is Portugal’s finest red?
How much of Portugal’s acreage?
Where did it originate?
Two synonyms?
What is valued in the grape?
Touriga Nacional
10% of nation’s vineyard acreage.
- inky, full-bodied, structured wines; floral aromas of bergamot, rosemary, rock roses, or violets.
- originated in Dão
- Mortágua Preto (Dão) and Bical Tinto
- low-yielding, extremley small berries, valued for their extraction potential and concentration in table blends in Dão, Douro, Alentejo.
Name 5 other red grapes besides Castelão and Touriga Nacional, cultivated in Portugal
Touriga Franca (Touriga Francesca in Portugal) high-quality, in shadow Touriga Nacional (it is Nacional offspring) can reach almost same quality levels as Touriga Nacional, but on lesser sites can have trouble ripening due to greater susceptibility to botrytis.
Trincadeira (Tinta Amarela) great richness; most prominent in Alentejo.
Baga- Bairrada’s most age-worthy and distinguished single-variety red.
Aragonez (“Tinta Roriz” in the south, known as Tempranillo in Spain)
Jaen “HI-yen” (Mencia in Spain’s Galicia) distinguished, juicy young wine.
What is the most planted white grape in Portugal and what is it also known as in Bairrada?
What is good and bad about the variety?
Fernão Pires
-known as Maria Gomes in Bairrada
- workhorse grape
- popular in large part to its high yields and easy ripening but also to its distinctive aromatic character–from oranges, orange and linden blossom, mimosa and laurel to spice and honey
- prone to oxidation, low acidity, a lack of ageing potential, and over-intense, sometimes heavy, aromas.
What is Encruzado?
A noble white grape produced in the Dão.
- an elegant, balanced grape yielding floral and citrusy wines that gain complex nutty, resinous aromas with age. Oak is sometimes implemented in fermentation.
- great potential for full-bodied, rather Burgundian whites.
- We have one at Flatiron
What is Arinto?
- one of Portugal’s oldest indigenous varietals
- most striking examples issue from the coastal regions, and from Bucelas in particular.
- produces lively, mineral-tinged whites and is grown throughout the country.
- increasingly prized for the acidity it brings to blends, especially in Alentejo.
What is one of the most important white grapes in Alentejano?
Antão Vaz “An-tao Vaz” An aromatic, tropical white grape. Popular due to productivity, resilience, and capability of producing good-quality white wine in the heat of Alentejo.
