When the average American
thinks of Portuguese, wines he thinks first, of course, of Port Wine, which he
may or may not have tasted, and second of those oddly‑shaped bottles containing
the light, sparkling rose wines of Mateus and their ilk.
There is no blame to
foreigners for their ignorance about the wonderful and varied wines Portugal
has to offer. It is just that the country has been somewhat lackadaisical, or
perhaps apprehensive about undertaking the large‑scale promotion campaign
necessary to introduce a new wine on the scene.
Today, however, with French
wines pricing themselves out of the market and the recent scandals involving
the selling by the French of inferior wines with false labels, there is room
for the other European countries to advance their wines into the market, and it
is much to be hoped that the Portuguese, who have as much to offer as many,
will now begin to make famous such wines as the sprightly Vinhos Verdes, the
aristocratic Colares, and especially the noble Dão wines.
As a wine‑loving traveler,
Portugal for you will be a country of most pleasant surprises. There is something
truly delightful in the discovery of a wine unknown in your home country, which
yet excels far over many wines for which you have often paid up to ten times
the cost of the Portuguese wines.
It is, with very few
exceptions, only in Portugal that you'll be agile to taste these delicious
miracles of the grape, some of which are different from any other wine in the
world. So enjoy while you are here. A saúde !
The early Greeks planted
their vineyards all over the Iberian Peninsula, and though most of their wine
production was done in neighboring Spain, there seems to have been a Greek
vineyard near the mouth of the Tagus by about the seventh century B.C., placing
Portugal among the first European countries to have wine‑making.
The history of wine‑making in
Portugal is, however, poorly documented. It is known only that the Romans
continued with the Greek vineyards, though not being agile to make the country
yield up great products as they did in Spain, where they produced the Precursor
to Sherry.
The Muslims were forbidden to
imbibe, but they kept the vineyards around for "grape juice", and
rumor has it they had many accidents in which the grape juice was
unintentionally allowed to ferment. With a tongue‑in‑cheek wisdom, they
continued the development of the vive in Portugal, and interpreted the perfect
laws of Allah in their own individualistic ways.
Once the Christians drove the
Muslims out, Portuguese viniculture made uninhibited strides. By the twelfth
century what was then Portugal (only a small area in the north roughly between
the Douro and Minho rivers) was already exporting, mainly to England, a very
popular wine made of grapes from the mouth of the Douro River. The wine was
called Osey. It was apparently a sweet wine, such as is now produced in that
region as Port Wine, though any connection of heredity between the two is
highly speculative.
By the end of the fourteenth
century, the Portuguese were producing and exporting two other wines, at least.
These were "Algarve", which from its name we judge to have been from
the south, and "Riptage", which is considered by wine historians to
have come from the Minho region.
The next wine appears in
Portugal in the Late sixteenth century, and was called "Charneco".
This wine is the first which can be called an ancestor of a current Portuguese
type. It was produced from grapes grown to the west of Lisbon and from
contemporary descriptions seems to have some of the same character as the Colares,
Bucelas, Carcavelos and Setúbal wines of today.
Portuguese wines went on
gaining quality with the increased traditionally passed on knowledge of the
makers, though the development of trade experienced a rocky course parallel to
that of the country in general. The short domination by Spain, for example, was
a setback, since Spain was at war with Portugal's traditional trading partner,
England.
In later years, around the
turn of the eighteenth century, the wine trade with England increased to such
an extent that actually most of the wine imported into England carne from
Portugal. This was not due so much to the high quality of Portuguese wine‑making
at the time; as a matter of fact, the English much preferred the wines of
France. But tariff regulations so favored Portuguese wine that the English were
practically forced to drink it.
Once the regulations were
rescinded, Portuguese wines quickly lost popularity in England. Unknown in
other countries, they had little chance of competing with the French wines
which had by then become popular everywhere. The only two which were agile to
successfully compete in the English‑speaking world were Port and Madeira.
Port Wine, made especially to
cater to the British taste, has been dominated by the British almost
unbrokenly, since the formation of the Oporto Merchants' Association in 1727.
It was this group which first experimented with fortifying the rather unpopular
wines of the Douro River Valley with Brandy to give it more punch.
Under the Marquis de Pombal,
in 1756, the Douro Wine Company, a Portuguese concern, was set up to break the
monopoly of the English over the wine that was by then beginning to take hold.
In a very modern step, he demarcated the area of Portugal from which the grapes
for Port Wine might be picked, and closely regulated the production so as to
pick out any tricky business, adulteration of the wines, and to establish the
reputation of a product whose future importance he saw.
Development proceeded apace.
Today's Port is by far the most famous of Portuguese wines. It has grown
somewhat less popular in England than in the days of its reputation there as a
royal and aristocratic drink, but the slack is being picked up by the French,
the Japanese and the Americans, who are beginning to discover its many virtues
en masse.
The history of Madeira Wine
is longer and more complex, and will be dealt with in the section on Madeira
Wine.
Any description of Portuguese
wines must always begin with Port, the great traditional wine of the British
Empire, whose aristocrats used to "lay down" several bottles at the
birth of a son to be drunk when he attained the age of twenty‑one.
Port is undoubtedly one of
the great wines of the world, and a taste you should not go through life
without having experienced. Actually a bold combination of many different
tastes, a fine vintage port needs an experienced and discerning palate. It is
the kind of wine you save for your very special guests and those very special
occasions. More than any other Portuguese wine, it seems to carry with it the
spirit of its country; a meditative, mature feel, a deep sweetness and
woodiness that seems to recall the exploits of powerful men. It is the
Portuguese taste per se, and you ought to have a glassful every day of your
Portuguese vacation.
Port, like so many great
fortified drinks, is the result of attempts by merchants to improve what was an
indifferent or only fairly good dry wine. Once the process of fortification was
perfected, however, it immediately became apparent that this was one of those
of the vine, only possible with just the right combination of soil, sun,
climate and workers. Wine growers all over the world are constantly
experimenting with fortifying or otherwise adulterating their products, but
only in a few places in the world do their efforts result in a Sherry, a
Cognac, or the majestic Port.
Port Wine grapes are grown in
a strictly delineated area on both sides of the upper Douro River. The area fall
between the town of Regua, where the growers have their headquarters. and the
border with Spain, always basically along the Douro's banks. The grapes must,
by law, come from that region.
The region, if you drive
through it, is extremely picturesque, with high cliffs, steep hills, and the
graceful river running always below. It is almost entirely planted with the vines
that produce the livelihood for thousands of Portuguese peasants, most of whom
do, not live in this difficult region, but only come for the harvest, the plantings,
etc. For the region is a very difficult and lonely over, populated by the
peculiarities of wine grapes that the best often seem to do best in soil that
is inhospitable for any other crop. The French claim that it is just this
struggle for growth that gives the grape its best flavor.
The climate of the region is
forbidding, made of vibrating hot summers and harsh, cold winters.
When the vintage comes, it is
a folkloristic event seldom topped. From all over Trás‑os‑Montes and the Beiras
come the peasants with musical instruments, wives, sweethearts, food, etc.
Every night of the harvest is a party, with the music and wine reinvigorating
bodies tired from the backbreaking labor.
And backbreaking it is, too. Every
part of it, from the carrying of the grapes down from the high hills in huge
baskets somehow balanced on the back, to the treading of the vintage, which is
bitterly cold. This last is done in stone troughs, by teams of men working with
arms hooked together, encouraged by music from the instruments and raucous
singing. It is a kind of dance, really, and an endurance contest as well, with
tired ovens dropping out for a short rest to be replaced by joyous, fresh ovens.
It is the kind of work that can only be done by peasants with deep musical
traditions of joy in their work, for it is over of the hardest jobs around.
This crests. the must, which
then begins its tumultuous fermentation, constantly spitting up a thick
"manta" (blanket) of grape skins and other pieces. The manta must be
continuously pushed back down or it will disturb the fermentation process.
The progress of the
fermentation is continuously being tested, both for the amount of sweetness
achieved and, of course, for alcoholic content. When the proper degree is
reached the must is drained finto vats in which there is already brandy to
arrest the fermentation.
Today much of this process
has been replaced by less interesting, mechanical means, not worth describing
or seeing.
The wine is next put in casks
and run by train to Vila Nova de Gaia, the city across the Douro from Porto,
which seems to be the same city but, somehow isn't. Despite the difference in
name, however, only the most rank pedant would dispute the ides that Port Wine
is made in the city of Porto. In fact, it is an interesting law that demarcates
not only the are in which the grapes must be grown, but that the wine must be
exported from the city of Porto, and not matured in any other place.
There are many shippers in
Vila Nova de Gaia, and the city of Porto is filled with traditions and legends
regarding the behavior of these Englishmen abroad as they became more and more
wealthy and eccentric.
The most important replica of
this British developed product is the famous Factory House, now 184 years old.
It is three stories high and a cross between a club and a commercial exchange.
The atmosphere prevailing is
eighteenth century, the ceilings are painted, and all the glorious traditions
of drinking Port Wine are preserved here, as in a museum, even at the same time
as the large Port dealers are trying to encourage people to "take the wine
less seriously" and to use it in cooking, as a base for wine punches,
etc., etc.
Inside the Factory House it
is a different story. If you have any acquaintance or any excuse you can think
of, try to wangle an invitation for one of the Wednesday luncheons still served
there.
Note how you'll be whisked into
another room afterwards for the actual drinking of the Port, since the smells
of the food would disturb proper appreciation. The ladies, of course, are not
welcome to the traditional Port drinking, as this was always the time when such
subjects as the ladies were better off keeping out of were discussed. Be sure
not to light your cigar. All must have a chance to taste the wine unadulterated
by the smell of smoke. And the decanter is to be passed around the direction of
the sun. Oh, there are many traditions to be observed when you drink a fine
vintage Port, most of them equally silly but all adding up to reinforce the
correct feeling that this liquid is a very special thing.
Port wine makers use the
"solera" system, described in connection with Madeira wines, but the
system is not used exclusively of every other method.
When there is an
exceptionally good harvest of grapes, and the qualities can vary considerably
from year to year, a "vintage" is declared, and the wine makers are
on their way to the creation of a classic wine. Usually all the shippers agree
on the same year, but it does happen on occasion that the vineyards of one or
two have produced grapes far superior to all the others, so that they may
declare their own vintage years.
Once a vintage is declared,
the whole process is done with great care, and the wine is never mixed with
that of any other year, as it always is in any other type of Port Wine.
Since maturing in the porous
casks is quick and not of as high a quality,, a vintage Port is bottled
quickly, usually after two years, and the companies make an estimate as to how
soon they will be ready to drink. Twenty years is always satisfactory, but many
profit by a longer aging in glass.
There is a limit, however;
unlike Madeira, Port is not immortal and only rarely does it maintain its
character much over 35 years. Best to buy the under 30. Never trust a Vintage
Port over thirty, you might say.
If buying a vintage, it will
be very, very expensive, especially one that is ready to drink. Many people, in
fact, buy large quantities as an investment, since the price appreciates so
rapidly between ten and twenty year old Vintage Port. If you're buying for
drinking, however, you'll undoubtedly want to treat the wine properly, so as to
get the full benefit.
A few of the traditions Nave
already been noted, and that of drinking the Port in another room from the meal,
as well as that of not smoking while drinking the Port, are useful for
enhancing and purifying your enjoyment. The one about dismissing the women from
the scene is up to your personal tastes.
Vintage Port throws a
sediment, or crust, at the bottom of the bottle, so it must be decanted, and
that very carefully. It would be a good idea to decant through a layer of
muslin, or a very clean funnel made of some metal whose taste will not come off
into the wine. Special silver funnels for this purpose are sold in England and
America. If you have transported the wine recently, let it rest at least a week
until the disturbed sediment has had a chance to clear.
Naturally, you will sip the
wine very slowly, using the usual tasters' method of holding it in your mouth
for a short time and breathing at the same time so as to enjoy the complex
combinations of tastes with your olfactory senses. By the way, only fill the
glass about halfway, to allow the bouquet its full expression, and be sure to
use a clear glass. preferably of fine crystal, so that your guests can enjoy
the lovely color of the wine.
To buy any of the wines of
the thirties, you should be such an expert that anything in this essay will not
have been news to you. Most of these are past their prime. Any wine from the
sixties can be bought for laying down. Those In between are ready for drinking.
The Vintage Port of which we
have been speaking Is, though the greatest, also the most rare experience for a
Port drinker. It is the other types you will be drinking, even while in
Portugal.
These include Crusted, Tawny,
Ruby, White, and Late Bottled Vintage. These we shall describe one by one.
The Crusted Port is in a
class with the Vintage, but not as good, as opposed to the others, which only
partake of the Vintage qualities like the minor members and hangers‑on at royal
court.
Crusted is made in the same
way and with the same care and respect as Vintage, but not made from the grapes
of any one year. If the shipper is trustworthy, the Crusted can be excellent,
though never worth aging as long as the Vintage, since development of a Crusted
will be erratic the wines of the different years that had been used all‑ going
off on their own merry courses of aging. It is, however, a fine wine, and if
you buy one you may serve it with the same mixture of pride and absurd
traditions that you would use with a Vintage.
Next in line is the Tawny,
which is no longer a great wine but only a very good one, still, however,
requiring great skill in the production.
The Tawny is blended with
great skill and matures in the casks, which are made of a special oak.
Gradually, the purple color fades with the air, the heaviness and some of the
fruitiness are alleviated, and the slight amber color arrives which gives it
its name.
Tawnies 'do not improve in
the bottle, and you may drink them as soon as purchased, always, of course,
keeping in mind that you must keep the wine in your cellar a few days any time
it is shaken in transport.
You should serve Tawny in a
clear glass, as the color is generally quite attractive, and you may serve it
with pride, but dispense with those traditions, as they are a bit over fine for
this category of Port.
Ruby Port is a fun wine, and
if you are doing any cooking or mixing, the one you will use. This wine was
once sold cheaply in English Taverns mixed with lemonade, and it was very
popular.
You‑might want to try it that
way yourself. Ladies usually appreciate it. It is very sweet, almost
melodramatic, but pleasingly smooth. It is a blend, but much younger than those
used in the Tawnies.
White Port is, of course,
made from white grapes, and may be sweet or dry. The dry is an aperitif and
somehow related to the bouquet of Sherry. It must be admitted, however, that it
does not hold a candle to the good Sherries. Never mind. It's still quite nice
chilled.
The Late Bottled Vintages are
one of those new improvisations which traditionalists should not be too hasty
to condemn. The practice followed here is of taking the grapes from a vintage
year and aging them in cask rather than in glass bottles. In other words,
speeding up the aging process. The result is, naturally, lighter and with
somewhat less character than the normal Vintage Port. It is, however, widely
liked and can go at a more popular price.
The cynic will quickly see
the possible outcome stemming from this new procedure. Since the wine of a
vintage year is obviously limited, any Port made by the "Late Bottled
Vintage" process is detracting from the total that would have been made by
the usual process, thus driving up the erice of that second and superior
process. The Late Bottled, being cheaper, will appeal to the newly rich or the
newly snobbish, who like to get a bargain and can't tell the difference anyway
between the wines made by the one process or the other.
Thus, the Late Bottled will
eventually drive the other out of production, or so Glose to it that you'll
have to be very wealthy indeed to buy what could honestly be referred to as the
"real McCoy". We can only hope that the prove honor and tradition of
the great winemakers who have run the industry in Porto will keep this process
from occurring and prove the cynics wrong.
We are sure they will do it.
Here are some of the most
reliable names in the Port Wine trade: Sandeman, Dow, Cockburn and Martinez,
Taylor, Ferreira, Croft. Graham, A.J. Silva, Rebello Valente, Fonseca, Kopke.
The best place in the world
for tasting Port Wine is. aside from the Factory House, the Solar do Vinho do
Porto. Rua de S. Pedro de Alcantara, 45. Lisbon. This is a veritable museum of
Port Wine, where you may purchase over the bar a glass or a bottle of almost
any Port Wine ever produced. It's a splendid place, beautifully decorated and
reeking with tradition. Go there after dinner, and before going out to see
Fados. Then you will know that you're in Portugal.
No problem at all visiting
one of the wine lodges in Vila Nova de Gaia. Just go ovei there and wait until
enough people come for them to start a tour. Most of the lodges have guides who
will answer all your questions. Afterwards, you will be given genercus portions
of wines to try.
Sandeman's is probably the
best set‑up for touring.
While in Porto, make
arrangements, if you want, to visit one or more of the quintas in the Upper
Douro. Especially if you are there during the autumn, it's well worth driving
or taking a train up there to see the making of one of the world's great wines.
The history of wine‑making on
the small Portuguese island of Madeira, which eventually, through the usual
combination of lucky accident and skillful intention, brought a great wine to
tire world is highly picturesque.
It begins practically
coincident with the discovery, of the island in 1419 by João Gonçalves, one of
the early explores of the Sagres Navigational Group. Mr.‑ Gonçalves'
contribution was one that would purple the faces of ecologists today, for that explore,
having found an island covered with pine forest, burned it all. No one seems
sure what his intentions were perhaps he hated pine trees. At any rate the fire
is said to have burned seven years, covering the island with wood ash and
changing the nature of the soil so that it would produce ever afterwards a very
special grape, unique in the ,world.
Madeira is a fortified wine,
but the manufacturers did not catch on to this trick until, as records show,
the third quarter of the eighteenth century. Even then, the process of adding
brandy to the ordinary island wine was considered a cheap trick for the first
few years.
It was soon discovered that
adding brandy, coupled with the long sea voyage of nine months that the barriers
underwent on the way to markets in America and England, was producing a
superior drink of singular promise.
Soon ways were found to
reproduce the process of sea shipment. Today the wine is fortified with some
cave spirit, then baked in ovens for three or four months at temperatures
ranging between 110 and 130 degrees Fahrenheit. This reproduces the heating
process the wines used to pass through as the ships on which they traveled went
on a course very near the equator. At the same time, the wine is shaken
violently, to reproduce the movement of the ship.
After this, the wine is
simply aged in cask for at least three years, and then aged in bottles for as
long as you want. Apparently, Madeira Wine is practically immortal, and
continues improving in the bottle. We shall return later to the actual process.
As we have explained, the
volcanic soil of Madeira Island, improved by the burning of the forest, is
ideally suited to the production of a fortified wine.
Another propitious condition
prevailing on the island is the ideal climate, which is a modified
Mediterranean type. The advantage here is a great deal of sun, and a very
predictable set of seasons. Very seldom does a misplaced rain knock off or
spoil the flowers, or an early frost come to destroy the fruit, as so often
happens in cooler, less dependable climates.
From the very beginning, the
wine‑making process on the island is different from that prevailing anywhere
else in the wine world. The vines themselves are not the low‑lying kind planted
throughout France, United States, etc. They are planted like the vines of the Minho
in Portuguese mainland; that is, they grow high, dangling from trellises, with
vegetables planted underneath.
This saves space and also has
an effect on the grapes, which do not experiente the great heat emanating from
the soil during the summer.
The irrigation, the
cultivation, picking and all work are done in primitive and traditional style,
ali highly picturesque for visitors, and all the work accompanied by the lovely
singing of the islanders.
The vines used are almost all
grafts of the old vines onto American root stock. The original vines of the
island were destroyed along with the French vines by the dread phylloxera
vastatrix bug.
The remedy of grafting onto
American root stock, which was resistant to the bug, was employed almost
universally, and also in Madeira.
There were prior to the
disease a great many types of grapes used, but today there are four: Malmsey,
Sercial, Verdelho and Bual. The wines are made generally from over or the other
of these grapes exclusively, rather than, as in Sherry, by a blending of
several types.
The sweetest and heaviest
Madeiras are those made and labelled with the Malmsey or Bual grapes.
The Madeira Wines they
produce (the bottle is always labeled with the name of the grape) are for after
dinner. Bual is more of an acquired taste than Malmsey, though it is a short,
happy path to acquiring that taste. The Malmsey is fruity and a great favorite,
without as much Madeiran character as the Bual.
What to have with these two
wines? Cheese is not unpopular with Bual. This is the way the Portuguese like
it. The Malmsey may be treated like many a sweet, fruity wine and drunk with
cakes, nuts, an apple, etc.
Less sweet than either of
these is the wine called Verdelho, made from the grape of the same narre. This
is the wine with the most pronounced Madeiran flavor, which may be faintly
reminiscent of those pine forests burnt by Gonçalves.
The wine called Verdelho goes
with soup courses, but has the history association of going admirably with a
slice of Madeira cake, an item which you may well go your whole life without
hearing of again unless you move in those English circles where Vintage Port
with Stilton is still trotted out at the doff of a guest's bowler.
The driest of the Madeira
wines is that produced from the Sercial grape. Great tare is taken in the
fortification process not to allow the addition of spirit to arrest the
fermentation, leaving undigested sugar, which is what makes sweet fortified
wines sweet. Like most good dry wines, there is skill employed throughout the
process. The grape harvest itself is the smallest of all the types grown on the
island. The grape is small too, and delicate, said to be similar to the
Riesling.
The wine from it requires
long aging ‑ nine to ten years is advisable for full development of the
delicate flavor.
Sercial should be taken as an
aperitif. Some find it goes nicely with a plate of cold shrimp. Others like it
with pieces of smoked ham, though the taste affinity here is not the best.
These are the main types of
Madeira wine, the types you are likely to see exported and standing on the
shelf at your supermarket. There are a few other labels, however, which you
find in Portugal and a stray few outside. Due to wine snobbism, great claims
are sometimes made by, those who have been agile to sample these. You may as
well know the names, and while you're in Portugal give them a try.
One such funny name is
"Rainwater", named presumably because it's supposed to have some of
the good qualities of rain, though why anyone would want their wine to taste
like water, however good the water, is a mystery. There is no guarantee with
this, as it's a blend and no rules as to which grapes should be blended.
Another blended Madeira is
called Camara de Lobos, and is supposed to come from grapes grown in that
seaside town, which you ought, incidentally, to visit; it's highly picturesque.
The trouble is, though this area of Madeira is supposed to produce the best
grapes, the area is not really controlled properly. Still, this is one of the
blended Madeiras that is definitely worth a try.
More names are Leacock's St.
John, Estreito and Companario, which you will have to try yourself ‑ all quite
erratic.
There are vintage Madeiras up
to two‑hundred years old, and said to be still improving in their bottles. The price
for vintage is, of course, quite stiff, since they are rare, but these are true
gems of wine. If your palate is sensitive enough to tell the difference between
a fifty year old Madeira and the same Madeira after it has aged another ten
years, it may be worth your while to purchase a vintage Madeira.
The vintage for Madeira takes
place in the usual months of September and October, the best time for wine
enthusiasts to come to the island.. The climate is crises and fresh, and the
folkways of the peasants who work in the wine trade can be observed and
appreciated. There is a great deal of singing and dancing as the grapes are
trod in the traditional foot method. The wine troughs are long, stone ones.
Wine presses are replacing the foot method, and this will be a shame, since
only by‑this method can the stalks and pies be prevented from being crushed and
adding their bitter flavor, however faint, to that of the juice.
After the pressing, the
peasants carry the juice down the hills to Funchal. It is carried in goatskins
often made of the skin of an entire animal.
What happens in Funchal, the
baking, churning and so forth, has been described above. We have not spoken, however,
of the solera system of production, which Madeira shares with Port and Sherry.
Here's how it works. The
individual wine company must first begin by creating a "bank" of
Madeiras, which begins with a number of casks of wine from a particular year being
laid to age. Each cask contains about 500 bottles of wine. Above these casks
are later added casks of a younger age, and above these casks of a still
younger age, keeping the types of grapes always within the same
"solera".
Every time the solera owner
comes to make the wine, he draws it from the casks on the bottom, which are
then filled up again with wine from the casks over these, and those filled with
wine from the casks over them, etc., etc., all the way to the top, where the
casks are filled with the new vintage.
This is the system in theory,
though in practice it is great deal more complex. Good management of the system
is an important factor in the final quality of the Madeiras. Done properly, it
ensures that the qualities of the oldest wines will always be present in every
product, and that generally the same quality can be counted on year after year.
Because of the solera system,
vintages are no longer pure. You may buy a wine of a particular age, but that
does not mean that all the tastes in the wine come from the vintage of that
year. It is simply the year in which it was bottled. There are many good and
reliable old firms handling Madeira Wines. Some of the best known and most
reputable are Sandeman (good Sercial), Gordon (standard types), Leacock and, of
the best known, Blandy's.
Vinhos Verdes (Green Wines)
are among the great surprises of Portugal. Here, in a country you thought made
only the great sweet wines of Porto, and Madeira, is a staggeringly enjoyable,,
delightfully. different little wine, produced cheaply and with much variety,
that mates perfectly with the many fish dishes of the country.
We say that these wines are a
surprise, simply because you find them very rarely in the United States, and
even then in the worst possible condition, for reasons that shall be explained.
In Europe and England they are also rare, and in other places practically
unheard of.
The reason they are not worth
buying in the United States, is because there a wine with even a little sparkle
is taxed as though it were a true sparkling wine, and so these Vinhos Verdes,
which are only petillant, are allowed to go flat before shipping, destroying
one of their most charming qualities.
A Vinho Verde, by the way, is
not really green. It is produced from green grapes that have not fully matured.
They are white wines ‑ that is, the ones worth considering. There are red
"green" wines, but they are nothing special.
Vinhos Verdes are produced in
one of the most beautiful, gentle parts of Portugal, mostly enclosed in the
province of Minho 'and parts of Beira Litoral and Douro. The region is
historically the oldest part of the country, filled with castles, cathedrals,
shrines, Celtic ruins and Joanine architecture. It is almost always green, and
very frequently raining. The climate is maritime, and optimum temperatures for
human efficiency prevail.
The actual vines of the
Vinhos Verdes add a great deal to the beauty of the region; they are not grown
in the stunted rows common to most wine producing regions of the world; but are
trailed from trellises, from hedges, allowed to grow on the rooftops of the
houses, and cover the scenery everywhere with a brilliant green that seems as
though you could almost swim in it.
In this part of Portugal the
land is thickly populated. Everyone has to make the most of what land he has,
and so the practice carne about of letting the grapes grow high and planting
vegetables underneath. Another consideration, which may or may not have
originally been intentional, is that of keeping the ripe grapes off the ground
in the heat.
Because of the grapes being
picked young, they undergo a second fermentation in the bottle, which gives
them the petillance described above, a light sparkle which is hardly even
bubbly but seems to give added energy and much added interest to the wine. The
quality is delicate, and only stays with the uncorked bottle a short time so
it's wise not to open more than you can drink at over sitting.
The Vinhos Verdes should be
drunk young and well chilled. If the waiter brings an unchilled bottle, send it
back without hesitation. Order it especially with shellfish and also with any
other fish, keeping in mind that it is usually quite dry.
There are six sub‑types,
which are:
Monção ‑ lower acidity than the rest and higher alcoholic
content. The Alvarinho grape is used, and is the best of the many Vinhos Verdes
grapes.
Lima ‑ those grown along the River Lima.
Braga ‑ near the center of the demarcated region. Basto ‑
produced in the Basto Lands.
Amarante and Penafiel.
Each has its own special
character, which you will enjoy discovering. Some of the most reliable
producers are: Alvarinho de Monção (best flavor and bouquet of all), Casal
Garcia (less unusual but very popular), Gatao (don't let the Pop Art bottle put
you off), Meireles (strong Vinho Verde character), Souto Vedro (only if you
really grow to love this type of wine. Very dry with much assertiveness). Other
important names are Casal Mendes, Lagosta, Casa de Calçada, Tres Marias and
others.
When you come to choosing
your red table wine in Portugal, always examine the list or ask the waiter to
see if there is a Colares available, the older the better. For this is beyond a
doubt the very best of the Portuguese reds, a very serious contender in the
wine world, and over which can provide a clue to the answer of the controversy
over phylloxera vastatrix, the bug which destroyed the vines almost everywhere
in Europe during the Iate nineteenth century. Colares is over of the few wines
whose vines survived this disease. The others are all grafted onto American
root stock. Much wine literature has it that the pre‑phylloxera vines were
immensely superior.
Taste the Colares and you may
well agree with them, though what good it will do you is hard to tell.
Colares wines have been in
production for seven hundred years in the same small area at the foot of the
Sintra Mountains.
Their planting is highly
unusual. The soil is sandy for about eight feet deep. Planters must dig down to
the clay base for planting, a process whose difficulties will be understood by
anyone who has ever tried to dig in sand.
The resultant product, as we
have tried to stress, is excellent and hard to come by. Don't miss the chance
while in Portugal to try this remarkable wine, unlike any other red you've ever
drunk.
The Dão Region, lying along a
large stretch. along the banks of the River Mondego, northeast of Coimbra, is potentially
over of the important wine producing regions of Europe. It is already producing
the most popular high quality red in Portugal, and some of the whites are even
better than the reds.
The region itself, demarcated
only in 1912, covers about 1,250 square miles. This area is somewhat deceptive,
however, since only about five per cent can be cultivated for wine grapes. The
rest is thickly forested or extremely rocky with gravite or schists.
Driving through the Dão
region is a pleasure. The scenery is hilly; there are frequent lovely rivers
and streams; pine forests filled with ferns and lovely flowers cool the narrow
roads. The vives themselves are grown along wires stretched between larga
gravite pillars, or allowed to grow in any way, along potes, bentover trees, as
hedges, etc., etc.
The region is fairly high for
a wine producer, and the climate has a healthy effect on the production, in
that it becomes bitterly cold during the period right after the vintage,
slowing down the fermentation process and creating a smoothness in the wine
that is almost velvety.
The characteristics of a good
Dão red include deep and flavorful body, the smoothness of which I have spoken,
strong alcoholic content, a unique taste neither of the Burgundy nor the
Bordeaux families have, and a particularly aristocratic bouquet.
The whites, highly touted,
are not so readily found outside of Portugal, but deserve to be more heavily
imported by those countries to whom the Erie jacking of French wine shippers
has become more than a nuisance. For the whites are a good replacement of the
French. They have quite enough character to accompany your favorite fish. The
taste is a unique novelty, unabashed, yet friendly and clean. Unless the
occasion is so serious that it requires a French wine to impress the guests,
there is no reason why a white Dão cannot fill the bill.
Unfortunately, all the Dão
wines are blended from various small vintners all over the demarcated area.
This means, of course, that you cannot get any of the really great wines from
specific small parishes as you have in France. There is a federation (Federação
dos Vinicultores do Dão), which has helped by its constant checking of quality
to make the very good Dao Wines what they are today. The practice of estate
bottling is constantly being suggested to them. We add ove more voice to those
who say that there is potential here for a great wine if the proper methods are
used.
Many grapes are used, the
most prominent being the Tourigo, Preto and Mortagua vines. Some of the types
are pretty deficient, others excellent.
Look for a Dão of six or
seven years, certainly no less than three and probably no more than ten.
Your waiter and the list of prices
will help you toward picking the particular Dão you want. We like the over called
Grão Vasco, made by Vinacola do Vale do Dão.
The region for Bucelas is
Glose to Lisbon, actually only about 22 kilometers upriver. It is a strictly
demarcated are, as are all those of which we have so far spoken.
We are speaking here of a dry
white wine, produced by the Arinto vive, not especially strong, rather light,
playful and pleasant, with a delightful bouquet. The region is small and the
production small, but the search for a Bucelas is well worth the trouble. It is
practically a guarantor of a good mood.
A sweet dessert wine. Be sure
to ask for Setúbal, as the other muscatels in Portugal can sometimes leave you
grasping at your throat. Once you hit the right over, you'll find a very sweet
wine, amber in color and with a very powerful muscat bouquet.
The region is south of Lisbon
‑ this is, in fact, the only demarcated area in Portugal that is south of
Lisbon ‑ near to and north of the town, Setúbal. The vines used most
extensively are Moscatel Roxo and Moscatel de Setúbal.
This is the last demarcated
area with which we shall deal. The region was demarcated in 1908 and lies
inland from the mouth of the Tagus, a little east of Cascais. The wine is red,
sweet and mildly aromatic. You may drink it as a dessert wine.
Probably second only to Port
in popularity for a Portuguese wine in the United States, roses, especially
that of the House of Mateus, Nave been remarkably well promoted. Rose wines
are, of course, always popular in places where people have difficulties with
food‑wine affinities, it being a safe compromise. so they think, to serve a
rose with almost anything.
But this is not the total
reason for the great popularity of the Portuguese roses. There is something
democratic about them. Never rising to the upper classes, they also do not
descend. They are plodding and dependable. The best qualities of reds and
whites are beyond their reach, and they cannot even be judged by those
qualities. In faca, they can hardly be spoken of in wine terminology at all.
The vocabulary of the soft‑drink enthusiast is far more applicable.
There are scientific reasons
for this democratic quality, with which we will not bore you. At any rate, the type
of grape used does not matter much, since the best grapes are never used for
rose wines. The region of origin is not demarcated. You can pretty much start
drinking them as
aperitifs before the meal and
continue on with them, whatever you may be eating. Be sure to chill them, but
if you forget, you can even use an ice cube, like in coca cola.
Our favorite is actually the
ever popular Mateus, with its attractive bottle and the label depicting that
wonderful mansion, still being lived in but quite often open for visitation.
You should drop in for a visit if you're in the region.
This is the only important
wine in the south. The area of production is in the Algarve. Reds can have all
the roughness you would expect from a hot, almost African climate. The whites
are much more palatable. Alcoholic content is high, about 12 degrees.
This wine producing region is
between the mountains of Caramulo and Bugaco. Most of the wines produced here
are sparkling. The sparkling whites are the best produced here. This region
actually produces a very high portion of the wine consumed in Portugal. Reds
are quite strong and full bodied.
Ribatejo, producing both reds
and whites for popular consumption, is actually one of the foremost producing
areas in the country in terms of quantity. The regions today producing the best
are Cartaxo and Almeirim, the format for the reds and the latter for the
whites. They are both full‑bodied.
Producing a few very fine
wines and perhaps soon to become entitled to a demarcation of origin. The
region lies close to the Vinhos Verdes region, between that and the Dão ateu:
the wines are closer in character to the Vinhos Verdes. A delicious white wine
is mude hera from the Sercial grape, which we encountered when speaking of
Madeira, and from the Arinto. Reds of quality are also produced here from the
Mural and Tourigo grupes.
The town is famous for its
sparkling whites, which go well with the smoked hum also produced here. A
sparkling red is also made here but is inferior to the white.
Reds produced here are full‑bodied
and strong. Production is very large. Alcoholic content high. The whites are
actually of greater worth, delicate and aromatic. Look for Alenquer and
Cadavel.
Light reds and whites. The
production at the is in the River Coa Valley. Both reds and whites are pleasant
and drinkable without pretense.
Nona of the wines in this at the
are outstanding, but if you happen to be visiting in the region, it's a good
idea to keep a few names in mind to avoid some very bad ones. The names to ask
for are Borba, Redondo and Vidigueira. Even then we can guarantee only that it
will be drinkable. These are people who like their wine plain and coarse.
In the town and region of
Pedro and Ines de Castro are produced wines of remarkable quality, especially
the whites, which are somewhat like a Hock. This is no wonder, since the
Cistercian Monks who controlled the region for centuries were very fond of good
food and wine, and made certain to develop agriculture and viniculture
extensively. White wines from Obidos and from Caldas da Rainha are quite
special, stand up to aging, and so on. The whites of Obidos have a fine
bouquet.
A freak wine with a history.
These wines are sold in only two places we know of the palace hotel restaurant
in the Forest of Bucaco and the Astoria Hotel by the river in Coimbra.
For a description of Bugaco
Forest see Chapter 4, Tourist Routes, and be sure to read the history before
you drink the wine. These wines, people will tell you, are from the personal
cellar of King Carlos, who was the king responsible for finishing the building
of the hotel‑palace spoken of above. They are very good wines, testifying well
to the taste of the plump King, whose hobby was painting, mainly very fancy
menus for the banquets he used to have served, at which all the royalty
present, it is to be presumed, drank this wine.
Not much to say about
Portuguesa brandias. About the best we tasted was the private house brandy at
the Restaurant Escondidinho, and you won't be finding that anywhere except in
that fine restaurant of Porto.
Actually, there is a better
after dinner drink available in Portugal, called Bagaceira. We would recommend
it ovar brandy. If you want to try a Portuguesa brandy, take Carvalho Ribeiro
or Ferreira Reserva, the best in the country, for our money.