“Red? You sure that’s what you mean?” said the salesclerk looking at me dubiously.

“Yes, I do”, I responded.

“Sim, Vinho Verde TINTO”, I repeated to each and every retailer in various wine shops while hunting for this infamous red counterpart of the popular Portuguese white wine, Vinho Verde.

What surprised me during my quest, for this apparently unpopular style of wine, is that almost a third of the wine produced in the region of Vinho Verde is red. So why is a Vinho Verde Tinto such a bizarre and foreign idea? After trying a few bottles in the past, and literally spitting them out and dumping the rest down the drain, it is not difficult to understand people’s apprehension!

But surprisingly, I’ve come to learn that many Vinho Verde Tintos tend to have the exact same flavor profile! And although they are produced with the same high acidity “greenness” as the white wines, typically followed by a second malolactic fermentation to allow for a smoother and more full-bodied character, many producers seem to overlook this second essential step - choosing instead, to keep the high acidity which produces a very unbalanced wine. Taken from the D.O. Vinho Verde website:
However, the occurrence of the malolactic fermentation has its costs: a reduction of freshness and primary aromas proceeding from the grapes. For this reason, many oenologists prevent its occurrence in the white Vinhos Verdes, which must have freshness and young aroma. The malolactic fermentation mainly is encouraged [but not obligatory] in the red Vinhos Verdes, whose quality depends more on its flavour complexity than the aromas intensity. …

Two weeks ago, my boyfriend and I decided to take a weekend holiday up North to Guimarães, though each of us seemed to have different intentions for going. I wanted to visit all the wineries of Minho and enjoy a series of tastings, while he just wanted to relax and take it easy. In the end, he won since all of the wineries were closed for the August holiday; but the very Friday night we drove up, I was able savor as dish that I have been waiting a year to taste and ended up enjoying one of the best meals I’ve ever had!

If you do decide to drive up north from Lisbon, mostly likely, you’ll be taking the Estrada National, or National highway, which is about the only major highway in the area. The highway goes right through the town of Mealhada in the region of Bairrada, a small town but popular throughout the country for its Leitão Assado da Bairrada. What is this? Well, its the most succulent suckling pig that you’ll find anywhere! Actually, it’s not quite a suckling pig; the piglets used are between a month and a month and a half old and have been weaned, weighing an average of 6 to 10 kilos. Originally from towns of Covões and Cantanhede, about 10km east, Leitão Assado has been regarded as the richest gastronomic traditions of the region and Mealhada takes pride in roasting their acorn fed piglets in brick ovens fueled by the aromatic eucalyptus bark. The result is a soft and intensely flavorful meat that flakes right off the bone, accompanied by very crispy, golden-orange skin. Additionally, they drizzle a very …

As a result of our recent trip to Portugal, we figured the best way to start off the month is by offering a basic road map to Portuguese wine. We have given you several articles in the past on the grape varietals, the Portuguese wine label and some specific wineries, but as a result of this trip, we are interested in describing the Portuguese wine demarcation in layman’s terms.

Portugal’s wine demarcation is laid out in a similar manner as the Spanish system, divided by quality wines, regional wines and table wines. Put side by side, both country’s wine demarcations look like this:

Quality Wines:

Spain: 67 quality wine regions
Portugal: 33 quality wine regions

Regional Wines:

Spain: approximately 8 wine regions
Portugal: 11 wine regions

Table Wines

For all wines that don’t fall into either of the two categories above are listed as a Table Wine in both Spain and Portugal.

One can safely say that both Spain’s and Portugal’s wine demarcation system are generally the same. The one difference being the way in which we relate to them. When we shop for wines in Spain, we can assume that a demarcated Quality Wine (example: DO Rioja) will be the best way to search for a good wine. This is why Catavino has spent so much time doing profiles on each of the 67 Spanish Quality Wine Demarcations (or DO), and not on Spain’s Regional Wine Demarcations. In Portugal, we have recently learned that most people talk about their wines in relation to the Portuguese Regional Wine Demarcation. Therefore, we feel that for the month of August, we will do our best to break down each of the 11 Portuguese Wine Regions by Tasting Notes, Bodega Profiles, Regional Profiles and Grape Profiles. Although I doubt we will …

2004 Quinta do Feital Vinho Regional Minho Auratus - Portugal, Minho, Vinho Regional Minho (9/8/2006)Alvarinho/Trajadura blendDeep daisey yellow in color. The nose took a bit to open up but when it did it showed white flowers, some rich citrus and a lot of cantelope! Completely dry in the mouth the wine is very rich with a ceamy peachy/melon quality to it. The finish lingers for about 15 secs and I’m left with a nice light fruit aroma in my mouth. Nice wine, though not very complex.

Food note: I had this Portuguese wine with an Asian spiced pork pasta dish I came up with. I thought it would be perfect, but in the end the dish needed a little sweetness and less citrus. The wine being low in citrus didn’t really find it’s match. Ginger, garlic, lime, orange, and some hot sauce made the pasta really nice. On the other hand the wine will do quite nice by itself as the rest of the evening unfolds!