The Magical Land of Vinho Verde
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| Beautiful Amarante Portugal (and just like Vinho Verde, you don't pronounce the e) |
The northern reaches of Portugal, away from the famous beaches of the Algarve and the big city of Lisbon is a bustling yet bucolic region tucked away in its green hills and river valleys.
The northern reaches of Portugal, away from the famous beaches of the Algarve and the big city of Lisbon is a bustling yet bucolic region tucked away in its green hills and river valleys.
Wine growing in Vinho Verde dates to the year 800, but its importance and global reputation are modern developments. Like much of the world, wine was long produced here for local consumption, and at one point the government urged the planting of corn, and many vineyards were uprooted, or wine growers used trees, poles, buildings, nearly anything at their disposal as a wine trellis. A wine growing method called enforcado which you can still see throughout Vinho Verde today, vineyards mixed among trees, and the side of homes dot the hillsides.
Vinho Verde’s star has risen on its unbelievable affordability and signature spritz, which is artificially added, by the way. However this corner of the wine world of has a long history of producing white wines of character and complexity, and there are producers that have kept that tradition alive. Focusing on the single variety still wines that have come to make up the famously spritzy blend.
Perhaps against the odds a wine region that is now internationally renowned grew out of a struggle to produce a world class wine in the literal shadows of the corn that local families needed for sustenance in the hilly rural north country. Early iterations of the wine carried a natural spritz that formed from malolactic fermentation continuing after bottling, technically a flaw in wine production, but it’s the flaws that make us who we are, and today winemakers often add a hint of carbonation to reach that affect a bit more predictably. That so-called flaw, is what wine lovers today really enjoy about this fresh, simple white wine.
2015 Quinta de Lixa Reserva Alvarinho, Vinho Verde DOC
There are literally thousands of small, family plot-sized producers making wine in the region. Yet a vast majority of the production is attributed to only a handful of wineries. The good news is though that there are some mid-level producers making wines that capture this region’s soul, in large enough production to make it to the States.
While Alvarinho is probably best known as the Spanish wine Albariño, its true home is in Portugal; just ask any Portuguese winemaker. This Reserva bottle takes Alvarinho from Vinho Verde in another direction completely, by matching the high acid grape with barrel aging and bâtonnage. Freshness is met with depth and complexity. A wine often known for its angularity and austere flavor profile takes on instead rich honey tones, and layered flavors of almond, pear and ripe peaches. Complex aromas of honeysuckle, citrus and stone.
2017 Encosta do Xisto Colheita Selecionada Loureiro, Vinho Verde DOC
Is Vinho Verde greater than the sum of its parts? It's tough to say, and fortunately we can drink the famous sprtizy blend, or the sometimes tougher to find single varieties. The single varieties that make up the wine can be outstanding in and of themselves, and along with Alvarinho, Loureiro, a grape that originally hailed from the northern reaches of the DOC is outstanding on its own accord.
This Loureiro is a an aromatically forward wine, with floral aromatics balanced by early season peach, and lime zest. The ripe fruit notes are balance perfectly with an acidity that is a bright kiss of refreshment.
2016 Quinta do Ferro Montanha Avesso, Vinho Verde DOC
Avesso is Vinho Verde's fleshy, full bodied component. This variety brings aromatics in spades, and lengthens the finish of the wines, alone or course, but also when blended. The grape grows near the Douro region, in this case, in mountain vineyards near Baião. This wine is intensely aromatic, floral, fruity and mouth-filling. Aromas of lemon, acacia and honeysuckle, and a palate loaded with citrus fruits, and a full bodied, almost candied lemon peel flavor.
2015 Quinta da Calcada Reserva Vinho Verde DOC
This ultra elegant bottle is a blend of Loureiro, Alvarinho and Arinto and comes off like a young White Burgundy. Seriously this wine is loaded up with citrus aromas, honey, lemon peel and mint. The palate is lively, expressive and frankly, beautiful. Lemon creme coats your front palate and a long finish reminiscent of lemon sorbet sticks with you for what feels like forever. Outstanding wine that makes a real case for the region.
While the north’s biggest city of Porto, along the mouth of the Douro River is known as the historic home and namesake of the Port wine trade; (the fortified red wine is grown in the very hot, upper Douro Valley) the Portuguese north country is known for another wine altogether. Stretching north from Porto, the cool wine region Vinho Verde (don’t say the e) is named not for the apparent green hue of the wines, but for the lush green hillsides that mark a cooler Portugal.
This corner of the Iberian Peninsula saw populations cluster around the Minho River valley, and cultural and religious capitals like Braga, Amarante and the UNESCO Heritage designated city of Guimarães. The upper Minho Valley has been sort of the cradle of Portuguese civilization, and Guimarães is seen as the birthplace of the nation of Portugal.
Wine growing in Vinho Verde dates to the year 800, but its importance and global reputation are modern developments. Like much of the world, wine was long produced here for local consumption, and at one point the government urged the planting of corn, and many vineyards were uprooted, or wine growers used trees, poles, buildings, nearly anything at their disposal as a wine trellis. A wine growing method called enforcado which you can still see throughout Vinho Verde today, vineyards mixed among trees, and the side of homes dot the hillsides.
Vinho Verde’s star has risen on its unbelievable affordability and signature spritz, which is artificially added, by the way. However this corner of the wine world of has a long history of producing white wines of character and complexity, and there are producers that have kept that tradition alive. Focusing on the single variety still wines that have come to make up the famously spritzy blend.
There are literally thousands of small, family plot-sized producers making wine in the region. Yet a vast majority of the production is attributed to only a handful of wineries. The good news is though that there are some mid-level producers making wines that capture this region’s soul, in large enough production to make it to the States.
While Alvarinho is probably best known as the Spanish wine Albariño, its true home is in Portugal; just ask any Portuguese winemaker. This Reserva bottle takes Alvarinho from Vinho Verde in another direction completely, by matching the high acid grape with barrel aging and bâtonnage. Freshness is met with depth and complexity. A wine often known for its angularity and austere flavor profile takes on instead rich honey tones, and layered flavors of almond, pear and ripe peaches. Complex aromas of honeysuckle, citrus and stone.
2017 Encosta do Xisto Colheita Selecionada Loureiro, Vinho Verde DOC
Is Vinho Verde greater than the sum of its parts? It's tough to say, and fortunately we can drink the famous sprtizy blend, or the sometimes tougher to find single varieties. The single varieties that make up the wine can be outstanding in and of themselves, and along with Alvarinho, Loureiro, a grape that originally hailed from the northern reaches of the DOC is outstanding on its own accord.
This Loureiro is a an aromatically forward wine, with floral aromatics balanced by early season peach, and lime zest. The ripe fruit notes are balance perfectly with an acidity that is a bright kiss of refreshment. 2016 Quinta do Ferro Montanha Avesso, Vinho Verde DOC
Avesso is Vinho Verde's fleshy, full bodied component. This variety brings aromatics in spades, and lengthens the finish of the wines, alone or course, but also when blended. The grape grows near the Douro region, in this case, in mountain vineyards near Baião. This wine is intensely aromatic, floral, fruity and mouth-filling. Aromas of lemon, acacia and honeysuckle, and a palate loaded with citrus fruits, and a full bodied, almost candied lemon peel flavor. 2015 Quinta da Calcada Reserva Vinho Verde DOC
This ultra elegant bottle is a blend of Loureiro, Alvarinho and Arinto and comes off like a young White Burgundy. Seriously this wine is loaded up with citrus aromas, honey, lemon peel and mint. The palate is lively, expressive and frankly, beautiful. Lemon creme coats your front palate and a long finish reminiscent of lemon sorbet sticks with you for what feels like forever. Outstanding wine that makes a real case for the region.
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