Think of Portugal as a One Trick Port Pony?
Portugal has so long been identified with fortified wine that the diversity of its terroir and the variety of its unique grape varietals were virtually unknown outside its borders.  Isolation does have its benefits, as the influx of international grape varietals at the expense of the indigenous, so common elsewhere, did not happen here.  Couple this richness of resources with dramatic quality improvements over the last two decades and you have a recipe for interesting, exciting, delicious and tremendous value wines! Join us tonight and journey through the Northern reaches of rainy Minho, down through the Douro, Dao, Ribatejo and finally the sun baked vineyards of the Alentejo.

Let’s get the evening started with a Port Cocktail featuring…
Dow Fine White Port, Douro $15/$13.50/$12

Dow’s was established in 1798 and is now part of the legendary Symington family.  In 1882 Andrew James Symington arrived in the city of Porto and in 1914 he was at the helm of Warre’s.  The family now oversees all operations at Warre’s, Graham’s and Dow’s – pretty unbelievable!  Anyway, welcome to the wonders of white Port, or Porto Branco!  Often ignored behind the better-known, Ruby and Tawny styles, White Port is hitting its stride.  Only white grape varieties are utilized, mainly a blend of viozinho, gouveio, malvasia and rabigato.  The grapes are gently pressed and removed from the skins. Next the fermentation is stopped by the addition of grape spirit to retain some residual sugar and raise the alcohol to 19%.  The Port is then allowed to age for three years before bottling and then release.  Porto Branco is lovely on its own with flavors of ripe peaches and a bit of nuttiness from the oak ageing.  It is also spectacular blended with a bit of tonic and lemon for a beach side sipper.  This is all the rage in Portugal, so here’s your chance to delight your guests (or your taste buds) with your international savvy.  Jet setter, moi?

2008 Quintas do Malgaco, Terra Antiga, Vinho Verdo, Minho  $10/$9/$8

The banks of the mighty Minho River form the border between Portugal and Spain in the country’s northernmost region.  The cultural divides are bit more loosely drawn here with local Galician customs and traditions merging into this tiny outcropping of villages. Vinho Verde or “green wine” is possibly the most memorable of the Portuguese wines; it has a delightful freshness, a dancing “petillance” or slight “spritz”, usually a very affordable price tag and a memorable name (not found easily throughout Portugal).   Vinho Verde is not a grape however, rather it is a particular wine style that is rooted in the local grape varietals most notably alvarinho and trajadura, though others are permitted. Many ancient traditions with the growing of vinho verde live on to this day, including trainings on high terraces. Upon the arrival of maize to the Old World the agricultural laws changed demanding that vines be ripped up to be replaced with maize to maximize production.  To continue the tradition on the local wine the farmers would grow the vines high up and over walls on the field margins. Today the tradition continues and aids in preventing rot and disease in the rather lush, humid region of northern Portugal.

2007 Espirito Logoalva, Vinho Regional Ribatejano, Ribatejo $17/$15.30/$13.60

Ribatejo, translates to “bank of the Tejo River” which is located to the northeast of Lisbon.  Although located fairly far south, the area is cooled by breezes from the Atlantic that travel through the river valley.  The region is a hotbed for innovation and this estate is no exception.  The current owners were inspired by the modern cleanliness and efficiency of Australian winemaking and brought these techniques back to parish of São Eustáquio.  The estate has been known since the 19th century for wine, horses, olives and of course, cork!  You won’t be seeing any screwcaps on the Portuguese wines.  This wine does see a bit of international influence with 25% sauvignon blanc joining the indigenous grapes, alvarinho, verdelho, fernao pires and arinto.  Aromatically intoxicating, full of melon fruit, this is a great picnic wine!

2006 Montaria Reserva, Vinho Regional Alentejano, Alentejo $10/$9/$8

As a wine-producing country, one of Portugal’s great strengths is its diversity. At one extreme lie the fresh, light, zippy Vinho Verde wines from the damp, green, northern Minho and at the other there are the rich, concentrated red wines from the hot Alentejo in the south, with a whole spectrum of flavors in between. The Alentejo is where Portugal’s climate finally escapes the Atlantic influence and the scenery changes to large, gently undulating plains that experience baking hot summers and cold winters more typical of continental weather systems. Referred to as the ‘bread basket’ of Portugal, wheat is the most important crop here, with the poorer soils being reserved for olive trees, cork oaks and vineyards. Think of it as Portugal’s ‘new world’, with the potential to make extrovert, ripe wines with a taste of the sun about them. The Montaria Reserva displays this new world meets old world style given its blend of syrah with local varietals trincadeira and aragonez.  The fermentation takes place in stainless steel and aging is done for 7 months in a combination of American and French barrels.

2005 Quinta da Garrida, Vila Nova de Tazém, Dão D.O.C. $25/$22.50/$20

The wines of the rugged Dão have gone through a particularly interesting and entirely beneficial transition in the past 15 years.  Until the 1990’s the name “Dão” was associated with aggressively tannic, dull reds, the result of a ridiculous statute that sent all the regions grapes into local co-operatives.  As the EU changed these laws and disallowed this monopoly, the resulting wines have been become far more enjoyable and distinct.  Today it is private estates like Quinta da Garrida, located in Vila Nova de Tazém, near Serra da Estrela the highest mountain of Portugal, that are responsible for harnessing the power of the local indigenous varietals and soils.  Here we see a 50/50 blend of touriga nacional and tinta roriz (aka tempranillo) that is aged for 12 months in French barrels.  The combination of the oak aging, high altitude vineyards and granite soils add up to a wine of tremendous power that also displays great acidity and elegance. If this were from anywhere else in the world it would likely cost 2-3 times as much!

2000 Prats & Symington Chryseia, Douro D.0.C. $45/$40.50/$36
The Douro Valley has a tremendous history and this wine holds a special place in its story.  The Douro is actually the world’s first officially demarcated wine region, dating from 1756.  This is Port Country, located in northeast Portugal.  The landscape would appear to be inhospitable to growing anything with 60-degree scope of schist and slate, blazing hot summers and frigid winters.  Vines enjoy the stress, well at least they produce fantastic grapes in these conditions. As demand for fortified wines dwindled on the world market, producers began to focus on locations for dry table wine production.  In 1998 James Symington, of the legendary Symington Port family (the descendants of Andrew James Symington who took over Warre’s in 1914 now own Warre’s, Dow’s and Graham’s!) contacted Bruno Prats, former owner of famed Bordeaux estate Cos D’Estournel, to create a partnership to create top quality Douro wines.  They researched the best sites and selected four vineyard areas. What is particularly unique is that these are mono-varietal plots, instead of the common comingled plantings.  This allows each variety to ripen to its fullest and harvest to take place at the ideal time in each parcel.  The blend is mainly touriga nacional, which provides silkiness and lovely aromatics, and touriga franca, which gives tannin and body.   Tinta roriz and tinta cao are added as spice accents for additional complexity.  These traditional Portuguese grapes are then vinified in classic Bordeaux style resulting in a spectacular meeting of the two styles.  The 2000 is the inaugural vintage of this historic wine and not to be missed!