Posts Tagged : João Barbosa

João Portugal Ramos – Vila Santa Reserva Red 2013 e Marquês de Borba White 2015

Text João Barbosa | Translation Bruno Ferreira

Estremoz is one of my favorite towns – forgive me its inhabitants, but I cannot resign myself with it being promoted to city. It’s just that the word “town” has a charm that city has not.

Well … Estremoz is worth a visit. For me, the Alentejo is The Portuguese Region… the Douro with its terraces matches it, but concerning the landscape of its populated areas I have plenty of sorrows. The Além Tejo is complete and it’s the best preserved Portuguese region, from the Guadiana to the Atlantic, from the border with the Algarve to the great Iberian river. It’s worthwhile taking a few days to get to know this South.

The foundation took place during the period of the Roman occupation. Its most imposing monument, the castle, has an uncertain date. The Directorate General of Cultural Heritage points out, with uncertainty, to the period of the dynastic crisis, which led Dom Afonso III to the throne, in 1248, second son of King Dom Afonso II and Dona Urraca, daughter of Dom Afonso VIII of Castile. It’s because of Dom Afonso III that the castles managed into the heraldic shield of Portugal, derived from the coat of arms of his maternal grandfather.

Dom Afonso III was the one who completed the conquest of Portugal’s mainland in 1249, with the taking of Faro. He was the second Portuguese monarch to bear the title of King of the Algarve, a merely honorific fiefdom. This ruler also held an important legislative reform, the so called Ordenações Afonsinas.

But the most fascinating historical figure bonded to this monument is Dona Isabel of Aragão, Queen consort, married to Dom Dinis, son of Dom Afonso III. To Dom Dinis is owed the salvation of the Cavaleiros Templários, through the transformation of the Ordem dos Pobres Cavaleiros de Cristo and the Templo Salomão na Ordem de Nosso Senhor Jesus Cristo, which would lead, in the second dynasty, to the creation of the Portuguese empire. This monarch was nicknamed “The Ploughman”, because of the impulse he gave to agriculture.

To Queen Isabel many miracles were attributed and she was canonized by Pope Leo X in 1516. Her most famous miracle was to turn bread into roses. It is said that she secretly distributed bread among the poor and, the King, intrigued by rumors, that did not pleased him, surprised her when she was carrying food to the poor. When asked about what she was hiding in the dress, she said: “They are roses, sir”. And, from her lap dropped down pretty flowers. Identical wonders are attributed to St. Elizabeth of Hungary, her maternal aunt, to Santa Cecilia and to Santa Zita.

The Castle of Estremoz was one of the residences of Dom Dinis, and within it died Queen Santa Isabel. Today, the monument is a hostel, so the visitor can experience closely some of the history of Portugal.

On to the wine, the reason of this written visit to Estremoz. One white and one red João Portugal Ramos, winemaker and producer who several times has been the subject of texts here at Blend – All About Wine.

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Vila Santa Reserva Red 2013 – Photo Provided by João Portugal Ramos | All Rights Reserved

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Marquês de Borba White 2015 – Photo Provided by João Portugal Ramos | All Rights Reserved

Vila Santa – Estremoz is a land of marble and this vinous reference may well be compared to that rock: beauty and strength. Vila Santa Reserva Red 2013 is a safe bet of the vinous Alentejo.

I say it’s safe because those who buy it know that they are taking a wine that will not disappoint in quality. It has what I admire in wine: consistency of quality and of translation of the year. If there is a formula, it is to judiciously choose the grapes, allowing the nature to tell its version of life. Elegant, easy to get lost into and with an acidity that belies the 14% alcohol.

The Vila Santa Reserva Red 2013 is the result of a blend of Aragonês, Touriga Nacional, Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon and Alicante Bouschet. The technical sheet does not indicate the percentage of each variety. I take it, that because it isn’t in alphabetical order, this reflects the greater weight that each grape variety has in the whole.

A portion of the grapes were trodden in marble mills and another in wood vats, followed by post-fermentation maceration. The wine aged nine months in American and French oak barrels.

The second wine is also a renewed classic. The Marquês de Borba brand is also a guarantee. It does notoscillate, it’s reliable. You may like it more or like it less, but the pattern does not slip. Now I write about white, concerning the 2015 vintage.

Now, the wine is a blend of the grape varieties Arinto, Antão Vaz and Viognier. It’s a wine asking for the summer to arrive soon. It has the virtue of an alcoholic degree that, unfortunately, doesn’t always exists: 12.5%. Thus, it has a lightness that defies the most fragile and summer foods, but also fit for conversation and laziness.

The low alcohol content and the Arinto grape variety make wonders. I think that, as in previous vintages, it meets the wine lovers taste. It is not “my” wine – and I’m only speaking about personal taste, not criticizing the quality of the nectar. The justification is that same old “damned” grape.

I have a problem with the grape variety Antão Vaz … little to nothing can I do about it. It’s not a problem of the wine or the grape, it’s just my mouth does not sympathize with these grapes. My compliment to the Arinto is because I feel it as an antidote to my white grape variety tantrum of choice.

Three wines from Tiago Cabaço

Text João Barbosa | Translation Bruno Ferreira

After last summer’s visit, I return once again to the wines of Tiago Cabaço. It’s also a return to Estremoz, where in addition to the built heritage one can also regain strengths in the producer’s mother’s restaurant, the cozy São Rosas.

Three wines to be drunk at the table and unhurried. I am among those who believe that vigorous reds have to be saved for the colder months, when the weight of the meat requires anti-earthquake foundations. It is true that it nestles in a different way, but I do not spend the summer eating salads and poultry viands’. What I say about the reds, I would point it out to yellows too.

Let’s go step by step so the words do not get spilled confusedly. From the whites to the red. The winemaker Susana Esteban continues to score.

The .Com Premium White 2015 is a blend of the grape varieties Antão Vaz, Verdelho and Viognier. The fermentation took place in stainless steel tanks and no aging in oak barrels. It’s a white for Alentejo nectars lovers, especially for lovers of the Antão Vaz fruit. It’s a wine with nerve and I would not drink it without food, but seafood isn’t recommended. Who knows, something more substantial.

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.Com Premium White 2015 – Photo Provided by Tiago Cabaço | All Rights Reserved

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Tiago Cabaço Vinhas Velhas White 2014 – Photo Provided by Tiago Cabaço | All Rights Reserved

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Tiago Cabaço Alicante Bouschet 2012 – Photo Provided by Tiago Cabaço | All Rights Reserved

The Tiago Cabaço Vinhas Velhas White 2014 is a product of vines with more than 35 years. It’s a Blend of Roupeiro, Arinto and Antão Vaz. The technical sheet says that it was aged in wood, but does not provide any specifications. Anyway, the wood does not bring down the natural features. This one is more robust than the .Com Premium White 2015 and has the minerality that characterizes many Estremoz wines. It has an interesting balance between warmth and freshness.

Finally, the “suspect”. I say suspect because before opening it I already kind of knew what would come out of the bottle. The Tiago Cabaço Alicante Bouschet 2012 has an unfortunate fate. It’s not demerit, but the previous year was very generous to the Portuguese winemakers.

The grapes were trodden in stainless steel lagares. The wine aged a year in French oak barrels. The wood adds and does not take anything. I appreciate the combination of the ripe cherries, the earthy notes and the wood. It’s an Alentejo wine and a modern one. Right to the gut!

I also say suspect because it makes us fall without us noticing it – it’s a compliment. And the suspect is dangerous. It has a 14.5% alcohol weight and the acidity disguises it. It also has a hot and fresh temperament. Dine with it late at night, sit down by 23h00 – preferably in a fresh place and where you can hear crickets, cicadas and the chirping of nocturnal birds of prey. And let the conversation go until…

To end with, I alert the reader that the nature of these favorable assessments to the red are because I personally like the wine. I’m not fond of the grape variety Antão Vaz, so even when enhancing the intrinsic quality of the wine, the words do not occur to me in a so cheerful way. On the other hand, I like a lot of the Alicante Bouschet grape variety. Moreover, this red grape variety is particularly happy on Tiago Cabaço’s property.

Contacts
Fonte do Alqueive – Mártires
Apartado 123, 7100-148 Estremoz
Tel: (+351) 268 323 233
E-mail: geral@tiagocabacowine.com
Website: www.tiagocabacowines.com

Even in wine

Text João Barbosa | Translation Bruno Ferreira

Good morning, I’ve never liked to make use of a subject specific writing space to write about the profession – the same way I do not like theorization poems about poetry and the “world” of poets. I do it now, because in this case it is relevant to the reader.

The theme’s reason, which does not directly go into wine and gastronomy, is to alert the reader’s common sense. Not everything we read in books is true, as in newspapers or blogs.

The internet has not and will not kill the paper press, which is now undergoing the Darwin’s Law test: the world is not one of the strongest nor one of the most intelligent, but it is one of those that best adapt to the changes of nature. I see no evil in itself, but the relationship between journalists and bloggers or critics of sites on the Internet is not a peaceful one: anxiety, feelings of betrayal and of loss of “privilege” (loss or dilution of influence). On the other side, anxiety, feelings of lessening, incorrect ways of seeking to conquer what is not theirs, because journalism and blogging are not quite the same thing.

I will not go into scrutinizing the points of view, I’ll just recognize advantages in both and say that they are compatible. The internet has given voice to citizens, who previously could only express themselves via letter to the publication’s director.

The whole universe to explore, the freedom of mankind. But the responsibility does not always keep up, as it always should, with the freedom. Therefore, in the exchange of “kisses” between journalists and bloggers comes the question of honesty, of equidistance, of competence, of swimming in seas of dangerous proximity to private interests.

I am very comfortable with this, for I am both journalist (26 years) and blogger (10 years) and wine writer (one year) – the latter being the son of the previous ones. What makes me write now was a piece in the powerful The Times about the Azores, in particular the airline SATA. I was happy because I found the substrate base of the debate and because it was not food and drink.

All over the world bloggers are often seen with suspicion: who are they? Who do they answer to? Who “oversees” them editorially speaking? Which codes of ethics and deontology do they follow?

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Typewriter

It is true that X% does not know the subject of which they write about, loathes studying, knows everything and, even if unintentionally, ranks the goods that are sent for them to comment about… “I speak good of it, because that way I’ll guarantee that they will keep sending me KYXZ asking for my opinion. I have what I like and for free and I still manage to give sentences.”

But it is also true that the same applies to X% of journalists and critics (of ‘conventional’ means). In 26 years of journalism I’ve met critics of gastronomy, cars, cinema … even bullfight. Not all of them knew/know what they were/are writing about. One day I wanted to confirm that a certain man was a bluff and all his knowledge had the consistency of beaten egg whites. I asked him two very basic questions and he did not know how to answer them – such basic questions that even I that little to nothing know about the subject knew, the same way that other people that do not exercise that profession know.

He wasn’t a gastronomy and wine critic. I know bloggers of the various themes that fuel their ego through their blogs.

Where does The Times come in? There are no absolute winners, but The Times is one of the most influential and credible newspapers in the world, the same way that the The New York Times, The Washington Post, Le Monde, The Financial Times, The Wall Street Journal, etc, are.

In a text about travel, the critic ruled that the SATA (Azorean Service Air Transport) is the worst airline in the world. Not that I mind, because I feel no nationalism in the air transport and I’ve never travelled with this carrier.

In view of this statement, I assume that the critic (journalist) has already flown on all airlines and does it on regular basis in order to support this claim. Wait! Isn’t that the “absolute knowledge”, the peremptory and unequivocal statement, one of the points in which bloggers are more attacked?

In a time before the internet was widespread, a Spanish journalist, of the unsuspected El País (Spain), came to Portugal to make a report around the country. He found that, in the middle of the 90s (XX century), the animal-drawn transport was very common, as it was traveling by horse, donkey or mule.

Spain is right around the corner and millions of Spaniards know Portugal. The ridiculousness with which he wanted to mock the country and the Portuguese fell all over him – I believe he lost his job because of this report to the nineteenth century.

I repeat the second paragraph:

The theme’s reason, which does not directly go into wine and gastronomy, is to alert the reader’s common sense. Not everything we read in books is true, nor in newspapers or blogs.

A given day there was a video on Facebook showing a curious scene, which left many people believing or in doubt. A friend, film editor, summed it genially:

– I also saw ET’s finger light up.

Beware of imitations and certainties. Hold on, don’t leave just yet, I’ll be back soon to write about wine.

Final note: Although not aiming for offerings (fortunately I’ve never needed alms or gifts), I wrote and sentenced about a topic for which I was not prepared: food, restaurants. I realized it and stopped. All the texts were removed. I write when the insistence on the invitation makes it impolite not to accept – and all black on white. It happened/happens within my blog, where I state that all the writing is personal and based on taste. I am amateur critic on my blog and a chronicler out of it. I’m not and do not want to be a professional critic, I want to tell stories.

Marcolino Sebo Wines – Quinta da Pinheira Colheita Seleccionada 2010 and Visconde de Borba Reserva 2011

Text João Barbosa | Translation Bruno Ferreira

Marcolino Sebo afforded to pay the arable land with what he got in the extractive industry. Estremoz is a land of marble and vineyard. Plot by plot and totalling 190 hectares, 130 are vineyard.

Marcolino Sebo’s viticultural history begins in 1975, a time when the country was burning with political passions, almost ending up in a civil war that would split the country in half – I won’t elaborate about the history of Portugal.

Up until 1999, Marcolino Sebo had been selling the grapes to the Adega Cooperativa de Borba, becoming a prominent supplier. In that same year they made their first own vintage and debuted the winery.

All vineyards are within the demarcation of Alentejo, within the sub-region of Borba. Not all its wines are DOC Alentejo (controlled designation of origin), several of them are classified as Regional Alentejo. In addition to the still wines, Marcolino Sebo also produces and sells liqueur wines, grape marc spirit and wine spirit. And also has a small production of olive oil.

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Marcolino Sebo in marcolinosebo.com

Everything is used and saved. The generous wines allow him not to waste wine that hardly would sell. The spirits are acquired to those who buys him vinic subproducts. The barrels which are no longer useful are used to age the spirits.

The produced wine is mostly red: six reds, three whites, one rosé, a white liqueur wine, one wine spirit (old) and one grape marc spirit. Why so many reds? Because they are the most sought – simple.

In such a wide range, the menu of Marcolino Sebo goes from 2,5 euros up to 20. Monte da Vaqueira (white and red) is the basis. The ideas that are beyond the main profile come with the brand Quinta da Pinheira, but the badge goes to the shelves as Visconde de Borba. The liqueur wine and the spirits are sold under the producer’s name.

Well, let’s move on to what matters. I didn’t try the whole range, yet the sample was broad. A summary prepared by Jorge Santos, with great sympathy and a proud Alentejo accent.

Portugal is fortunate (merit) with its generous / liqueur wines – bureaucratic differentiation to designate fortified wines and sincerely it only gets in the way. With Port wine, Madeira wine and Moscatel de Setúbal, among others, it’s not easy to shine. These nectars are traditional in most of the country and the Alentejo is one of its homelands. So … MS Licoroso Branco, made from a blend of Rabo de Ovelha and Roupeiro, is in that ancient family. It has freshness and is gluttonous. As for the rest, it cannot be compared.

Jorge Santos explained that the house’s wines intend to answer two questions: the tradition and the world. But I disagree! I mean, the traditional part is true, but I found no other accent besides of the sung phrases in «language» Alentejo. Note that Marcolino Sebo also has vines of non-Portuguese grape varieties.

On its own, what I’ve written above is neither positive nor negative – because there exists good and bad in what is old and in ‘travel’. In this case the balance is clearly positive, either in the nectars that cling to the Alentejo region, and in those who decided to wander a little.

Looking at the set … and since we’re talking about Alentejo, where in the whites pontificates the grape variety Antão Vaz … well! The fault is neither of the producer nor of the winemaker nor of the grape variety. I do not like the Antão Vaz! Okay, forgetting the personal taste, I need to give a vote of confidence.

I recognize that there is some injustice by choosing to only comment on some wines. Which is the criteria to be followed? Only the top-end? Point to those with a more democratic price? Of the several possible criteria, I will choose by the maternal side – from Alentejo, although from a land without vineyard (Castro Verde).

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Visconde de Borba Reserva 2011 in marcolinosebo.com

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Quinta da Pinheira Colheita Seleccionada in marcolinosebo.com

I will consciously assume the personal taste – I’ll tell you a detail of this matter in a moment. Quinta da Pinheira Colheita Seleccionada 2010 (Alicante Bouschet, Aragonês and Trincadeira) and Visconde de Borba Reserva 2011 (Alicante Bouschet, Aragonês, Tinta Caiada and Trincadeira) pleased me on the oenophile’s ‘G-spot’, by their strong accent.

The detail I mentioned is that at lunch, with Jorge Santos and Sónia Sebo (daughter of Marcolino Sebo and manager of the firm), I was ‘obliged’ to meet several ‘family members’. In the end, the winemaker handed me three bottles (the ones I mentioned above and the Quinta da Pinheira red 2011) and told me those where “his ones”, those whose sung accent give him the warmth of the region.

Yes. It is true! How well they speak singing.

Everyone there sings. And the cante alentejano (Alentejo singing) is part of the Intangible Cultural Heritage List, sentenced UNESCO.

Contacts
Quinta da Pinheira – Arcos
7100 Estremoz
Tel: (+351) 268 891 570
Fax: (+351) 268 891 571
E-mail: geral@marcolinosebo.com
Website: www.marcolinosebo.com

Two Rosés from the Tejo – Casal da Coelheira 2015 and Tyto Alba 2015

Text João Barbosa | Translation Bruno Ferreira

The Comissão Vitivinícola Regional do Tejo has been sending wines for tasting and they deserve approval – if I may. I can’t write about them all, but there’s a few that show up so happy that there is no excuse or priority that pushes them out of the obligations room.

The companies that produce these two nectars are quite different, starting with the dimension up to the social nature. The company Casal da Coelheira was born in the early twentieth century and has 250 hectares, of which 64 are vineyards. Contrarily, the Companhia das Lezírias is a public limited company owned entirely by the state – 17,800 hectares (1,500 hectares are leased), of which 130 hectares of vineyards.

While being huge, I thought it was even bigger. Still, the Companhia das Lezírias is probably the largest Portuguese estate. If the numbers to which I had access are correct, the area almost comes close to the double of the city of Lisbon (10,000 hectares – Wikipedia).

I will write more, but I could summarize these two wines with an interjection:

– Oh summer! Come here now! Do not be long.

The Casal da Coelheira 2015 is fantastically simple, made on the basis of Touriga Nacional and Syrah. It brilliantly fulfills the function of fun with which it was probably designed. Easy to deal with, pleasant, sweet tooth without being a syrup, where pontificates the blackcurrant aroma. It’s decided! This one is mandatory for this summer! I would not match it with food – possibly a chicken salad with fruit. Wants to talk and will help with seduction … will make a positive contribution to the birth rate.

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Casal da Coelheira Rosé 2015 in casaldacoelheira.pt

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Tyto Alba Vinhas Protegidas Rosé 2015 in tytoalba.pt

The Tyto Alba Vinhas Protegidas 2015 is an absolute revelation. The name is beautiful! And more beautiful when it is known that it is honoring a magnificent bird: the coruja-das-torres (screech owl) – in Portugal is known by more names.

It is a revelation – for me – because I was not expecting anything comparable at all.

– What is this?! My God!

It was sort of like this. I am fond of rosés, I like them from the sweet up to the extra-dry. Weighing them all, this is (probably) the best Portuguese rosé I ever drank! If it’s not the best I drank, it is at least the one that has given me more pleasure.

It didn’t even benefit from any event that would delimitate it. A normal day of the week, I was neither stressed nor relaxed, neither sad nor happy, neither tired nor athletic, neither hungry nor satiated. I think I was at the ‘point zero’ or ‘point 50’ on a scale of zero to 100.

– What is this?! My God!

Very fresh, elegant, slick, party-animal, an unusual complexity, very easy, great for light fare, great for chatting, magnificent for dancing. With the advantage of weighing only 12.5%. I wished for that moment to never end.

The Tyto Alba Vinhas Protegidas 2015 results from the junction of Touriga Nacional and Merlot. Knowing the heat of the region and looking at the alcohol content of this nectar, I have to say:

– It’s well worth it not to consider rosés as a reds’ sub-product.

After the initial years – in which the rosés were odd, seen as a fad, a solution to use leftovers or a curiosity to help sell “the” wine – nowadays are made in Portugal many ‘true’ or ‘honest’ rosés, made with the will to make and build them well. Both of them are in the section of the national good rosés.

I can only applaud those who wanted to harvest the grapes earlier and engaged in making a wine and not a spare – I do not mean that there isn’t any other good rosés with more whieght and resulting from the grapes harvested for reds.

Unlike coruja-das-torres, the Tyto Alba Vinhas Protegidas 2015 flies by day and night. The bird is a protected species. The wine must be hunted to extinction. And will also help to make babies!

It was the wine, my God, it was the wine

Text João Barbosa | Translation Bruno Ferreira

The wine lives in me, not just because I like the drink but for all that goes with it. There are more economy texts about this sector than (probably) historical, anthropological or sociological.

30 years ago there were taverns in Lisbon… I mean real taverns, not beautiful places with scenario and poor’s food for the rich. Many snacks that – now they call them tapas, in Spanish is cuter, just a provincialism – were served to draw drink, some were even offered.

Today is raffiné (forced foreignness, a provocation because of what I wrote above) to serve fried potato peelings and charge as if they were silver potatoes. Back then they were offered and salty. Another funny thing – this one is pathetic but it helps to explain why cod fish was affordable food to the poor – were the splinters. Yes, nothing more than the dry “faithful friend” with salt. It was cheap and salty, entertained the mouth and called for more glasses.

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A tavern in Lisbon in Arquivo Municipal de Lisboa

Many taverns were also charcoal kiln. That meant the wine odors (bad), soot and sawdust got mixed together… yes, tavern’s alcoholics drank to the “limit”, the wood shavings were for easy cleaning… absorbers.

The taverns, nowadays exquisite, were ugly, nasty, smelly and poorly attended. The wine used to come in dirty wooden barrels of various sizes. For the nostalgic and romantic I say:

– No! Back then, the times were no better!

The text came to my mind because I was reliving the memories of a song from a brilliant Portuguese humorist. In 1977, the actor Herman José was also dedicated to music and released the disc (45 rpm) “Saca o saca-rolhas” (Draw the corkscrew). Besides the joke, the song is also a window to Portugal of 30 years ago.

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Herman José’s record “Saca o saca-rolhas”

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Bayberry Branch in wikimedia.org

«Saca o saca-rolhas, abre o garrafão, viver sem vinho não presta». (Draw the corkscrew, open the carboy, living without wine is no good”). This statement is (being generous) in the politically correct limit. Young people will hardly be aware of this and the foreigners certainly do not know it.

In the verses, in addition to consuming a carboy (five liters), it is also told of how the motorcyclists used to speed after drinking alcohol, risking a digestion stoppage by diving into the sea after the spree, and (as it appears) taking an extra passenger on the motorbike. Portuguese roads were a civil war, in the deaths’ department.

Of course there still exists some of that reality. However, it does not have the past’s indulgence and it is unanimously criticized. At that time, the wine was the main fuel that the Portuguese people used for getting drunk, more than beer… and spirit drinks were far from affordable.

This point deserves a historical framework. In 1974, Portugal stopped being a closed and controlled economy and was gradually opening up. In 1975, the colonies became independent, with financial implications. In the equation we have to put the oil crises, economic upheavals arising from political choices, etc.

If until 1974 the Scotch whiskey, for example, was “hidden” and the Spanish gin was tenebrous, the 1977 and 1983 bankruptcies, with interventions from the International Monetary Fund, made the border of alcoholic beverages visible.

The fresh money that flowed from Community sources, since 1986, helped change the paradigm. They have changed the various patterns of consumption, but the Portuguese still require for the wine to be cheap. They don’t even consider how much the producer invests, the risks and the prices at which he sells.

At the time of Herman’s corkscrew, consumption was very high and price very low – something also possible thanks to the production of vinho-a-martelo, a concoction that could also contain wine, but it was composed of a number of products that changed and altered it: falsification of foodstuffs.

The Portuguese are willing to pay one euro for a bottle of water or 60 cents for a coffee, but a wine above five euros is a piece of jewelry. I did the math and wine at the coffee’s price rate costs 15 euros (0.75 liters).

But I cannot finish this retrospective look without a popular verse, with the sarcasm of false naivety: ”À porta do Santo António está um ramo de loureiro, é uma pouca-vergonha fazer do santo tasqueiro” – “At St. Anthony church’s door there is a bayberry branch, it’s a shamelessness to make the holy, a tavern man”

At the door, the taverns had at the customer’s disposal, bayberry branches. Apparently, chewing these leaves makes the wine’s breath go away. Well, we can see that the revelers went back home tumbling down, but could prove their innocence when duely reprimanded by their wives because they didn’t have alcohol breath.

A convention: I know you know that I know you know that I know.

Casa Cadaval Wines – Padre Pedro, Padre Pedro Reserva, Casa Cadaval e Marquesa de Cadaval 2012

Text João Barbosa | Translation Bruno Ferreira

Telling about the Casa Cadaval wines needs some prior information. I repeat: the history and the stories are an added value. Everything has an origin and explanation and the wine only gains in being more than just wine or simple food product. This producer can fill books.

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Casa Cadaval – Photo Provided by Casa Cadaval | All Rights Reserved

A country with almost 900 years of existence has much to get to know. Over the centuries, some families ascended and other have fallen. In the midst of crises and wars some houses went over to the enemy side and others remained loyal to the country.

In two of the three periods in which it was necessary to fight for independence, the Cadaval blood was poured by the Portuguese side. The first two moments are related to our neighbors and the third with Napoleon’s frenchmen. In this last moment the Cadaval family accompanied the King and the rest of the court on the trip to Brazil.

In the dynastic crisis and war against Castela, 1383-1385, the constable Dom Nuno Alvares Pereira was a great strategist and commander of the Portuguese troops. The conflict ended with the Batalha de Aljubarrota, where the invaders were superior in number – the proportion varies according to the chroniclers and historians.

Dona Beatriz Pereira de Alvim, the constable’s daughter, married Dom Afonso, son of King Dom João I, out of wedlock, and that would come to be first Duke of Bragança. The first Cadaval member (though untitled) was Dom Álvaro, the fourth son of the second duke of Bragança – Dom Fernando.

From the first-born, Dom Rodrigo de Melo, the family was adding titles: earl of Olivença (1476 – only one holder), earl of Tentúgal (1504), marquis of Ferreira (1533) and duke of Cadaval (1648), marquis of Cadaval (second son of the eighth duke and the sole holder), and “relative honors” of the royal house.

The first duke of Cadaval was Dom Nuno Álvares Pereira de Melo, the third marquis of Ferreira, whose title was awarded by King Dom João IV, was grace for his role in the War of Restoration against Filipe III of Portugal – Filipe IV of Spain, grandson of the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, Carlos V, house of Habsburg.

So here you see the weight that the Cadaval name has in the history of Portugal. Olga Maria Nicolis di Robilant Álvares Pereira de Melo, Marchioness of Cadaval, via wedding, and a descendant of the Empress Catherine of Russia is an extremely important culture figure, praiseworthy and arts’ promoter, especially the music. Deceased in 1996, she was honored by the Sintra City Council, which gave her name to the Centro Cultural Olga Cadaval.

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Tasting Room – Photo Provided by Casa Cadaval | All Rights Reserved

The aristocrat created friendship bonds from Pope Pius XII to important composers and writers, without ever looking at the political doctrine values, but instead to the talent and culture: Cole Porter, Maurice Ravel, Igor Stravinski, Mstislav Rostropovitch, José Vianna da Motta, Luís de Freitas Branco, Fernando Lopes Graça… just to name a few figures of music.

In Muge on the left bank of the Tejo river and 80 kilometers north of Lisbon, is located the property from where come the wines that are narrated here. It is an area of about 5,000 hectares, where live in harmony cattle, horses, forest and wine.

The property is managed by Teresa Schönborn, Olga Cadaval granddaughter. The name indicates the way to Germany. Her mother, Graziela Álvares Pereira de Melo, was married to Karl Anton von Schönborn, eighth Earl of Schönborn-Wiesentheid. The wine is also grown in the German areas: Schloss Schönborn (Rheingau – Reno) and Schloss Hallburg (Franken – Franconian).

Returning to the Tejo, in 1994 the Casa Cadaval abandoned the business of selling wine in bulk and it assumed itself as a producer and bottler, being one of the first companies of the region to focus on quality and a brand.

A base da gama é formada pela marca Padre Pedro, nome que homenageia um antigo prelado amigo da família. As mais recentes colheitas: Padre Pedro Branco 2014 (arinto, fernão  pires, verdelho e viognier), Padre Pedro Tinto 2012 (aragonês, cabernet sauvignon, merlot e trincadeira – seis meses de estágio em barricas de carvalho francês) e Padre Pedro Rosé 2013 (aragonês, merlot e touriga nacional).

The basis of the range is formed by the brand Padre Pedro, a name that pays homage to an old prelate family friend. The latest vintages: Padre Pedro white 2014 (Arinto, Fernão Pires, Verdelho and Viognier), Padre Pedro red 2012 (Aragonês, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Trincadeira – six months in French oak barrels) and Padre Pedro Rosé 2013 (Aragonês, Merlot and Touriga Nacional).

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Padre Pedro white – Photo Provided by Casa Cadaval | All Rights Reserved

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Padre Pedro red – Photo Provided by Casa Cadaval | All Rights Reserved

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Padre Pedro rosé – Photo Provided by Casa Cadaval | All Rights Reserved

 

The white and the rosé come with a happy 12.5% alcohol, which makes them well suited for the summer, both for conversation, snacks or light meals. The red has one more percentage point up asks not heavy meat. Easy wines, in the best meaning of the word – relaxed and affordable (I think) to most wallets and easy to find.

A level above are the Padre Pedro Reserva white 2013 (Viognier and Arinto – six months in French oak barrels) and Padre Pedro Reserva red 2012 (Alicante Bouschet, Merlot, Touriga Nacional and Trincadeira – eight months in French oak barrels and six months in the bottle). The white can be matched all the way up from spicy fish dishes to some not very fatty meat stews. The red is better with stronger and well spiced meats, from veal to pork.

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Padre Pedro Reserva white – Photo Provided by Casa Cadaval | All Rights Reserved

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Padre Pedro Reserva red – Photo Provided by Casa Cadaval | All Rights Reserved

The wines that have the domain’s name are monovarietal, produced from grapes with good performance. The latest are Casa Cadaval Trincadeira Preta in 2011 (a year of aging in new French oak barrels and more than a year in bottle), Casa Cadaval Pinot Noir 2012 (six months in French oak barrels and another half year in bottle) and Casa Cadaval Cabernet Sauvignon 2012 (eight months in new French oak barrels and six months in bottle).

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Casa Cadaval Trincadeira Preta – Photo Provided by Casa Cadaval | All Rights Reserved

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Casa Cadaval Pinot Noir – Photo Provided by Casa Cadaval | All Rights Reserved

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Casa Cadaval Cabernet Sauvignon – Photo Provided by Casa Cadaval | All Rights Reserved

At the pinnacle is a wine that does homage to Olga Cadaval. An excellent wine of the Tejo, with aromatic complexity and with strength and elegance on the palate – long lasting in the mouth. Although it is pleasurable, I think keeping it for three or four years will benefit it. The producer offers a ten years’ “guarantee” – metaphor.

The Marquesa de Cadaval 2012 is a red approved as Reserva. It’s a blend of Alicante Bouschet, Touriga Nacional and Trincadeira – aged a year in new French oak barrels and another year in bottle. It deserves to be served at the holiday table … or as assured the poet José Carlos Ary dos Santos: Christmas is when a man wants.

Contacts
Casa Cadaval
Rua Vasco da Gama
2125-317 Muge – Portugal
Tel: (+351) 243 588 040
Fax: (+351) 243 581 105
E-mail: geral@casacadaval.pt
Website: www.casacadaval.pt

Quinta da Alameda red Reserva Especial 2012 e Quinta da Alameda red Jaen 2013

Text João Barbosa | Translation Bruno Ferreira

The Dão is rising. The region has awakened and started moving. As you would expect, there will be mistakes, nothing is perfect but just the fact of reacting is already worthy an applause. It is awaking and scoring points, walking the path to retrieve the status it once had. Merit has to be given to the Comissão Vitivinícola Regional, but this was only possible because there were producers determined to do well and get financial return.

Carlos Lucas is one of the men that led the rising with his passage in Dão Sul, nowadays Global Wines, a company that is now present in Alentejo, Bairrada, Douro, Lisboa, Vinho Verde and Brazil (Vale do São Francisco) as well.

Dão Sul appeared in 1990. The brands Quinta de Cabriz and Quinta dos Grilos introduced themselves with inviting prices and with easy consumer pleasing features. The success led them to expand beyond their cradle.

The wines from Quinta de Ribeiro Santo, located in Carregado do Sal, confirmed Carlos Lucas’ touch rightness. The Dão would not be the same today and would be perhaps very different without the work of this winemaker.

Quinta da Alameda is a partnership between Carlos Lucas and the businessman Luís Abrantes with activity in the furniture industry (Movecho). Amândio Cruz is in charge of the viticulture. It’s located in Santar, Nelas municipality. The area is small for the European standards but above the region’s average and it’s comprised by 50 hectares 15 of which are vineyard.

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The vineyard – Photo Provided by Quinta da Alameda | All Rights Reserved

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The vineyard – Photo Provided by Quinta da Alameda | All Rights Reserved

For those who like numbers, in 2009 from the total of 305.266 agricultural enterprises, 283.071 had less than 20 hectares – a number that has been getting smaller since 1979 (2,6 times inferior). The utilized agricultural area has also been decreasing, although at a smaller pace (1,4 times inferior). The Center region, where lies the Dão, is one of the regions with smaller size.

Let’s leave the numbers and move on to what matters the most. The two partners kept a portion of the old vine, where lie several grape varieties blended as tradition demands, and they transformed another portion where they planted Alfrocheiro, Baga, Jaen, Tinta Roriz, Tinto Cão and Touriga Nacional.

It’s located in an area where the altitude goes from 400 to 700 meters, close to Serra da Estrela and the Dão river. Translation to one word: freshness. The reason behind the choice of these new grape varieties was the production of sparkling wines.

The valorization of the old vines by observing the quality of the produced wines created a fashion. Those who have vines with 30 years say they are old… to me they are not. In Quinta da Alameda, the age of these plants is over 80 years.

Carlos Lucas confessed not being a fan of the Jaen grape variety. However, in Quinta da Alameda he changed his opinion, in 2012. The following year he vinified it separately. The result debuted recently and I’m going to talk about it a little further ahead.

The Dão region has a special classification category that can be compared to the Port Wine’s Vintage classification. Carlos Lucas says he doesn’t know if “Dão Nobre” was ever attributed and forseens it to be hard to happen.

The Quinta da Alameda red Reserva Especial 2012 was submitted to exam and did not earn the distinction, as the reader must have already understood from the previous paragraph. It was categorized as Reserva Especial, which in some way is the same. If the top is inaccessible, the level immediately below occupies its place.

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Carlos Lucas – Photo Provided by Quinta da Alameda | All Rights Reserved

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Quinta da Alameda red Reserva Especial 2012 – Photo Provided by Quinta da Alameda | All Rights Reserved

The received classification is fair! It’s a great wine and has what it should be expected from the Dão. The region lives in these bottles, where the memories of the old vines and the recognized categories have been kept since ever.

Quinta da Alameda red Reserva Especial 2012 was made with Alfrocheiro, Tinta Roriz, Tinta Cão and Touriga Nacional grapes… a pinch of Baga, outlawed grape variety despite its former presence around there in the past. The wine aged one year in French oak and another 12 months in bottle. It’s a wine with a great freshness, softness and elegance. A freshness that covers the 14 degrees of alcohol – you won’t even notice it.

The Quinta da Alameda red Jaen 2013 expresses well the grape variety. It’s an educational wine on two levels: What is the Jaen grape variety? and What is a Dão wine? – despite the tradition being blend wines. The aging in French oak casks lasted a year. It’s an equally red with freshness that provides good pleasure with elegance for which the region was/is known.

As you should expect, I don’t boss a thing in the Dão region, as I don’t in none of the others. Nonetheless, I think that by not validating wines as “Dão Nobre” the tasting panel is not benefiting anyone. It would be a good help for the older consumers to find themselves and for the newcomers to venture in the wonders that, in fact, exist in the region.

Other regions might get first a new designation for a higher classification, benefiting from the primacy. Each one knows of themselves and their businesses. This is my opinion and it’s worth whatever the reader wants it to be worth.

Let us remember that in Bordeaux, Burgundy or Champagne there are “never” bad years… they are either excellent or classic. The top classifications are used and France is what it is.

Dead-Nature or Still-Life

Text João Barbosa | Translation Bruno Ferreira

The title might seem odd for some readers but these are two well-defined, sedimented and ancient concepts of painting. The latin languages use the term “dead-nature” whilst the English and German still use (still-life – stilleben) and it’s used in works that encompass food, natural elements and sometimes animals. However, more objects can be added.

Another concept is vanitas, many times associated to still life, and addresses the insignificance or continuity of life, of what’s left of us after death, the vanity (vanitas) defeated…

Yesterday after dinner, I was resting along a glass of wine and staring at a still-life of my father’s (Manuel Jorge – 1924 to 2015), of which I do not have a photo and I dived into Paul Cézanne – that he so much appreciated. With my father’s passing getting close (last year’s February) it occurred to me the vanitas – as far as I know he did not make any – and the reason as why they exist as an artistic motive.

Vanitas is more obvious. But the still-lifes seem more complex to me and I cannot help but notice the two terms to name it: dead or still-alive. The food that keeps us alive, the wine that makes us glow and the sensation that we forgot to do something – clear the table, finishing a piece of fruit, finishing the glass of wine, knocking down objects for some sudden rush.

To note the fact that the food is always shown fresh and tasty with no apparent signs of degradation. If, harvested and hunted or fished, they’ll be dead. The freshness, which is transmitted by the glows belies death. Therefore, the truth lies between the two concepts, the Latin and the Germanic.

These pieces of art are a window for the table pleasures, both the author’s and from other times. Note that, for centuries there was much starvation, which fed many rebellions, diseases, early death or a life span that would astonish us – millennia in which reaching the 40s was quite the achievement, at a time where the death rate at childbirth and childhood was immense.

For that, these art works reflect the dazzling pleasure of food and party, but also loneliness and melancholy. If looking with a sharp eye we can see that the gluttony of once is not much different from today’s.

The sugar, which is an easy access product, was for the rich. To get an example, at an archaeological digging of a burial we can easily see who were the rich and the poor. Some have tooth decay because they could pay for candy and others have outworn molar teeth because they ate bread of the worst flours that contain residues of the millstone.

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Josefa de Óbidos painted several still-lifes with cakes

So, the sugar is mostly represented as fruit. Grapes, lemons and oranges are probably the most quoted ones… maybe pomegranate as well. However, pastry was also painted.

Josefa de Óbidos painted several still-lifes with cakes. Lubin Baugin «portrayed» a stripped painting with a bottle, glass of wine and biscuit rolls. The bread was vastly shown, it was the West’s base food of past centuries.

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Lubin Baugin «portrayed» a stripped painting with a bottle, glass of wine and biscuit rolls.

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Paul Cézanne portrayed onions

In the pleasures area we find oysters, lobster, edible crab, fish, meat… and wine! However, there’s a «delicious» sill-life of Juan Sánchez Cotán with cabbage, pumpkin, cucumber and quince (?)… he must have been on diet. Paul Cézanne portrayed onions. Master Abel Manta chose a sleek lenge that, just by looking at it, transmits the smell of trimetazidine – nitrate responsible for the smell of fish and which makes me go sick and vomit… I leave you with no further intimacies. But the animal is beautiful!

As it had to be, the wine flows abundantly showing what still nowadays fills our soul. To be noted that the wine was a strong source of calories that the poor could drink – so many times has the wine fed Portuguese workers and peasants and until not long ago.

Nonetheless, the wine that is shown was not for the worker’s throat. It is represented by a bottle (luxury) and crystal glasses (thin) – even glass was expensive. Sometimes the chalices are of worked metal. Just a note, beer was also a common presence.

If nowadays consumers prefer red wines (I confess I could not get updated data), the white wine was apparently (in the not very reliable memory) more chosen by the painters. There are many clarets, very far from the reds that please people nowadays.

I said I was done with the intimacy but this one is grounded. My father was a wine enthusiast. But, both of the still-lifes I have of his have flowers, fruit, bread and water.

Hexagon red 2009 and Hexagon white 2013 (six is a number of wisdom) – Colecção Privada Domingos Soares Franco Touriga Francesa 2013

Text João Barbosa | Translation Bruno Ferreira

For those who are superstitious the number six is not a magic number like the number 7 is. For the Chinese, the number eight is fantastic, of an excellent omen. So, the number six is almost as well… but there are sixes and ‘sixes’.

Now that I made my numerological joke, the Hexagon wines (white and red) are the proof that the number six means wisdom and not chance. Six because that’s the number of grape varieties used to make them, and they come from different plots.

The first vintage dates to 2006, made with the 2000 vintage, and only the red was made. I remember taking it to a dinner of friends and their rection was joy. Alexandre, a regular reactive involuntary, was literally gaping and uttering profanities in the complimentary sense: F***, WHAT A BIG WINE! F***!

Fortunately, the Hexagon wines are always different. It’s an asset for those who like the expression of nature – although this means some are better than others. For those who rather a formula that grants uniformity vintage after vintage I recommend you not to drink them. I’m not criticizing, to me they are equally tenable and legitimate choices.

I have them all at a high quality level so it’s hard for me not express some personal taste. I’ll probably be a little “childish”: the first and the last are the best. But then again, my memory might betray me.

The most recent one is a red from 2009 and was made with Touriga Nacional (35%), Touriga Francesa (or Touriga Franca, Domingos Soares Franco prefers the former name – 17%), Syrah (15%), Trincadeira (13%), Tinto Cão (10%) and Tannat (10%).

Due to this formula the aromatic description becomes quite large – it’s just that this wine did not get in its mix the «bitumen» that takes the character of the grapes. So the list is extent, complex and tiresome. In fact, the aromas evolve, get replaced and return. I’ll let the oenophiles get entertained.

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Hexago red 2009 – Photo Provided by José maria da Fonseca | All Rights Reserved

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Hexagon white 2013 – Photo Provided by José maria da Fonseca | All Rights Reserved

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Colecção Privada Domingos Soares Franco Touriga Francesa 2013 – Photo Provided by José maria da Fonseca | All Rights Reserved

In the mouth it follows the same organoleptic characteristics. Add up elegance, mouth filling, deepness and a long finish.

I also like a lot the number four, just as I like the number eight. Hexagon white 2013 is, in fact, a square. What I don’t like is the Antão Vaz grape variety. I’m going to repeat what I always say: one thing is taste, quality is another.

Hexagon white 2013 is a blend of Viosinho (34%), Verdelho (30,5%), Antão Vaz (20%) and Alvarinho (15,5%). If the first grape variety is a cut in the shaving, the second one is just of eyebrow raising… the way this grape variety of the Northern Vinho Verde region manifests in the south doesn’t…

The Touriga Francesa grape variety is the big soul of the Douro wine region and got its name (so I believe) because it has arisen at the time that in France hybrids were being made. I think the author remains anonymous but we do know that that this grape variety is a daughter of Touriga that at the time did not needed to be named «Nacional» and Mourisco. The first behaves good in the winery but it’s tricky in the field, the second one is the opposite.

It could have been born with the bad genes of both but what came out was an extraordinary plant – to me it’s the best Portuguese red grape variety. However, rare are the cases where it shows itself with the Douro soul. And it’s a grape variety that likes company in the bottle.

Of those rare cases I only recall two producers who can drive it as if it was a Lamborghini – I apologize but it’s the only brand of super sports cars that I like. They are José Mota Capitão (Herdade do Portocarro) and Domingos Soares Franco.

It was with the certainty that José Maria da Fonseca’s Head Winemaker has «fingers» to drive the Miura, and the childish excitation of a new toy, that I opened the bottle.  – it’s the second time in this text I accuse myself of being a child, it might be a serious thing.

Well, the quality is nothing new, and it also applies to Collecção Privada and Hexagon. Therefore, I cannot run from «my taste’s» classification.

It’s not the Douro’s Touriga Franca but it’s also an excellency! When I tasted it I was surprisingly assailed: some floral notes of orange tree, nothing excessive. I commented that I had never experienced something like that – even in reds of different grape varities.

When I sneakpeaked the technical sheet I realized there was some «cheating»… or better, that Domingos Soares Franco was riding the Lamborghini in a race track, with fuel, prepared for competition.

The cheating: Touriga Francesa (95%) and Moscatel Roxo (5%). Trickster! Big Domingos!