Text Sarah Ahmed

Blend is a brilliant name for a Portuguese wine magazine. Why? Because the Portuguese are the masters of blending – whether it’s different grape varieties or vintages. It helps that, with 250 plus native grape varieties, these vinous artists have a rich palette of aromas, flavours and textures from which to draw.

Sixtyone Menu for the Event – Photo by Sip & Savour | All Rights Reserved

Of course another variable is terroir, a topic which I enjoyed placing under the microscope at a Sip & Savour tasting earlier this month focused on the Douro and Vinho Verde. When you think about classic Vinho Verde wine – fresh, white, light, low alcohol – it is remarkable to think that this region’s neighbor, the Douro, produces one of the world’s most famous fortified wines – rich, red and robust Ports! Fire to the Vinho Verde’s water.

I had fun contrasting six benchmark examples from these northern regions. As you might expect, the Vinho Verdes were white and the Douro duo were (at least intended both to be) red – no surprises there. But I also played around with perceptions as I took the chance to highlight not just the freshness but also the intensity of top Vinho Verde and the elegance of the Douro reds, even if they came from the Douro Superior, theoretically its hottest, driest sub-region. The surprises continued with our dessert wine, a Moscatel do Douro, which proved that the Douro can do elegant fortifieds too.

Returning to my fire and water analogy, water is a big fat clue to a major point of difference between these two neighbouring regions. Located alongside the Atlantic and criss-crossed by rivers which funnel the Atlantic influence inland, Vinho Verde is wetter and cooler than the land-locked Douro. You have to travel some 100km inland from Oporto to reach the Douro region, which then stretches another 100km further inland, snaking along the Douro river, right up to the Spanish border.

While Vinho Verde has a maritime influenced climate (especially those parts nearest the coast), the Douro is shielded from the brunt of Atlantic weather by the Marão mountain range. Located betwixt the Douro and Vinho Verde and rising to 1,415m above sea level, the Marão is Portugal’s sixth highest mountain range. Its sheer height and mass has a rain-shadow effect and helps the Douro to keep the Atlantic storms at bay.

The Douro’s inland location also results in a continental climate which is characterized by extremes of temperature. As one winemaker vividly expressed it, the Douro has ‘nine months of winter and three months of hell.’ Hell, we’re back to fire, but not hell, fire and damnation! Autumn temperatures may soar to 40 degrees plus (which is perfect for Port and red winemaking), but the good news is that those temperature extremes occur on a daily and not just seasonal basis. In the autumn, even if it’s 40 degrees in the daytime, the temperature drops significantly at night.

What’s more, elevation comes into play. Remember, we’ve ascended the Marão mountain range into the Douro – some might say into heaven, not hell! And because the Douro is itself mountainous, grapes are grown at altitudes ranging between 100m (by the river) to up to 900m above sea level and facing every which way – north, south, east and west. Given that temperatures can drop by up to one degree centigrade for every 100m you climb, plus aspect affects exposure to sunshine and wind which in turn impact on the ripening process, the Douro can make elegant red and white wines, as well as robust Ports and red wines. It was to elegance that I looked for this Sip & Savour tasting in the height of summer.

Sixtyone Restaurant – Photo by Sarah Ahmed | All Rights Reserved

Naturally, food writer Sip & Savour’s Amber Dalton came up with a fine foodie foil for the wines in the shape of Sixtyone Restaurant. Chef/Patron Arnaud Stevens tempers big bold flavours with his elegant touch. He told us his menu for this tasting was very much informed by matching the acidity – the freshness – of the Portuguese wines.

Which brings me to our first example, our refreshing, intensely mineral aperitif, Quinta do Ameal Loureiro 2013. I had deliberately selected single varietal, sub-regional Vinho Verdes because they brilliantly kick into touch any lingering stereo-types about Vinho Verde being dilute and too acidic. Based in Nogueira in the heart of the sub-region of Lima where the Loureiro grape thrives, Quinta do Ameal has long produced the region’s benchmark example.

Quinta do Ameal – Photo by Sarah Ahmed | All Rights Reserved

The secret to Ameal’s success? Aside from being in the right spot (Lima, on south-facing slopes), vaulting ambition helps. Owner Pedro Aruajo is descended from Adriano Ramos Pinto of Port fame and has plainly brought his great grand-father’s magic touch to Ameal. So when it comes to the raw material, Aruajo has slashed yields in order to ensure that his organically grown grapes are healthy and concentrated in aroma and flavour. In the winery, he has employed none other than Vinho Verde guru Anselmo Mendes to ensure that the grapes’ lively lime and celery salt aromas and flavours and cool minerality are preserved in the glass. Well received, it was the perfect tonic on such a hot and humid London day.

Octopus Carpaccio – Photo by Sarah Ahmed | All Rights Reserved

For the Vinho Verde pair which we enjoyed with this stunning starter of octopus carpaccio, red pepper, wood sorrel, sesame, I looked for even more intensity and concentration. So it made sense to show off Vinho Verde’s warmest, driest sub-region, Monção e Melgaço, the epicentre of Portugal’s flagship white grape, Alvarinho. What’s more, two of its greatest exponents, Quinta do Soalheiro and Anselmo Mendes.

Though you might expect it to be cooler than Lima to the south, Monção e Melgaço is located well inland, where the land starts to rise and the topography helps to shelter the vineyards from Atlantic influence. So the climate is a little more continental, which explains why the grapes attain good ripeness (hotter days), yet also have good acidity (nights are significantly cooler). It makes for Vinho Verde’s most powerfully fruity yet fresh, long-lived wines; my audience was struck by the relative delicacy and minerality of the Loureiro compared with the two Alvarinhos.

As for which of the pair most caught their fancy, at Sip & Savour events we always ask which wine people most preferred on its own and which with the food. In this case, the answer was the same. Quinta do Soalheiro Primeiras Vinhas Alvarinho 2013 just pipped Anselmo Mendes Contacto Alvarinho 2014 on both counts. Made from the oldest vines at the Cerdeira family’s organically cultivated estate (planted in 1974, they were Melgaço’s first) and with a barrel-fermented component (15%), Quinta do Soalheiro Primeiras Vinhas 2013 had greater complexity. Its subtle savoury nuances chimed brilliantly well with the sherry vinegar, sesame oil and pine nuts in the octopus’ marinade. But it was a close call. I also loved the honeysuckle perfume and bounteous peach and apricot fruit of the bolder Contacto from lower vineyards closer to the Minho river in Monção. (Incidentally, this wine takes its name from the fact that the crushed grapes stay in contact with skins for a short period prior to fermentation. Why? Because the skins harbour the most aroma and flavor compounds and can add a touch of texture to the wine too).

Roasted Guinea Fowl – Photo by Sarah Ahmed | All Rights Reserved

For our main course of roasted guinea fowl, coco beans, tomatoes, peas, black olive, lime, I’d selected two Douro reds, Casa Ferreirinha Vinha Grande Tinto and Conceito Contraste Vinho Tinto. Both were from the elegant 2012 vintage and made by winemakers who place great emphasis on freshness and balance.

At Casa Ferreirinha (which makes iconic Douro red Barca Velha) Luis Sottomayor follows the tradition of sourcing grapes from different altitudes for elegant balance. It helps that Sogrape (Casa Ferreirinha’s owner) has two Douro Superior estates – Quinta da Leda at 150m-400m and Quinta do Sairrão which rises to over 600m. As for Rita Ferreira Marques, she contends that the freshness of Conceito’s wines stems from the Teja Valley being the Douro’s coolest spot. Not just because of elevation (her vineyards are located at 300-450m), but also because of the Teja Valley’s distance from the tempering influence of the Douro river. It was a quality (freshness) that I was able to demonstrate more emphatically than I’d originally intended when it transpired that her importer had sent Contraste Branco (white), not the red!

The inadvertent pairing of the main course with a white and red wine brought to mind João Pires’ wise words about taking your cue from the colour of the dish. Not for nothing is he a Master Sommelier! Like many Portuguese whites, Conceito Contraste Branco is not overtly fruity and, with its vegetal notes, it performed a harmonious duet with the thyme, rosemary and tomato notes in the dish as well as the protein; its acidity cut through the creamy saucing too. Most preferred it with the guinea fowl. On the other hand, with its bright still very primary fruit, most people preferred the Casa Ferreirinha Vinha Grande Tinto on its own. The fruit was a little too overwhelming for the delicate flavours and creamy texture of this dish.

The Dessert – Photo by Sarah Ahmed | All Rights Reserved

You need only look at this dessert to put on weight! Suffice to say, it would be difficult to find a wine to overwhelm salt caramel chocolate tart with caramel marshmallow and salt caramel ice cream. Rather, the challenge might be to find a wine to stand up to it, so a fortified wine made sense. But if the dessert and dessert wine were to be pronounced the perfect match (as indeed they were), then the wine had to have sufficient freshness to cut through the richness of the dish and cleanse the palate after each (heavenly) mouthful. Step forward Moscatel do Douro, the Douro’s lesser known fortified wine, not to mention Portugal’s lesser known fortified Moscatel (Moscatel de Setubal being of higher profile).

Quinta do Portal – Photo by Sarah Ahmed | All Rights Reserved

The Douro’s Moscatels are made from Moscatel Galego, a.k.a. Muscat à Petits Grains, a different, more delicate variety to Moscatel de Setubal. Our example, Quinta do Portal Moscatel do Douro Reserva 2004, also comes from the Mansilha Branco family’s much higher, cooler, acidity preserving vineyards in Favaios at 600m at the northern end of the Pinhão Valley. Not only did it have the freshness to bring balance to the ensemble (especially when served chilled) but, having been aged for several years in wood (none new), it also had the depth of flavor and complexity to marry with the chocolate tart and all its intricate, textural accompaniments. So well that the restaurant was bathed in a reverential silence for minutes! What a perfect ending.

Text Sarah Ahmed

Is there any better litmus test of what’s delicious and great value than what members of the wine trade themselves buy? Stocking up at Lisbon airport, the group of London-based sommeliers whom I lead on a tour of southern Portugal splashed their cash on Moscatel de Setúbal. I really hope that their enthusiasm translates onto their wine lists back home. While Port sells itself, this fortified Moscatel could do with more fine wining and dining ambassadors to sing its much deserved praises.

Take your pick of Moscatel de Setúbal at José Maria da Fonseca’s popular cellar door – Photo by Sarah Ahmed | All Rights Reserved

At Decanter World Wine Awards, my panel is similarly enamoured of its charms – there’s no better way to finish a day’s judging than to linger over a moreish flight of Moscatel de Setúbal. As the gold medals we regularly award them attest (not to mention their regular spot in the limelight at the Muscat du Monde awards), they are pure gold in every sense of the word. And royalty knew it. Apparently Moscatel de Setúbal was the toast of the courts of Richard II of England and Louis XIV of France. I suspect it was rather less good value in those days, so aren’t we the lucky ones – today you can drink like a king and pay like a pauper!

You’ll find my pick of those wines I tasted on last month’s visit to Setúbal Peninsula below. First, it’s worth taking a moment to explore what makes Moscatel de Setúbal so special. The natural place to start is the raw material – the Moscatel de Setúbal grape (a.k.a. Muscat of Alexandria), which must comprise at least 67% of the wine (85% for Moscatel Roxo). Though it’s generally considered to be inferior to its more famous parent, Muscat à Petits Grains, Setúbal producers cleverly extract the maximum aroma and flavour from Moscatel de Setúbal by macerating the fermented, fortified wine on skins for up to six months. What better way to release its heady perfume of mint, floral, citrus peel and ginger; peach tea in the case of the rare pink tinted Moscatel Roxo grape.

A return to Torna-Viagem at José Maria da Fonseca – Photo by Sarah Ahmed | All Rights Reserved

As for sheer deliciousness, top wines are barrel-aged to allow grape sugars to caramelise, also to concentrate the resulting nectars by evaporation. In the past, barrels were lashed to the deck of tall ships and despatched across the equator for optimum mouthfeel and character. António Soares Franco, CEO of José Maria da Fonseca, told us that, as a result of sea spray, the motion of the waves and widely fluctuating temperatures on deck, these so-called “Torna-Viagem” Moscatels are particularly balanced, soft and a little salty. I had the great good fortune to taste a 19th century example a few years ago and, though I recall no saltiness, I can vividly recall its remarkable balance and silky, mellow mouthfeel. It seemed remarkably young for all its adventures at sea!

Thrillingly, since 2000, José Maria da Fonseca have been trialling the Torna-Viagem technique with the Portuguese Navy and, as you can see, those barrels which have been at sea appear to have aged faster (the Torna-Viagem samples on the left are darker). At Bacalhôa Vinhos de Portugal, the region’s other big producer of Moscatel de Setúbal, fortified winemaker Filipa Tomaz da Costa told me that they had developed special storage conditions “to create the environment of a ship.” In other words, “with no temperature, humidity or dryness control.” During summer, the wine inside the barrels can reach up to 28ºC! Though evaporation is consequently high, Tomaz da Costa doesn’t top up the barrels because more headspace (oxygen in the barrel) in combination with the heat helps to enhance the complex, rich rancio characters of her wines; perhaps a light touch of “vinagrinho” (volatile acidity) too.

Bacalhôa Vinhos de Portugal, makers of exotic Moscatel – Photo by Sarah Ahmed | All Rights Reserved

These characters are part and parcel of Moscatel de Setúbal’s sheer deliciousness, but the very best wines are distinguished by their balance and finesse. Which is why they are sourced from the clay and limestone soils of the region’s hills, especially the cooler north-facing slopes of the Serra da Arrábida (which used to be an island many years ago). These wines are markedly fresher and more detailed than those from the region’s sandy plains.

Also from the hills a perfect match for Moscatel de Setúbal – Azeitão sheeps milk cheese – Photo by Sarah Ahmed | All Rights Reserved

Adega de Pegões Moscatel de Setúbal 2012 – made from 100% Moscatel grown on sandy soils and aged in old French and American oak barrels for around 3 years. This is a lighter easy-going style with lifted buttermint, barley sugar, soft, round peachy fruit and caramelised oranges. Good perfume and freshness. 17.5%

Casa Ermelinda Freitas Moscatel de Setúbal 2010 – like the Pegões Moscatel this is from sandy soils, but it’s a good deal more complex. It’s aged for at least two years, normally four to five years in used oak barrels in a warehouse with no temperature control. And I suspect that this is what makes the difference, because it is more concentrated and complex on nose and palate, with delicious nutty rancio notes and a touch of malty oak to its caramelised orange palate; pithier maramalade notes (together with the nuttiness) balance the sweetness. Though generous, there’s good freshness to balance. Let’s just say this was particularly popular at the airport! 17.5%

José Maria da Fonseca Alambre Moscatel de Setúbal 2010 – this great value entry level Moscatel de Setúbal topped off most evenings during my holiday in the Costa Vicentina a couple of years ago. For approachability, the fruit is sourced from a sunny south-facing site and sandy as well as clay/limestone soils. Unlike some entry level wines, it was aged in old casks, which gives a delicious nutty edge to its toothsome caramelised orange palate; nice balance and length. 127g/l residual sugar; 17.5% abv.

José Maria da Fonseca Colecção Privada Moscatel de Setúbal 2004 – this wine is the direct outcome of brandy spirit trials. Winemaker Domingos Soares Franco discovered he liked using Armagnac best and Colecção Privada has lovely drive (good acidity) and persistence to its ripe, sweet citrus and rounder peach fruit. With lovely integration of spirit the finish goes on and on, revealing lightly toasted almonds, caramel, nougat and a touch of lifted (menthol) buttermint. The grapes are sourced only from clay and limestone soils. 106g/l residual sugar; 17.5% abv

Stored under lock and key at Adega dos Teares Velhos José Maria da Fonseca’s oldest Moscatels – Photo by Sarah Ahmed | All Rights Reserved

José Maria da Fonseca 20 Year Old Moscatel de Setúbal – Portugal’s oldest wine producer has a massive trump card when it comes to making concentrated and complex Moscatel de Setúbal – many back vintages of Moscatel. They are stored in the atmospheric Adega dos Teares Velhos where the oldest wines, more than 100 years old, are under lock and key! António Soares Franco tells us that the youngest wines in this 20 Year Old non-vintage blend are 21-22 yrs old, while the oldest is 60 years old. He reckons it is a blend of “perhaps 13-14 different vintages.” It shows on the long, persistent, very complex, concentrated palate which reveals sweet candied orange peel, pithier, spicier marmalade notes and a bitter (balancing) hint of marmalade which has just caught in the pan. Very refined, with a lively, grapefruity cut of balancing acidity to the finish. 182g/l of residual sugar; 18.4% abv

José Maria da Fonseca Roxo 20 Year Old Moscatel de Setúbal – made from the much rarer pink-tinted Moscatel Roxo this is a significantly deeper hue than its predecessor and, despite having quite a bit more residual sugar, seems fresher, drier (well less toothsome) and lighter on its feet. Sweet, sharp but exotic flavours of mandarin, pink grapefruit and peach tea mingle in the mouth; great line and length. My pick of the JMF four (though I should declare that I’m a huge Roxo fan). 217.8g/l residual sugar; 18% abv.

SIVIPA Moscatel de Setúbal 1996 – from clay/limestone soils, this wine was aged for around 10 years in old French oak barrels. It is a complex, concentrated wine, just a touch spirity on the finish but mellifluous going through, with syrupy, peachy fruit, more concentrated dried apricot, toasted almonds and caramel. 180g/l residual sugar; 17% abv

Horácio Simões Roxo Moscatel de Setúbal 2009

Casa Agrícola Horácio Simões Roxo Moscatel de Setúbal 2009 – I’m a big fan of Horácio Simões, a boutique third generation family producer. This long lingering Roxo shows why. Silkily textured with richly concentrated caramelised oranges and peach tea, it shows a hint of malty wood and delicious creamy praline notes to the finish (it is aged in seasoned French oak barriques). Terrific generosity and mouthfeel with balance.

Bacalhôa Vinhos de Portugal Moscatel Roxo Superior 2002 – my panel at Decanter World Wine Awards awarded this gorgeous Roxo a Gold Medal and Regional Trophy. I’d have awarded it the regional trophy all over again in this line up! Grapes are sourced from the cooler north clay/limestone slopes of the Serra da Arrábida. Still, aged for at least 10 years in small 200l French oak whisky barrels (which benefit from really clean pores) and in ship-like conditions with great thermal variation, it has surprising freshness, purity and lift. Referring to “the shocks of temperature, evaporation and concentration of acid and sugar and release of aromas connected with sugar,” Chief Winemaker Vasco Penha Garcia observes “it’s incredible when you age wines in these conditions that they get fresher, more floral.” Sure enough, Bacalhôa Roxo Superior 2002 has great intensity, lift and layer with rose water, buttermint and peach tea aromatics which follow through in the mouth together with a lovely purity of caramelised oranges, juicy mandarin, pink grapefruit peel and delicately toasted almonds and richer marzipan notes. Though luscious, it’s very persistent (good acid drive) and fine, the finish controlled, very balanced. 190.2g/l residual sugar; 19%.