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The Wine Mecca of areas in the south-west, hardly Afonso and his Cabecase de Re-
discovered by tourists, with their endless beaches, and the border with Spain in the east. However, the much cooler northern edge with the town of Portalegre and the foothills of Serra da São Mamede offer excellent potential for viticulture, which, incidentally, has not been used to its fullest. The area is much less shaped by winemaking than it is by forests of cork trees and holm oaks, and some wine tourists might ask where the important centres of this winemaking area are actually located. It should be noted that the landscapes within the set DOP demarcation lines are not synonymous with the wi- ne-making area which, in line with how well-known the region is, co- vers a modest 21,000 hectares. But after all this, Alentejo does play a key role in the Portuguese wine industry. Within the country itself, the „California“ of Portugal holds about 45% of the market share, leaving the once success- ful Vinho Verde region to pale by comparison on the market. It is utterly remarkable that a region with a „Mediterranean climate“, of all things, leads high-quality Por- tuguese wine production, while the overall conditions in Alentejo are not entirely typical for Portugal. In fact, the area is a special case. In addition to the Algarve and parts of the Sétubal peninsula, it is one of the few landscapes in the country that match up with people‘s ex- pectations of dry southern Europe, both in terms of landscape and climate. Grape varieties have, of course, evolved to suit this warm climate. It goes without saying that red wine production is the clear front-runner. On the one hand, Alentejo represents accessible, easy-drinking, spicy and fruity red wines. On the other, there is now a sizeable group of elite growers who are creating a palette of com- plex, sophisticated and premium varieties, some of which are cer- tainly rough around the edges, akin to those that people seek out in southern Europe. Paulo Laurenao, Susana Esteban, journalist João
Alentejo — South Portugal‘s Region for Connoisseurs
Portuguese wine is diverse and at- tractive, and yet, it is unchartered territory for most wine lovers here. The country, located on Europe‘s south-western tip, has a rather mild climate, with high levels of precipitation in some parts, and, as a result, differs fundamentally from its eastern neighbours in many respects. However, the green area of Portugal only represents one part of the small country, where the climate can also be totally different. To the east of its capital, Lisbon, after the grand Vasco da Gama bridge spanning the mouth of the Tejo is behind you, you hit the sunlit landscapes that make Iberia so unique. You will end up in Alentejo, the land of cork trees, marble and black pigs, with its famous wines and the best cuisine
in Portugal.
stargazing on the roof terrace
It takes just 90 minutes to drive to this agricultural region, taking the motorway in the direction of Spain. Even this important east- west axis is almost devoid of ac- tivity: traf c trundles along the toll-free national roads. The sky is awlessly blue and your eyes can rest: Alentejo is empty, or, more ac- curately, only sparsely populated, far from any polluting industries. Just half a million Portuguese peo- ple live in this area, which covers about a third of the country‘s sur- face. It is not for nothing that the inhabitants of the region co-in- vented „stargazing“. There were among the rst people to turn the lights off in their villages, and bring tourists to sit on roof terraces to see the Milky Way.
Hardly any of the country‘s ag- ricultural areas are as geographi- cally large-scale as Alentejo. There is a lot of space for varied terroir between the picturesque coastal
guengo project, Tapada de Coel- heiros with the new star winemaker Luis Patrao and many others are crafting a new, individual image of the successful designation in the southwest of Iberia.
Almost 300 merchants bottle wine from the region, and operate on two „designation levels“, the descriptions of which would initially surprise the attentive wine lover. But there‘s no cause for concern. Alentejano‘s IGP descriptor is ne- ar-identical, in terms of meaning and quality, to the actual DOP back label for the protected designati- on of origin for Alentejo. For wine lovers, there is really no difference between the DOP certi cation and the IGP seal that applies to the wine from the region. This alterna- tive offers producers much more freedom. Grape varieties that are not permitted by DOP guidelines can be used on an IGP level.
Market Square do Giraldo Évora
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