Alentejo

Alentejo

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The Alentejo has led the way in Portugal’s wine revolution.
Aside from the many tourist attractions in the region (such as the towns of Evora, Borba and Estremoz), it is wine that is currently putting the Alentejo region on the map, and more specifically, its red wines.
There are two distinct styles of Alentejo red. First, there is what can loosely be termed the traditional style.
These often combine earthy, herbal, undergrowth-like savoury flavours and aromas with the fruit.
Traditional Alentejo wines are often complex and reasonably age worthy.
Then there is the modern style which show lots of intense fruit, with a richness that is quite ‘new world’ in character, and not a million miles away from the style that has made Australian wines such a success over recent years.
Both Alentejo styles are interesting and worthwhile, but it is the latter, more modern group of wines that has been largely responsible for putting the Alentejo on the map as one of Portugal’s most important red wine regions.

Appellation

• Alentejo DOC

Alentejo DOC itself has been divided into eight sub-regions, some with its own DOC.
On wine labels, you'll see the sub-region's name after the regional appellation, e.g. "Alentejo Borba."
Wines can also be labeled as Vinho Regional, under the "Alentejano" designation.
Growers in each sub-region favour different grape varieties.

• Vinho Regional (VR) Alentejano

CVRA Those wines of good quality from the Alentejo that don't adhere to the stringent DOC restraints or fall outside the designated areas.
Some of Portugals most innovative winemakers decide to opt out of the appellation system.

• Borba - Borba is the second largest Alentejo sub-region, stretching along the axis from Estremoz to Terrugem, extending down through Orada, Vila Viçosa, Rio de Moinhos and Alandroal.
The terrain is punctuated by unique soils, huge deposits of marble that have made an indelible mark on vine growing and the character of the sub-region's wines.
Substantial patches of red schist spread throughout austere and poor soil form a markedly different typology in Borba, one of the Alentejo's most dynamic sub-regions.
Borba's special microclimate ensures above-average rainfall as well as slightly lower than average levels of sunshine for the Alentejo, producing wines that are particularly fresh and elegant.

• Portalegre
Of all eight Alentejano sub-regions, Portalegre differs the most in originality and character.
Here, nothing conforms to what is traditionally Alentejo, from soils to vineyards, from altitude to age of the vines.
Vineyards are mostly found in the foothills of the Serra da Mamede mountain range, whose rocky peaks may reach one thousand metres.
Altitude means the climate is cooler and wetter than the baking plains of southern Alentejo, yielding fresh and elegant wines... yet equally powerful.
The predominantly granite terrain is interspersed with small patches of schist in the lower areas.
Vineyards tend to be fragmented in these hills, divided into countless small strips of very old vines, many of which may be in their seventies. Curiously, French grape varieties Cinsault and Grand Noir have always been planted here, one of the many eccentricities of Portalegre.


• Redondo - Serra da Ossa is one of the biggest hill ranges in the Alentejo, reaching some 600 metres in height.
The hills dominate and demarcate the sub-region of Redondo,sheltering the vineyards from northerly and easterly winds and furnishing cold, dry winters to offset the hot, sun-drenched summers.
The land, despite being typically heterogeneous, is favoured with granite and schist on the gentle south-facing slopes.
The protection provided the Serra da Ossa makes Redondo one of the most consistent sub-regions.


• Reguengos
The largest and most prestigious Alentejo sub-region is formed of poor,stony terrain filled with rocky outcrops that make the Reguengos countryside so dramatic.
Schist soils and markedly continental climate of freezing winters and boiling summers govern vine growing, yielding full-bodied and powerful wines with good cellaring potential.
Despite its size, Reguengos landholdings tend to be fragmented with vineyards tending to be smaller than the traditional Alentejo average.
Reguengos is home to some of the oldest vineyards in the Alentejo, safeguarding clones and varieties that would otherwise be lost.


• Vidigueira
The Vidigueira fault, the natural landmark dividing upper (Alto) Alentejo and lower (Baixo), also determines the sub-region of the same name.
The escarpment extends east to west for some 50 kilometres, influencing the climate of Vidigueira, which although being the most southern of Alentejo's sub-region is one of the most temperate.
The predominantly granite and schist based soils are not very fertile but they support one of the Alentejo's most mysterious grape varieties - Tinta Grossa, which also goes by the name of Tinta Barroca.
Despite being so hot and so far south, Vidigueira has always been famed for its production of white wines, due to the protection of the Vidigueira escarpment.


• Évora
Way back at the tail end of the 19th century Evora was enjoying unimaginable fame, regarded as one of the most attractive and admired sub-regions in the Alentejo,birthplace of the region's most coveted wines.
However, firstly phylloxera and then the wheat-growing campaign of the Estado Novo almost put an end to vineyards in the sub-region, forcing Evora into oblivion.
There it languished until the end of the 1980s when Evora underwent a renaissance, as the province capital and integral part of central Alentejo.
The hot, dry countryside is dominated by non-calcareous grey Mediterranean soil, which produces some of the Alentejo's most prestigious wines.


• Granja/Amareleja
Granja-Amareleja lies in the surrounding area of Mourão, adjacent to the Spanish border, and is conditioned by one of the most dry and harsh climates in Portugal.
Extremely poor clay and schist soil permits only the lowest yields of grapes,where lack of water is dictated by absence of organic matter and sparse plant growth.
An area of such extremes gives life to wines packed with personality.
The scorching, dry summers give rise to early maturation, which produce smooth, warm wines with high alcohol content.
One of the most characteristic grape varieties of Granja - Amareleja is Moreto, which has adapted especially well to the region.

• Moura
The climate here is strongly continental, with cold winters and long, dry scorching summers.
The soil is particularly poor, alternating between clay and limestone.
Topsoil is shallow, baked hard and tough on vines, but it does retain well what little water there is.
Castelão vines dominate the region as they are best suited to the rigours of such extreme weather conditions.
Moura wines show a soft, warm profile with consonant alcohol levels.



Alentejo Grape varieties


Traditional Portuguese grape varieties dominate the region, but newcomers such as Syrah, Tempranillo and Cabernet Sauvignon are beginning to make inroads, often blended with the local varieties: Alfrocheiro, Alicante Bouschet, Antão Vaz, Aragonez,Arinto, Castelão, Fernão Pires, Manteudo, Moreto, Rabo de Ovelho, Roupeiro & Tamar .