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medium sweet carbonated
wine which graces supermar-
ket shelves the world over.
My top wines: Quinta do Riberin-
ho is the only estate that has ever
impressed.
Also in the north is Vinho Verde,
a region producing red and white
wines which can offer some pleas-
ant drinking from quality minded
producers. Most offerings, how-
ever, are dire, so choose carefully.
The wine has a slight spritz which
was once due to a slight second-
ary refermentation, but unfortu-
nately in modern times this is much
more likely to be carbon dioxide
added just before bottling.
My top wines: Quinta do Azeve-
do.
Getting Serious - Port
The table wines of Portugal are
frequently very good value, with
a smattering of producers that are
turning out excellent wines. The for-
tified wines of the Douro are, how-
ever, unrivalled. They are much
imitated, with similar styles ema-
nating from the southern vineyards
of France, California and Australia,
but they are never equalled, and
certainly not bettered.
Port is basically wine fortified
with brandy spirit. This is added
prior to the natural cessation of
fermentation, so the wine is al-
ways sweet, as the addition of the
strong alcohol kills the yeast con-
verting the sugar into alcohol (the
process of fermentation). The even-
tual alcohol content is still high,
however (typically 20%), thanks to
the brandy that has
been
added. Most Port is
red,
al-
though
some firms
also produce a small
amount of white Port.
Since the 18th century there
has been a strong British presence in
the Douro, as this was where British
drinkers sourced their wines following
the deterioration in relations between
Britain and France at this time. The
firm red wines of the region were
bolstered up and protected with brandy
before the sea journey north, and thus
Port as a wine style was born. Or so the
story goes.
Styles of Port
Vintage Port: Port vintages are declared
depending on the quality of the vin-
tage, some houses declaring much
more frequently than others. In
general, though, a vintage is
declared about three times
each decade. A declared
vintage means that the Port
house feels the wine is of the
necessary quality to age well
in bottle. The wines see up to
two