If you think Vinho Verde (pronounced veeng-yo vaird) is just a fizzy summer sipper, we're about to open up a new world for you in this show. You CAN get the run of the mill stuff but with multiple grapes, regions, and producer styles, if you dig deeper this wine has way more to it than you think!
Overview
Vinho Verde is not a grape variety, it is a DOC (wine area)
It literally translates to 'green wine' but means young wine – wine released 3-6 months after the grapes are harvested
This is one of Portugal’s largest regions: 21,000 ha/51,000 acres of vineyards are planted -- 9% of the total in Portugal
19,000 growers – like Champagne, 600 bottlers
85 million liters of wine each year
86% of the wine from Vinho Verde is white
What wine is here?
Red, white, rosé, or sparkling. Can be late harvest OR brandy!
If labeled with grape, subregion or quality level (Escolha, Grande Escolha, Superior, Colheita Selectionada
Top white grapes: Alvarinho, Arinto, Avesso, Azal, Batoca, Loureiro, and Trajadura
Top red grapes: Amaral, AzalbTinto, Borraçal, Brancelho, Espadeiro, Padeiro, Pedral, Rabo de Ovelha and Vinhão
Winemaking:
The wine was fizzy because malolactic fermentation took place in the bottle as it sat on the shelf! Today, carbonation is added to finished wine to add sparkle
Wine style:
Light and fresh whites: high natural acidity, with fruity and floral aromas that depend on the grape variety
Have slight sparkle with low alcohol
History
Vinho Verde produced wine for over 2,000 years, one of the oldest regions in Portugal
Celts and Romas came, then Visigoths and Moors
During middle Ages: Vinho Verde may have been exported in the 12th century, to England, Germany, and Flanders – especially from top regions of Monção and Melgaço and Ribeira de Lima
Maize arrived in the 16th century alog with regulations to maximise production of it New regulations banished vines to the field margins, where they grew up high, forcing the vignerons to pick them from tall ladders
Today most of Vinho Verde Region is now using modern methods, which give larger and better yield.
EU in 1986 improved technology – more capital, opened up the markets
Location/Land:
Vinho Verde is Portugal’s northernmost wine producing region, above 40° latitude
Series of granite-based plateaus within the valleys of the Minho, Ave, Cávado, and Lima rivers
Most of the Vinho Verde region is at or near sea level -- highest elevation at 2,300 feet
Climate:
Temps go between 46°F (8°C) in winter and 68°F (20°C) in the summer – green landscape, temperate climate Cooler coastal regions like Lima, Cávado and Ave -- more marine influence with cooler average temperatures and higher rainfall
inland subregions - Baião and Basto are both warmer
Annual rainfall is high – 47+ inches (1200 mm) in the winter and spring months
Subregions: 9, can be on the label with the name Vinho Verde
Monção e Melgaço: Best region, but least typical Vinho Verde
Inland DOP subregion, along the hillsides of the Minho River’s south bank
White: Alvarinho is best. Fresh but fuller than Rias Baixas, occasionally with some oak
Reds: Pedral, Alvarelhão
Lima:
Highest levels of rainfall.
Granitic soils and a small area with shale-based soil.
White: Loureiro grape: citrus fruits, rose notes, can be full like Alvarinho Use whites Arinto and Trajadura
Red: Vinhão and Borraçal – crunchy, crisp fruity aroma
3 Similar regions: Cávado, Ave, Sousa -- Mild
Sea winds, irregular topography, low altitude, mild climate,
Whites: Arinto, Loureiro and Trajadura with moderate acidity, citrus fruits and ripe apple and pears.
Reds: Vinhão and Borraçal grapes (not in Ave but in Cávado and Sousa) Sousa: Espadeiro is often used to make rosé wines.
Basto: inland – HOT with high rainfall
High altitude, cold, wet winter, balls hot summer
White: Azal is lemony with green apple notes
Reds: Espadeiro, Rabo-de-Anho
Amarante: Inland
White: Azal, Avesso -- higher alcohol, more body because of heat
Red: Amarante sub-region is famous for its red wines: especially Vinhão variety
Paiva:
Red: Vinhão gets great maturity and produce some of the most sought-after red wines
Baião: Inland/continental
On the border of Douro demarcated region, longer season
Whites: Azal and Avesso (best ones from Avesso, creamy, fruity, with acidity)
Red: Amaral
Food Pairing:
Salads, Asian cuisine, bacalao (cod) and other seafood, in cream sauce or breaded; pork and potato dishes
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