The other side of Portugal
Portugal is synonymous with sweet fortified wines but Dave Hughes gives his personal take on the people, the places, the wine and the food.If Portugal three times in nine months sounds almost too good to be true – it was. Even if one visit was by mistake!
I was to join the MS Caronia in Madeira to conduct South African wine tastings on board while cruising towards Cape Town.
Both airline and travel agent assured me that on the trip via Frankfurt and Lisbon to Madeira I would be in transit throughout, so no visa necessary. Wrong! Now that Portugal is part of the European Union I had to clear immigration at Frankfurt, with the flight to Lisbon considered an “internal” flight. Naturally, this was a little difficult without a visa...
By the time a Schengen visa was obtained at considerable cost, the flight to Lisbon was history. Taking a later flight was not a problem – the connection to Madeira (and the boat) was. But the one redeeming factor was that my luggage got there safely!
So I was marooned in Lisbon, luggage-less. The next flight to Madeira would arrive after the boat had set sail. To make matters worse, I had no return ticket to South Africa.
After much urgent research I discovered the MS Caronia would stop at Porto Grande on the island of San Vicente in the Cape Verde Islands.
But … a visa is necessary and you must apply for it from home! So the airline will only fly you there if you buy a return ticket – non-refundable of course. Eventually, after some Verde island hopping including Isle do Sol so well known to flyers around the bulge, the MS Caronia was boarded and the South African wine events were held on board en route to Cape Town.
The upshot of all this is that I had an unexpected day in Lisbon, a very friendly city and one that can easily be explored on foot!
The previous summer I had used Lisbon as my starting point for a visit to the vast cork forests of south and middle Portugal which is less than an hour or so by car from Lisbon's modern airport. One of the interesting sights on route is the massive new bridge across the Tagus river, completed for the last world exposition of the century held in the Parque das Nações on the edge of the river. There is also a magnificent Oceanarium and fantastic Interactive Science and Technology centres which are well worth a visit. A point to remember is that Aeroportos de Portugal SA produce excellent, soft cover pocket guides based on touring out of Lisbon and Porto. Each give excellent schematic maps of the airports and how to get to and from them by road, bus etc. Also left luggage facilities, car hire, buses, bars, restaurants, and more. The bulk of the guide is then on touring in the areas. I found them very useful.
In Alentejo, I was met by my friendly cork forester and we were soon deep in the incredibly quiet, tranquil cork forests. I had forgotten just how wonderfully inspirational and spiritually charging being so close to nature in the cork forests can be.
As good a reason as any for their preservation is the 42 endangered species of wildlife that would become extinct if the forest were not maintained. One such is the Spanish Imperial Eagle which breed in the cork forests, most of which are in southern Portugal. The beautiful Red Kite is another, but the main thing that makes the cork forests viable is the need for cork stoppers for good wine. Here Amorim boasts the most modern of all primary cork treatment plants in existence, having only been comissioned in mid-1999.
The forest is home not only to wild life and birds but also plants. My forester friend came across almost acres of a large type of mushroom. He and I cut enough to fill most of the back of his truck. A short while later we found some wild asparagus – and that filled what little space was left in the 4 x 4!
And this was what impressed me most – we stopped at a restaurant that could not have been found without local knowledge – and left the fresh forest produce with the lady cook. Then it was off to visit the Amorim plant which incorporates the most modern, highly sophisticated and up to date technology for processing the cork.
Naturally the meal that followed was particularly memorable. Our forest mushrooms and asparagus had been prepared with breadcrumbs into a stew which was then served with bread still warm from the wood-fired oven. This accompanied by fair quantities of particularly good Alentejo wines. Blissful!
Alentejo is one of the most southerly of the good wine producing areas of Portugal. Very large low-yielding vineyards that experience hot summers are found here. Much of the wine is produced by co-ops, but there are a few small, specialised producers. To their credit they are featuring their traditional varieties and some very creditable wines are produced. Look for whites made from Roupeiro, Rabo de Ovelha and Antão Vaz and reds from Periquita, Trincadeira and Aragonez. The neighbouring area of Ribatejo also produces some very palatable wines from much the same varieties.
This is a part of rural Portugal that is really worth visiting.
A surprise to many is just how good Portuguese natural wines have become. The top Chardonnay at the International Wine and Spirit Competition in 1998 went to the Quinta do Sidro 1997 Chardonnay produced by Real Companhia Vinicola SA Portugal! There are many other really great varietal wines being produced, along with the traditional styles of Portuguese wines.
Even the Douro, so long famous for its fortified wine called Port, now has a DOC for natural wine.
Oporto is just a few hours drive up the super highway and the drive provides some idea of how Portugal is booming since joining the EU. Major construction can be seen throughout the journey – not to mention the roads. Remember that all the big motorways are tolled so be prepared and have the fee handy. Some tolls are fully automated but others have operators collecting the money. If, by mistake, you pass through the gate for vehicles fitted with special computer chips, you will be smartly apprehended not too far down the road!
Before heading north for Porto I made a slight detour and stopped at Fatima to pay my respects to Our Lady. It must have made some impression because the Pope visited a short while later!
The new Autoroute bypasses Coimbra but this old university town is well worth a visit. About halfway between Coimbra and Porto is Aveiro and its attractive delta. The tourist pamphlets are inclined to call Alveiro the “Venice of Portugal”. It is a pleasant place with its few canals and pretty boats – moliceiros – but it is nothing like Venice. The moliceiros, very colourful with long, graceful, highly decorated prows, are used to gather seaweed – moliço – from the delta which is then used for fertilizer.
Porto, the Portuguese spelling, is the commercial centre of northern Portugal and the hub of the Port trade as well as the Vinho Verde and Cork trade. It was here that the Portuguese nation was founded in the 12th century, taking on the name of the region, Portucale. You can get your fill of great classical buildings and cathedrals, or be fascinated by the wonderful tiles or get lost in some of the beautiful parks and gardens. The historic centre of Porto was classified as a World Heritage area in 1996 and work is underway to restore and preserve much of the old town.
Across the river at Vila Nova de Gaia are all the port shippers with their cellars full of ageing port brought down from the Quintas up river. Almost all are geared to handle visitors and have tasting and sales facilities.
Oporto is a good place to base yourself for wine touring as it provides easy access to the Vinho Verde area, the areas of Dão and of course the Douro Valley. The latter two deserve more than just a day to get the best impressions, while the Vinho Verde area is very easy to visit from Oporto. You could also stay at the holiday resort of Espinho only 40km from Oporto. There's a casino, access to the beach, good restaurants and excellent hotels.
Vinho Verde is a good place to begin because of its proximity to Oporto. Graça, the eating, drinking, singing, dancing wine well-known to South Africans, was inspired by the slightly fizzy and very dry wines of this, the largest Portuguese DOC region. It stretches from the hills south of the river Douro to the river Minho in the north. The thousands of small properties grow mainly the Alvarinho grape – amongst many others – on the granite soils. The result is a refreshing, dry wine that is often just too acidic for South African palates – until it accompanies Portuguese cooked fish or shellfish. The name “Vinho Verde” means green wine but is not a reference to the wine's colour as they also come in red versions. The wines are usually fairly low in alcohol at about 10% but cannot be less than 8%. Aveleda is one of the most important of the family-owned producers and their Casal Garcia is one of my favourite wines. Also keep an eye out for their Aveleda label and their Quinta da Aveleda.
A fair drive away is the well known Dão area. Named after the River Dão, it's famous for its red wines. It stretches over some three river valleys on the slopes of Portugal's highest mountain range – the Serra da Estrela. Although wines are mainly produced by the large co-operatives, more and more independent producers are investing in the region.
In the Bairrada DOC, south of Porto, some really good natural wines are also being produced from the red grape Baga and whites from Bical and Maria Gomes. Also look out for some particularly good bubblies made in the traditional bottle fermented style by the Adega Co-operativa de Cantanhede from the town of the same name. They produce a very acceptable sparkler, made using Bical and other local varieties, under the name of Marques de Marialva. There's also a dry red under the same label that I found very attractive.
Douro is famous for its Port, and although demarcated in 1756 making it the oldest demarcated area in the world, it now has a DOC for natural wines. Some very exciting red and white wines are being produced from vineyards in the cooler western part of the region – on the higher slopes – compared to the finest Port vineyards which tend to be situated in the heart of the Douro.
The landscape of the Douro is among the most dramatic of any in the wine world. The deep, steep-sided valleys have some of the most breathtaking roads anywhere. I'm told that 90% of the area has a gradient steeper than one in three! Contrasting this dramatic scenery is the simplicity of the port Quintas. Not far away at Vila Real is the magnificent Casa de Mateus with its splendid baroque building, it's an absolute must for the visitor. The building will be familiar to drinkers of the popular Mateus Rosé as it's depicted on the label. Some 19 million bottles of this particular wine are sold every year! Also in the area are the sparkling wine producers of Murganheira. Their cellars are carved out of rock.
While in Portugal avoid the international fast food outlets and eat Portuguese. The food is generally simple and fresh and the tomatoes taste like tomatoes! No complicated sauces but loads of garlic, olive oil and salt with occasional herbs.
Always try the soup. All kinds are good with my favourite being açorda á alentejana which is a bread thickened garlic broth with egg. With all the garlic it contains, it's absolutely essential that your partner indulges as well.
There's always plenty of fish with Bacalhau (cod) a national tradition. Prawns are obligatory even if they are from Taiwan! Pork with coriander, rabbit, suckling pig and chicken – all have regional variations.
And the various cheeses......not forgetting the rice pudding in all its styles, along with a kind of custardy thing – a bit like crème brûlée but richer!
To complete an evening Port will almost always be offered but don't be afraid to try some of the better Portuguese brandies. Avoid the youthful bagaceira which is similar to grappa, but look for aguardiente, brandy. Most are pretty unremarkable but of the Vinho Verde producers, Aveleda produce a super brandy under the label Adega Velha. Other good brandies are Reliquia by Imperio and, despite the above warning, there is a seven year aged-on-the-lees bagaceira – Maria Herminia D'Oliviera Paes, that is excellent.
Portugal, where the Atlantic meets Europe and an independent kingdom since 1143, is well worth a food and wine visit.
Before touring contact ICEP, the Portuguese Commercial Tourist Authority, or TAP.
