The Douro Valley’s NON Port Wines

                       Wine-Knows will have a private dinner at this very spot of the winery 

Up until nearly twenty years ago, Portugal was synonymous among serious wine aficionados with Port.   The grapes for all Port are grown in the Douro Valley some eighty miles inland from the seaside town of Porto.   While non-Port (table wine) was always produced in the Douro, it was made only for local consumption.  But, all of this has dramatically changed.  Case in point:  the Wine Spectator’s Top 100 Wines of 2023 listed in the coveted eleventh spot a table wine from the Douro Valley.  Indeed, the Douro Valley has become a rock-star for their non-Port wine.

       This boat, once used to transport Port barrels downstream to Porto for shipping, will transport                                          Wine-Knows to our 1st Douro table wine tasting

The biggest change moving the Douro Valley from a Port-only area to a dual focus of Port, as well as table wines, occurred in the 1990’s after Portugal entered the European Union.  EU funds became available for supporting businesses that wanted to expand, as well as new wine producers who saw the promise of the Port grape region for making table wines.   It wasn’t long before Port wineries started to offer table wines on their shelves, and new winemakers armed with serious credentials from universities flocked to the rugged region with the sole purpose of making great quality table wine.

      Our 1st winery has a Relais & Chateau hotel but Wine-Knows will be staying at the former villa                                 of the renowned Taylor Port family, located directly on the Douro River

Fast forward to 2004 when Robert Parker gave an earth-shaking 95 points to a Douro Valley table wine.  That same year the highly regarded Decanter Magazine (Britain’s version of Wine Spectator), gave a Gold Medal to a Douro table wine.  Then, in 2010 the Wine Spectator listed in their Top Ten Wines in the World a Douro Valley wine in its ninth position.  In less than twenty years, the underdog Douro Valley catapulted itself to the world stage for non-Port wine.

          Wine-Knows' last night in the Douro will be a private dinner with this winemaker

Wine-Knows will be spending two nights in the Douro Valley this autumn and will be visiting two super-star wineries.  Both properties produce some of the Douro’s highest scoring Port, as well as table wines.   Wine-Knows are being hosted for a private dinner at one of these wineries, and a full line-up of their most prestigious wines will be served.

 

As they say in Portugal, bom apetite!

How is Port Different?

 

The Douro Valley's stone terraced vineyards are now a United Nations World Heritage Site (UNESCO)

Port is made in a completely different manner than other wines.  To understand the difference it’s important to understand the wine’s historical origin.  Port wine originated in the Douro Valley which lies in Portugal’s northeast corner near the Spanish border.  The Romans, who invaded Portugal before the birth of Christ, brought with them a depth of wine-making knowledge.   They pain-stakingingly constructed stone terraces which allowed vineyards to be built and worked on the Douro Valley's inhospitably steep hillsides.  

            This 17th century map shows the many countries to where Port was shipped from Porto

Port wine received its name from the city in Portugal from which it was first shipped, Porto. Barrels of wine were transported by small boats from the wineries of the Douro Valley down river to Porto.  Located where the mouth of the Douro River meets the Atlantic Ocean, Porto played an important role in exporting Port to the remainder of Europe and the world.  This leads to Port’s biggest difference from other wine.  Let me explain.

                  Port wine was taken from Douro Valley downstream to Porto on the Douro River

Port is a “fortified” wine which means that alcohol (e.g. a spirit such as brandy) has been added.   In learning about Port, it’s important to understand why this alcohol was originally added.   During the 17th century,  England (a country of French wine lovers), had levied a huge tax on French wines.  It didn’t take long for British wine importers to look for alternate sources.  Voila!  The first wines shipped by boat from Porto arrived in England spoiled.  Someone had the genius idea of adding Brandy to the wine to preserve it during its long maritime journey.  The Brits loved this new high-octane edition of Portuguese red wine and Port was born.  The rest is history.

Today, alcohol is added to Port half-way during the fermentation of grapes in the Douro Valley.  The alcohol actually stops fermentation.  During fermentation sugar is converted into alcohol.   Stopping fermentation midway means there is still sugar remaining in the wine.  This is why Port is sweeter (100 grams per liter of sugar) than regular wine (dry wine has <1 gram per liter).  Since a brandy type alcohol is added, Port is also higher in alcohol (20%) than table wine (12-14%).

                     Port can be a mixture of different grapes as well as wine from different years

The second significant difference is that Port is a blended wine.  While other wines are often blends of different grape varieties, Port is not only a mixture of many diverse grapes from many different vineyards, but also is a blending of several different vintages of the same wine.

 

                      Wine-Knows will taste a lineup of several Ports in Porto & the Douro Valley

Thirdly, Port is also unique in that it is made in several styles.  These different types of Port are based on the quality of the grapes, as well as how long it has been aged.  Here are some examples of the most well-known styles:

• Ruby is the least expensive and less complex Port.  It is aged for only 3 years in the bottle.  Ruby is often served chilled as an aperitif.

• Tawny is named for its amber color.   This Port, aged in barrels for at least 3 years, offers more complexity.  Tawny can also be served as an aperitif, or offered at the end of the meal.

• Vintage is only 2% of Port's production.  It is made in the best years by only the top estates.  Bottle-aged often for decades, it is known for having explosive aromas and rich, concentrated flavors.  Vintage Port's classical pairing is with a blue cheese.

 

Wine-Knows will be visiting Porto this September and will be tasting Port at two of Portugal’s most famous wineries.   But, our Port education won’t end there as we will travel up river to the Douro Valley for two nights.  During our stay we'll visit another two wineries and actually see the dramatic steep vineyards that were originally carved out by the Romans nearly 2,000 years ago.  The Douro's vineyards are so special that they have been declared a World Heritage Site by the United Nations (UNESCO).

 

 

Spain's Culinary Gems: Padróns & Piquillos

                              Smoky roasted red piquillos are flavor bomb toppers for these tapas

I have many favorite food items from Spain, but padrón and piquillo peppers are definitely in my Top Five gastronomic Spanish ingredients.  Go into any tapas bar in northwestern Spain (Galicia, Toro, Rueda) and you’ll see the ubiquitous small green padrón peppers represented somewhere in the lineup of tempting bite-sized morsels. Continue to the eastern part of northern Spain (the Rioja and Ribera del Duero wine districts) and the bright red piquillo will most likely be on every menu in some type of form.  Neither of these peppers are hot so they can be utilized in a wide variety of dishes, or eaten simply by themselves.

                            Padróns are a main-stay on restaurant menus throughout Spain

The shiny green padrón pepper is named after the town of Padrón in Galicia, Spain (home to the famous Albarino wines).  But, the padrón is not native to this area.  In fact, it’s not even native to Spain.  The padrón pepper was brought back to Spain from South America by the Conquistadores.  Monks in Galician monasteries began growing them and the padrón became immensely popular in the local region.  Today, tasty padróns are known throughout Spain.

                                     Once cooked, tiny padróns are the perfect small bite

What makes padróns so popular?  Typically served after a quick sautée in olive oil and a sprinkle of sea salt, padróns are intensely flavorful and sublimely sweet.   That being said, there is an occasional hot one among the bunch.   Regardless of the one-in-ten that can be quite spicy, padróns are addictive.   In fact, their popularity has been brought back to the Americas.  In the last few years San Diego farmers’ markets have been featuring padróns.  (If you can’t find them, however, shishito peppers are a good substitute).

                                       Very mild Piquillos are roasted over fire

Piquillo peppers, the same color as our red bell peppers, are much smaller than bells (usually 2-3 inches), and have thinner flesh.  Like bells, they are sweet and have no heat, however, Piquillos---unlike bells--- are not eaten raw.  Instead, they are roasted over fire which gives them complex smoky flavors.   Because of their small size, they are perfect for stuffing with everything from goat cheese to tuna or even minced lamb.  Their dimension also makes a piquillo perfect for a tapa.

               These peppers, available on Amazon, are protected by law to prevent counterfeits

Piquillos are native to the Rioja region in northern Spain not far from the Pyrenees mountains and the Basque district.  They are critical to the region both economically and culturally, so much so that they have been awarded a protected status (PDO) by the European Union.   This means that only this variety of pepper, grown in the Rioja, can be called a piquillo.  (Like PDO Parmigiano-Reggiano, PDO Roquefort cheese, and PDO San Marzano tomatoes, the guaranteed origin of a product is everything for a customer to knows he is buying the real-deal and not a knock-off.)

Coming on Wine-Knows' sold out trip to northern Spain this autumn?  You’ll taste both padróns and piquillos.  In fact, our first night in Porto, Portugal the restaurant has padróns on their menu.   Seems like the padrón’s popularity has crossed the border from Galicia, Spain to northern Portugal.  If you're not coming to Spain with Wine-Knows, both piquillos and padróns  are available in the US.

Buen Provecho!

White Wines of Northern Spain

                              The Viura grape, by law, must be at least 51% of a white Rioja blend
 

White grapes in Spain’s home of the world famous red Tempranillo grape?  That seems like an oxymoron to those who enjoy the Rioja or the Ribera del Duero’s world-class reds.  But, wait!   There is "white" life beyond "red" for wine lovers.   Spain’s north produces some wonderful white wines and you don’t have to travel to Spain necessarily to have them.  With summer approaching these sublime whites can enchant even the most discerning of wine connoisseurs.

                            Rioja Blanco is a rarity in the red Tempranillo-centric Rioja district

White Rioja (aka Rioja Blanco) is made from a blend of white grapes, the most important of which is Viura.   Rioja Blanco is rare, accounting for only a mere 10% of the Rioja’s entire wine production.   Often aged in oak, these whites take on bold aromas of roasted pineapple.  On the palate, an older white Rioja can reveal layers of subtle lemon flavors, minerals and good acidity.  In its youth, these whites offer a lemon-lime profile, laced with honeydew melon and mineral nuances.

As mentioned above, white Rioja is a blend of Viura with an accompaniment of a few other obscure white varieties not known to consumers outside of Europe.  For example, ever hear of a white Tempanillo?  A cousin of the red Tempanillo grape, this white often appears in a Rioja Blanco.  Malvasia and white Garnacha are two other popular white grapes used for blending.  By law, however, Viura must account for the majority of any Rioja Blanco.

          Seafood paella, popular in Spain's south, is often accompanied by a Verdejo from the north

Verdejo is the other hallmark grape of northern Spain.  Go into any restaurant in Spain and ask for a glass of white wine.   Or, head to any wine shop in Spain and ask for white wine.  Chances are in both cases you’ll be offered a Verdejo from Spain’s Rueda wine region.  Verdejo accounts for 40% of all wines sold within the country of Spain.   Its popularity may be due to Spain’s warm climate, although Verdejo is a flavor bomb offering up tropical, stone fruit and citrus.   

If you’re looking for a new white for the summer, both White Rioja and Verdejo from Rueda are terrific wines to try.  Both are available in the US.

 

Rueda Wine: 5 Important Facts to Know

             An inhospitable terroir allows only grapes & grains to grow in the harsh Rueda

The last three blogs have discussed the wines of Spain’s Rioja, Ribera del Duero and Toro wine regions.   Today we move to the final wine district in the quartet of northern Spain wine regions that Wine-Knows travelers will be visiting this autumn, the Rueda.  The first three wine regions are known for their red wines.  The Rueda, however, is all about white wine.  Below are five facts a wine lover visiting the region (or simply drinking these high QPR wines at home) should know.

1.  The Verdejo grape put Rueda on the world’s wine map. 

The Rueda is home to the largest number of Verdejo vines in the world.  98% of Rueda’s wines are white and the majority of them come from the Verdejo grape.   Research has shown that Verdejo arrived in Spain from North Africa in the 11^th century.  It gradually made its way north to the Rueda after adapting in the vineyards of Spain’s south.

Today 4 out of every 10 wine bottles sold in Spain is made from Verdejo and most of it comes from the Rueda. 

          2.  Verdejo wine is a light to medium bodied aromatic wine with the                              following characteristics:

          ~ Citrus (lemon, lime, grapefruit)

          ~ Stone fruit (peach, apricot)

          ~ Tropical (pineapple, melon, mango)

          ~ Herbs (licorice, grass)

Well made Verdejo, unlike many white wines, can often age beautifully for 5-10 years developing rich textures and nutty nuances in addition to its fruit-centric tastes. 

             Stones absorb the heat during the day & warm the vines during cold nights 

3.  Rueda’s terroir forces grapevines to work hard.

Like the adjacent Toro wine region, Rueda is located on the same 2,000-3,000 foot plateau where the harsh landscape is wild and the soil is low in nutrients.  On the other hand, this higher altitude means cooler temperatures during the area’s extreme summers.  Plants are forced to work hard to survive so only grains and grape vines grow in Rueda’s inhospitable terroir.   

Rueda’s stony soils provide a great drainage system for winter rain to seep deep into the earth.  In order to live during the hot summers the grape vines must send their roots downward through the earth to seek water and nutrients.  Traversing many layers, the struggling vines bring back to the plant complex nutrients which translate into complex wines.    

The Duero River helps moderate the heat of summer and cold of winter so it’s no surprise the finest wines are made from vineyards located along the Duero’s banks.

           Wine-Knows has a harvest appointment at Menade to taste their high-scoring wines

           4.  Rueda's wine laws effect what's in your wine glass.

Rueda received official status from the Spanish Government (D.O.) as a unique region with noteworthy wines in 1980.  In order for Rueda to appear on a wine label, it must contain a minimum of 50% Verdejo.   Wines labeled “Ruedo Verdejo” have a higher bar in that they must have a minimum of 85% Verdejo grapes.  Many Ruedo Verdejo, however, are made entirely from the Verdejo variety.

The D.O. wine laws also permit blending with Sauvignon Blanc, along with Palomino, Virua, Viognier and Chardonnay.  That being said, Verdejo D.O. must be a minimum of 50% of all Ruedas made.

 

5.  The Rueda also grows some red grapes for red wine.

Up until the end of the 19th century when the vineyard bug phylloxera destroyed most of the vines throughout Europe, the Rueda region was known for its red wines.   It wasn’t until after the phylloxera pandemic that white grape vines were planted.  The Rueda, like its western neighbor Toro and eastern border Ribera del Duero, grows Tempranillo.   Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Garnacha are also permitted by Rueda’s D.O. laws.

Toro is Taking the Bull by the Horns

           The Toro wine district will be the first Spanish wine region Wine-Knows will visit 

Toro means bull in Spanish.  This tiny wine district lies just across the border from Portugal’s grape growing region for Port grapes, but it’s not just a border these two wine areas share.  The famous Douro River in Portugal flows from Portugal’s most famous viticultural region, to the city of Porto where it empties into the Atlantic.   The Douro becomes the Duero River the minute one crosses into Spain.  The Duero/Douro is actually birthed in Spain between the Rioja and the Ribera del Duero wine regions. 

                            The Duero river exerts a tremendous influence on Toro's terroir

Wine-Knows will follow the Douro to the Duero on our trip from Portugal to Spain on this autumn’s itinerary.  Toro, like Napa, is the name both of the area’s main town, as well as the wine district. While it is unclear exactly how the town’s name originated, the “bull” is nonetheless a fitting symbol for its quite robust red wines have been coveted by royalty since the 13^th Century.  

             Toro town, with a population of  8,000 persons, offers a slice of off-the-beaten-path Spain

The Toro region was among the first to be recognized by the Spanish government as having unique and special wines.  In 1933 it was granted important D.O. status which at the time was the highest quality wine in Spain.  Shortly thereafter the Spanish Civil War broke out and Toro wines were one of the many casualties.  It took 50 years for the area’s winemakers to refocus.  In 1987 a handful of local wineries banded together to reapply for a second D.O. status.   It was granted and this began a renaissance in Toro.             

  D.O. guarantees the consumer a level of quality from grapes grown under certain conditions in Toro

Fast forward to today, there are now 60 wineries in Toro.   Many of the owners of these new wineries are from outside of Toro (most notably the Ribera del Duero and the Rioja), however, some of the most illustrious movers-and-shakers in French wine have invested heavily.    Moreover, Toro is winning awards on the world-wide wine stage.  Britain’s Decanter, (their equivalent of Wine Spectator) is giving 97 point scores to Toro’s muscular reds.

          Wine-Knows will be staying in Zamora, a historic Roman city on the Duero while in Toro

If you’re one of the fortunate Wine-Knows coming with us on the Portugal-Spain tour in September, you’ll have the opportunity to taste this upcoming region’s stellar wines and learn first-hand how Toro’s unique terroir is responsible for shaping a different version of the renowned Tempranillo grape.

Ever heard of Spain's Rueda wine region?   The next blog will cover these coveted white wines made from the Verdejo grape.

5 Big Differences: Ribera Del Duero v. Rioja

                 Although both districts are Tempranillo-centric, the wines of the Ribera del Duero                                                                      are very different from the Rioja 

Spain’s Rioja wine area was discussed in the last Blog.  Today, we’ll focus on the neighboring Ribera Del Duero (RdD) district.  The RdD, like the Rioja, produces high quality, complex wines that have great aging potential.  While both of the wine regions are located at approximately the same latitude and only a few hours drive from one another, they are distinctly different.   Below are five significant differences between the two rock-star districts.

    The Duero River (Douro across the border in Portugal) exerts a huge influence on the RdD's terroir

1.     Terroir

Both the RdD & Rioja have major rivers that moderate their climates.  The RdD, traversed for 70 miles by the Duero River, is a 3,000 foot high plateau with baking hot summers and freezing cold winters which are tamed by this river.   Unlike the Rioja, there is no maritime influence from the Atlantic.  Furthermore, in contrast to the Rioja, the RdD’s soil is clay, silt & limestone.

                     RdD wines are more masculine than the Rioja's softer style wines

          2. Wine Characteristics

The extreme climatic conditions coupled with the heartier soils of the RdD translate to wines that tend to be more muscular than those of the Rioja.  RdD wines are typically from riper grapes of darker fruit with higher alcohol potential.  Due to its terroir, the RdD also has more assertive flavors (think black cherry & blackberry), while the Rioja offers softer red fruit flavors such as strawberry.

3.     Grapes

 Tempranillo is King in both the RdD and the Rioja.  In the RdD, however,         Tempranillo is called Tinto Fino (an actual local varietal of Tempranillo that has   adapted to the harsh terroir).  In contrast to the Rioja, the RdD also uses Cabernet   Sauvignon, Merlot and Malbec for blending.

The official seal guarantees authenticity for the consumer that wine is from the RdD wine region

4.     Wine Laws

     The RdD is a wine infant in comparison to the Rioja.   The Rioja’s wine laws were established in 1925 while the RdD did not launch its regional rules until 1982.  While the Rioja is entrenched with nearly a century of laws, the new kid on the block is thinking out of the box and pushing the envelope for new ideas such as single vineyard wines.  

5.     Amounts & Types of Wine Produced

The RdD produces 98M bottles annually, however, the Rioja produces a whopping 350M bottles.  While both wine districts are red-centric producers, the RdD’s production of red wine accounts for 97% of its total.  In contrast, the 86% of the Rioja’s wines are red.   

Stay tuned for the next Blog which will showcase the wines of the Toro region that Wine-Knows' travelers will also be visiting on the October tour of Northern Spain.