BEYOND PORT
Beyond Port
PORTUGAL OFFERS WINE LOVERS AN ENDLESS SPECTRUM OF WINES TO EXPLORE
P ortugal is rightly celebrated for its fortified Port wine, yet its table wines remain amongst the most compelling and underrated wines in the world. Just recently are these dry table wines getting the attention they deserve. Why is this? In the Douro Valley, the Instituto dos Vinhos do Douro e do Porto, (Port and Douro Wines Institute) is the governing body responsible for regulating and promoting Port wine. Every year, they decide how much Port each Port house is allowed to make (yes, they have that much power!). So what do the Port houses do with the extra grapes that are not destined for Port? They make table wine! While these styles of wines have always been made in the Douro, they have been looked at as an afterthought. Grapes that were rejected and deemed not good enough for Port are simply fermented and bottled as table wine. However, there have been movements in the last few decades by Douro winemakers who want to show that this is not the case anymore. Table wines of the Douro are not an afterthought. They are serious, inten- tional wines of exceptional quality that are
worthy of as much attention as Port. And this isn’t just in the Douro — all across Portugal wines are being made that demand more attention on the international stage. Portugal has been making wine for centu- ries, and its unique political history helped preserve an extraordinary wealth of indig- enous grape varieties. While many other wine-growing regions in the world were ripping out vineyards and replanting them with international grape varieties to make them more appealing to export, Portugal held on to its heritage and kept its native grape vines. Today, Portugal boasts more than 250 indigenous grape varieties that are rarely found outside the country. These table wines often combine the ripeness and approachability associated with new world wines with the structure and restraint of the old world, though always distinctly Portuguese. That being said, for a country of such modest size, the range of styles is remarkable: from the lush and green north to the sun-baked south, Portugal offers wine lovers an endless spectrum of wines to explore — beyond Port.
VINE CULTURES IN THE DOURO REGION, PORTUGAL Acnaleksy / Adobe Stock
SAVOUR MANITOBA | WINTER 2025 | 25
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