FirstLeaf Wine Club analyzes over a million customer ratings and predicts what wines you will love, with unprecedented accuracy. Vinho Verde is not a grape.
Origin stories behind the Vinho Verde name vary. You might even enjoy the one that says the wine itself is green. This is not green as in color, but green as in young. It is harvested early and should be enjoyed young.
Some varieties do age well, but most are better right away. As you can imagine, with a large region, there are many different varieties of grapes grown here, and every one of them is different. Not all origin stories may be true for all wines produced in this area, but I can tell you what the region looks like now.
The Vinho Verde region has nine sub-regions. Each region has a unique microclimate, but most are dominated by soils with quite a bit of granite. The coastal city of Port is where Port wine is made and is also included in this region. Wine culture in Portugal is a way of life. Two thousand years ago, the Romans invaded Portugal to find that the natives were already concocting fermented drinks.
The Romans exported a lot of things home from the Iberian Peninsula, including wheat, olives, and wine. Still today, families who own land, no matter how small, grow grapes right alongside their vegetables, herbs, and citrus trees.
These vines are draped high, where the cool breeze refreshes and protects them from the moisture and mold below. Even small family gardens have quaint little squares of pergolas just dripping with grapes. While most of the Vinho Verde we find stateside is white, red is what most Portuguese people drink at home. Well, maybe not breakfast. You may also be surprised to find that there are some commercial wine producers in the region that make organic or biodynamic Vinho Verde wines.
As we already know, Vinho Verde is not a grape. In fact, Vinho Verde wines are made from several different kinds of grapes. Many are blended, although varietal Vinho Verde is excellent, and much more age worth than the blends. Vinho Verde wines we find in the United States are usually blends of white grapes that are indigenous to Portugal.
There are two grape varieties that producers are beginning to use quite a bit more than others. The Alvarinho variety is the same as the Albarinho grape from northern Spain. While the Spanish version tends to be softer and rounder, they are nearly identical. Loureiro is the other popular grape used to make Vinho Verde wines, and it features more floral aromas with the same acidic character. These two grapes produce excellent single varietal Vinho Verde wines that age very well.
However, these varieties are very hard to find. This delicious Cabernet Franc, from one of the most difficult, rainy harvests in local memory, bodes well for the future of the winery. The bouquet is gentle, mostly wildflowers, but the has a minerality reminiscent of Chablis along with a bright thread of acidity.
Drink this crisp, dry white with sushi and sashimi, crudo, seafood risotto and pasta, and grilled fish. There are tropical notes, as well as apples, honeysuckle and a shifting, smoky oak.
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