The mind-boggling diversity of over 250 native grape varieties is a mixed blessing for Portuguese wine exports. On the one hand, it gives wine producers much to play with. Elsewhere today, viticulturists are busy rescuing old native varieties that had been almost fully replaced by international bestsellers like Cabernet Sauvignon.
In Portugal, many of their old vines were simply never pulled up. Fortified port dominated wine exports here for so long, and it traditionally mattered less which grapes were used and more what happened to them in the cellar. As a result, many Duoro Valley vineyards are still planted with field blends of some dozen different obscure local grape varieties growing alongside each other.
On the other hand, this diversity of varieties can be challenging for those wine consumers who like to understand a wine by the grapes it’s made from, especially as blends are much more common in Portugal than single varietal expressions. The latter do exist, though. I’ve included a couple here today, from two of Portugal’s most widely planted red grapes: Touriga Nacional (in this case from the Dão, where it is likely to have originated, though it’s best known in its use in fortified ports and table wines from the Douro Valley) and Castelão (in this case from the Setubal peninsula below Lisbon).
Touriga Nacional is one of the most common grapes in Portuguese blends, usually given some oak treatment. It leads the blend in the friendly Isolado Douro (€15.99, Lidl), for example, and is blended with Castelão and Tinta Roriz (aka Tempranillo) in the popular Porta 6 (€12.99, Tesco).
Today’s wine of the week is a fascinating stripped-back expression of Touriga Nacional – unoaked and unblended – from Carlos Raposo, a rising star of Portuguese wines who followed Luis Seabra as winemaker at Niepoort before returning to his native Dão.
Wines of the week
Carlos Raposo Impecável Tinto 2023 Touriga Nacional
Carlos Raposo Impecável Tinto 2023 Touriga Nacional, Dão, Portugal, 13pc, €24
This is 100pc Touriga Nacional but fresher and lighter than the full-bodied, dark-fruited, structured style this thick-skinned grape usually offers. Winemaker Carlos Raposo strips things back in this unoaked expression, allowing herbal and floral notes to shine alongside pretty cherry and raspberry fruits, but with firm tannic grip. I previously featured his Impecável Branco, a pristine unoaked white from 100pc Encruzado (€24.50), while his Ideal Tinto and Branco wines are complex Dão blends aged in French oak. MacCurtain Wine Cellar (Cork), Mitchell & Son, Green Man Wines, Blackrock Cellar
Encosta Perdizes Tratado Douro Reserva 2021
Encosta Perdizes Tratado Douro Reserva 2021, Portugal, 13pc, €15.95
With warm fruit, liquorice spice, supple tannins and refreshing lift, this Touriga Franca/Touriga Nacional/Tinta Roriz blend offers a fresher alternative to Mitchell’s bestselling Quinta do Vale de Perdiz Gradus Tinto Douro (€14.95). Ardkeen Stores, Tramore Carry Out, Cass & Co, Redmonds of Ranelagh, mitchellandson.com
Pegos Claros Reserva Tinto 2021
Pegos Claros Reserva Tinto 2021, Setubal, Portugal, 13.5pc, €20-€24
Expressive red and black fruits with well-integrated oak spices, from 70-year-old, sandy-soil Castelão vines south-east of Lisbon, foot-trodden and fermented in traditional open lagars. Matson’s (Cork), MacGuinness Wines (Dundalk), Leonard’s (Trim), O’Briens Wine, Fallon & Byrne, Grape & Grain, Pinto Wines, theallotment.ie
Casa Ferreirinha Vinha Grande 2022
Casa Ferreirinha Vinha Grande 2022, Douro Tinto, Portugal 13pc, €23.95
A rich and silky Touriga Nacional-led blend with concentrated cassis and raspberry notes with subtle French oak spices and freshness. Independents including The Wine Centre (Kilkenny), McHugh’s Off Licence, Avoca, The Malt House, The Wine Centre, Redmonds of Ranelagh, Matsons, Mannings Emporium, Baggot Street Wines, The Corkscrew, wineonline.ie
JP Ramos Reserva Tinto
JP Ramos Reserva Tinto, Alentejo, Portugal, 13.5pc, €15.95
Great value already but down to €10.99 from October 28, this blend of Alentejo varieties Trincadeira and Aragonez with a touch of Syrah is bold and warming with rich purple fruits and fine tannins. O’Briens Wine; obrienswine.ie
Dining and Cooking