ALENTEJO Part 2. / João Portugal Ramos - MY PORTUGUESE WINE DIARY.

EVORA CITY AND AN EVENING WITH JOÃO PORTUGAL RAMOS - November 2016

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Portal to the Cathédral of Évora

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Ruins of a Roman Temple

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Santo Antâo Church

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The Streets of Evora

We, I arrived in Évora City (a Unesco World Heritage City), late in the afternoon, there would be only a few hours left of sunshine before the chill of the night would begin it's slow creep. I took a walk through the quiet yet busy city. Then suddenly realizing in my instant transformation into a tourist, that this historical city was alive with its inhabitants going about their lives. Children and Teenagers coming home from school, the elders sitting and sipping coffee in the town square, and offices closing up as the restaurants and taverns prepared for evening service. Dinner was to be at 8 at the charming Luar de Janeiro Restaurant with the wines of João Portugal Ramos. It would be a very comfortable dinner and a casual tasting with the wines and the son of João Portugal Ramos, João Maria Portugal Ramos. (pictured below) 

João Maria Portugal Ramos, son of João Portugal Ramos. photo by Christopher Sealy iPhone using VSCO.

THE WINES OF JOAO PORTUGAL RAMOS OF ESTREMOZ, ALENTEJO

2015 Alvarinho Vinho Verde :  a very fresh and clean wine with classic characteristics of apple and pear with bright fruit and mineral elements on the palate.  20% of the wine is raised in barrel, giving a soft and pleasing dimension to the wine and not overpowering the lovely fruit makes Alvarinho so pleasant as an aperitif wine. 

2015 Marquês de Borba White: this wine is composed of Arinto, Antâo Vaz and a touch of Viognier. What I can say about this wine is that aromatically the wine is quite direct in character, with lovely lemon, citrus and orchard fruit tone with a touch of sweet peach and pear due to the Viognier,  only to be balanced by a very pleasing palate with nice acidity and a lemon and mineral sandwich of flavour. Well made. 

2015 Marquês de Borba Red : this wine is lead by Alicante Bouchet, Aragonez with support from Trincadeira and Touriga Nacional. As an easy drinking red, with lovely dark berry, currant and a touch of cooked fruit on the nose, which then moves direclty to the palate with like and similar elements framed by freshness and gentle tannin. Freshness and pleasing fruit is the vital and necessary key to good Alentejo wines. A great everyday drinking wine. 

2013 Vila Santa Reserva Red : Grape Varieties in this gem are Aragonez, Touriga Nacional, Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon and Alicante Bouschet. Now a 1/3 component of this wine will be foot trodden in classic marble lagares with the remainder fermented in large wooden vats with ageing in American and French oak. The result is rich and ripe fruit aroma of dark berry, cassis and a perfume that is floral and fruity with a hint of sweet vanilla. On the palate there is the same velvety richness with a touch of rock rose, spice and vanilla from the elevage in barrel. By no way is this an obtuse 'big' wine. It balanced and elegant showing the skill and hand of the maker. 

2014 Dourum Colheita Douro Red : here Touriga Franca leads the show with Touriga Nacional and Tinta Roriz. We dig deep into the richness that only the Douro can provide with ripe and sweet berry over toasted vanilla and a touch of grains de café torréfié - roasted coffee. I would say and conclude later in my trip that the wine, and others wines of the Douro, had a Bordeaux like elegance and density, but with lift and clarity of pleasing fruit that allowed the wine to be enjoyed in youth. 

FACT FILE ON JOÃO PORTUGAL RAMOS 

“The new generation (of young winemakers) can profit from the work of their parents. The big producers will maintain a consistency in quality and the small producers will add the diversity to an already growing market. ”

— João Maria Portugal Ramos

• João is known as one of, if not the most famous oenologist/ wine consultants in Portugal and is constantly engaged in projects throughout the country. The Dourum label of wines in particular is a partnership with João Maria Soares Franco the famous and important past winemaker of Barca Velha. Barca Velha is the Portuguese equivalent to Vega Sicilia in Spain or Stag's Leap in Napa. 
• In the 1990's João himself, after an illustrious career of making wines for others, purchased a property in Estremoz, Alentejo to make his own wines and then soon become one of the largest privately owned family wineries in the south.
• Currently they have a team of 6 wine makers in the group overseeing projects in other regions of Portugal.   
• João's son, João Maria has recently finished his Masters in Wine at the wine school of Montpellier and has studied at Bordeaux. He has been working with his father since 2014 and is part of the new vanguard of young wine makers in training. 

A morning walk in the public gardens at the city of Évora.

The outer wall of the city of Évora

ALENTEJO / Herdade do Esporão - A PORTUGUESE WINE DIARY - Part 2

It is fall in Alentejo, the light of the morning sun is cool, vivid and blindingly bright. Causing one to squint as one looks over the horizon. A horizon divided by sky blue and the earth shades of olive green and vines.

Alentejo photo by Christopher Sealy 

Alentejo at Esporão. photo by Christopher Sealy

We, I, am in Rueguengos a subregion of the Alentejo, not far from the historical city of Evora. The landscape is familiar, I've been here before, a few years back in time, exploring the wine regions of Vidiguera and to the far north Portalegre. It is beautiful here. Raw, earth, herbs, vines and sky for miles and miles. Today the 6 of us are visiting the Herdade do Esporão. Esporão is one of the pioneering wineries of the Alentejo, pioneers in the sense that the Herdade was a creative vision of the impresario José Roquette and Joaquim Bandeira. Roquette wanted to establish a 'chateau' in the Alentejo, a winery = Herdade, that would be known for quality. In 1972 the Esporão Tower and some 250 hectares of land were acquired. Yet there was still a significant hurdle to overcome as much of this area was occupied by farmers. Farmers who in a post dictatorship era were very much against the notion of surrendering land to raise vines, the idea was ludicrous. It was only in 1980's that a shift in mentality and direction was achieved, with a co-operative plan to rebuild vineyards and restore the land that the Herdade do Esporão project was now able to gather momentum. The vision included wine, olive groves and cork production. In 1985, the first winery was built, and it is here from which I gather my thoughts and memories. 

Herdade do Esporão today produces about 15 million bottles of wine. Yes quite significant but key to understanding the potential and scale of what Alentejo and Portugal is capable of. The first brands to hit the market where the Esporão Reserve White and Red. The success of these wines was such that in the 1990's the company expanded into 3 tiers of production, which included the construction of 2 additional wineries. A second facility for white wines, a third for the top level wines and the expansion of the original home winery for the original reserve brands. The wines were present in 47 markets with 40% of consumption in Portugal and with the farmers included in the success grower contracts were re-established and Esporão was acclaimed a successful business model. The success is a combination of vision, quality and consistency which the Wines of Portugal needed in order to establish a foothold in the World Wine Market. You aren't going to find quirky, sommelier geek out wines here. You will find wines of benchmark production standards, precision that represent a necessary dimension of the Wines of Alentejo. 

David Baverstock, Chief Wine Maker presiding over the tasting. 

Sandra Alves, Wine Maker.

The core brands of Esporão. Each vintage the label of Esporão Reserve White and Red is commissioned to a noted Portuguese artist/painter. Here the work of Pedro A.H. Paixão

FACT FILE 

• Herdade = large winery/farm 
• Monte = small winery/farm 
• Quinta (a term used in the north and primarily the Douro = the classic term for a winery that was obliged to surrender 1/5, a Quinta, of the production to the monarchy. 
• Herdade do Esporão sources grapes from the entire Alentejo. Particularly from the high altitude north sub region of Portalegre down to Reguengos. 
• 7 different soil types contribute to the complexity of the wines. 
• Production is 70% Red wine and 30% White wine. 
• Red Grapes farmed : Aragonês (aka Tempranillo, Tinto Roriz as it is called in the North), Touriga Nacional, Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon and Trincadeira
• White Grapes farmed : Antão Vaz, Verdelho, Semillon (imported by David who happens to be Australian) 
• David Baverstock, Chief Wine Maker has been with Esporão since 1982. He had come to Portugal to work with Symington's in the Douro in 1980. Prior that that he had spent time in France with LaPierre in Morgon, Beaujolais and some time in Germany.   

IN THE TASTING ROOM

WHITEs

2015 Monte Velho White : a wine comprised of Antão Vaz, Roupeiro and Perrum offering up initial aromas of apple, pear with white orchard blossom perfume that borders on sweet yet remains bright and fresh. To taste the Branco it is rich yet tense, with green apple to dry peach and other stone fruit flavours. This is a wine with nice balance full and texture. 

2015 Verdelho : at it's origin this Verdelho comes from the island of Madeira and it exists for the simple reason that the grape was isolated on the island during the era of the vine disease Phylloxera that devastated the mainland vineyards of Europe. At present we see more frequent use, though it is quite low yielding. It was in 2001 that Esporão started to plant the Verdelho. I would say that the wine is quite unique and interesting with an aromatic intensity that is of waxy green and gold apple, fresh pear combined with citrus moving to herbal light celery and anise like tones. On the palate the wine is quite dry, very dry with some clean and crisp apple, citrus and spiced flavours, think white pepper to jasmine. Quite direct and subtle in complexity.

2015 Esporão Reserve White : the blend here is mainly Antão Vaz, Roupeiro with Arinto and several other white varieties in the mix. The wine is fermented in 60% tank and 40% new oak with a further 6 months on fine lees. The resulting wine is full, with fruity citrus to white tropical fruit aroma over subtle wood spice and vanilla. I'm finding a familiar savoury and herbed aroma. The palate gives way to richer flavours on the palate, with a touch of texture. The wine is warm with big fruit and gentle spice with a pleasant finish.    

REDs

2015 Monte Velho Red : to make the 5million bottles of this wine, 20 different farmers contribute to the blend of Aragonês, Trincadeira, Touriga Nacional and Syrah. The result is quite clear, with a simple wine of cherry and red berry aroma and flavour, the fruit is fresh and not jammy better yet it is bright and clean. A very easy going wine with little cosmetics and no fuss. 

2013 Esporão Reserve Red : the perennial classic from the Herdade based on the grapes Aragonês, Trincadeira, Cabernet Sauvignon and Alicante Bouchet. This wine is a cuvée with each grape fermented separately in tank, blended then matured 12 month in barrel - some new and some used. Here we have rich fruit aroma, dark berry, black currant with spice re: saffron, vanilla, the nose remains fresh and does not move into the cooked fruit territory as one would think with the heat of Alentejo and the 'use' of barrel. The palate deepens with more dark blue and black fruit and gentle herbed tones. This wine is upfront and firm in tannin. A solid example of the craft at Esporão. 

A few other wines that are of real interest which I enjoyed over lunch are pictured below. 

The Trincadeira to which I never say never was vibrant and fresh / the Moreto is the Amphora raised wines from vessels dating back to 1848, a new project for Esporão / AB - Alicante Bouchet was a big full bodied pleasing wines, call it Grenache on steroids.