Top Portuguese white wines for summer

You could be forgiven for thinking that Vinho Verde is Portugal’s only white wine. It's the most popular and widely available Portuguese white wine around the world, and rightly so: it’s refreshing, food friendly and takes us back to summer in a single sip. But the new Portuguese white wine scene is anything but monotonous. The country has been working hard to preserve its plentiful and unique white varieties – most of which you won’t find anywhere else. Exciting as it is, navigating Portugal’s diversity of white grape varieties can be as daunting as trying to pronounce them. [subscriber-content] Wide appeal Diversity and exoticism are exciting but, in an effort to reach foreign markets, local varieties are sometimes blended with their international counterparts. Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc can be found – thankfully in small quantities – throughout the country. By blending, Portuguese winemakers get the recognition of an international variety and, at the same time, can introduce the local one. But Portugal doesn’t need that any more. Following the rise of the local market, and the boom of international tourism in the country, interest in what makes Portugal unique is growing. There’s a burgeoning modern gastronomic scene that's proud to serve Portuguese white wines, often by the glass. It’s not uncommon these days for restaurants to have as many whites as reds listed. The market is more dynamic than ever. Winemakers are presenting new wines almost every week. Professional and consumer wine tastings are frequent in the main cities of Lisbon and Porto. To make sure their wine lists are up to date, shop owners and sommeliers have to follow the day-to-day of the market closely. The Azores Consider, for example, the Azores islands and their volcanic soils. In recent years, mainland winemakers have been flying to the archipelago to grow grapes on UNESCO Heritage land. Indigenous Arinto dos Açores, Verdelho and the rare Terrantez do Pico may be hard to pronounce, but are producing fresh, salty wines which are helping put the Azores on the map. Alentejo In the Alentejo, winemakers are going back in time. Using century-old clay amphorae, locally called talhas , and blends of indigenous varieties such as Perrum, Manteudo and Rabo de Ovelha (‘sheep’s tail’), they are bringing back flavours of a 1,000-year-old tradition. And wine buyers are paying attention. Vinho Verde Even Vinho Verde – always known for its quaffable, refreshing, pétillant wines – is changing. People are discovering a more serious, dry, elegant side of the region. A new wave of winemakers, who frequently travel the world, are challenging years of monotony. The most dynamic are making exciting wines from Loureiro, Avesso and Alvarinho (the star of the up-and-coming Monção e Melgaço sub-region). The Encruzado variety is Portugal’s ageworthy answer to white Burgundy. Winemakers are launching delicious, easygoing, Chablis-like companions to mouthwatering petiscos (small plates of food made for sharing), but also oak-aged, high-end options with class and finesse. Unlike top Chardonnays though, it’s hard to beat Encruzado on value for money. Like the diversity of Portuguese white wines, the national language is not easy to get acquainted with, often requiring perseverance and a little spark. For the latter, try the goosebump-inducing experience of a racy Malvasia from pre-phylloxera vines planted in sandy soils in the historic region of Colares. If this doesn’t make you want to learn a bit more about Portugal, I’m sure nothing will. Fortunately for Portugal, consumers are becoming more adventurous with their choices. They want to avoid drinking anything their parents did, so they are looking beyond international varieties and into alternative origins. If anything, the growing global demand for natural wine shows us that consumers are, more than ever, looking to try new and exciting wines and, most importantly, are willing to pay for them. André Ribeirinho is a food and wine entrepreneur and a certified Port educator, who founded adegga.com [/subscriber-content] Top Portuguese white wines to try this summer: [wine-collection] You may also like: Top buys from the German VDP wine tasting: 2018 whites & 2017 reds Expert’s Choice: Sicily’s native whites Which summer wines to buy? Dual identity: Rebula vs Ribolla plus 9 of the best to try

PREMIUM

Top Portuguese white wines for summer

Top Portuguese white wines to try this summer:

You may also like:

Top buys from the German VDP wine tasting: 2018 whites & 2017 reds

Expert’s Choice: Sicily’s native whites

Which summer wines to buy?

Dual identity: Rebula vs Ribolla plus 9 of the best to try

Latest Wine News

International Beaujolais Nouveau Day

Trump returns: The impact on the US wine industry

Hospices de Beaune 2024 auction nets just under €14.5m

Decanter Fine Wine Encounter London 2024: Highlights

Andrew Jefford: ‘Collioure could be a little mountain Burgundy of the south’

Latest Premium Content

Château Lafite and Long Dai masterclass: DFWE Singapore 2024

Roederer: A lifetime of rosé Champagne

Sicily Report 2024: Etna’s golden opportunity

Yamhill-Carlton: An oasis for Pinot Noir in the wilds of Oregon

Berry Bros & Rudd: Autumn and Christmas wine picks