‘Wine from Portugal’ want you to taste the passion, and are offering you a mixed case of 6 wines from Adega de Borba, based in the heart of the Alentejo for just £39.99.

The 6 wines include:
Convento da Vila Branco Alentejo DOC 2009
Convento da Vila Tinto Alentejo DOC 2009
Montes Claros Tinto Alentejo DOC 2007
Branco Alentejo DOC 2009
Premium Tinto Alentejo DOC 2007
Reserva Tinto Alentejo DOC 2008

To order your mixed case from Wine From Portugal click here.

Continuing our mission to highlight every wine that will be tasted during The Big Tasting with Oz Clark on April 12th, we’ve now moved on to the 5th wine: Tinto da Ânfora 2007 Alentejo, Portugal.

Now when we think of the Alentejo, we tend to think of cork forests, vast stretches of undulating hills blanketed in wild flowers, and of course, pigs! These little black footed guys are famous for Portuguese cured ham, presunto. However, the Alentejo is also famous for their intense and aromatic wines.

Most of the region’s 22000 hectares of vine are consolidated inthe eight sub-regions of the Denomination of Origin of Alentejo: Reguengos, Borba, Redondo, Vidigueira, Évora, Granja-Amareleja, Portalegre and Moura. You’ll typically find white wines made with Roupeiro, Antão Vaz and Arinto. The red grape varieties Trincadeira, Aragonez and Castelão also hold court in this neck of the woods.

Tinto da Anfora by Bacalhôa Vinhos is a blend of 6 grape varieties, and is an excellent medium-bodied red. It has a highly rustic palate showing notes of cherry, bramble and black-currant fruits with a mouth filling texture and smoky, slightly oaky finish.

It can be enjoyed with red meats or stews and also barbecued meats.

That said, what are your favorite grilled dishes to pair with rustic red wines?

Share with us what you think of the wine!

Continuing our mission to highlight every wine that will be tasted during The Big Tasting with Oz Clark on April 12th, we’ve now moved on to the 6th and final wine: Arco de Esporão 2008.

Like the Tinto da Ânfora 2006, Arco de Esporão is from the Alentejo region, where the villages are rural with majestic sunsets. Evora and Monsaraz are medieval forested towns with world heritage status. If you’ve never visited the open markets or the quaint family run shops in the Alentejo, mark it under your “must visit” list.

The Arco de Esporão is a new multi-varietal blend made specially for Waitrose by top Portuguese winemaker David Baverstock. Made with the indigenous grape varieties: Aragónez, Trincadeira, Castelão, Syrah, Touriga Nacional and Alicante Bouschet, it’s a stunning wine. The judicious use of well-integrated oak adds a spicy, herbal quality to this gorgeous red, with its rounded palate and soft tannins. Ideal for drinking now with pasta or meat dishes, alternatively cellar for 3 to 5 years for more mature style.

As for where to visit in Evora? Follow Go Lisbon’s suggestions and check out:

1. Temple of Diana: Dating from the 2nd century, it is one of the Iberian Peninsula’s best preserved Roman monuments, raised on a 3m (10ft)-high stone platform, with 14 of the original 18 granite Corinthian columns still standing. The whitewashed houses, arches, and twisting alleyways that characterize the town reflect the Moorish presence.
2. Praça do Giraldo: Located in the main square, this is the best place to start a visit. It was an execution ground during the Inquisition, but is now filled with shops and cafes, and surrounded by attractive townhouses with wrought-iron balconies.
3. Loios Convent: The convent is now a splendid pousada but anyone can visit its Gothic church founded in 1485.
4. Towers of the Sé (cathedral): This was built in 1186 (and where the flags of Vasco da Gama’s ships were blessed before his voyage to India), are seen from here. It is a blend of Romanesque and Gothic, and on the portal are 14th century sculpted Apostles. The Gothic interior has one of the longest naves found in any cathedral in the country, measuring 70m(230ft), and has a large Renaissance organ, thought to be the oldest in Europe.
5. City Museum, representing Evora’s long history through Roman columns, 16th-century paintings, and modern sculpture. Among the paintings is a 15th century Holy Virgin with Child by Alvaro Pires (he is one of the earliest identified Portuguese artists although a number of his paintings are displayed in Pisa and Florence in Italy).
6. Church of São Francisco. It is a Manueline-Gothic structure completed around 1510, and legend has it that Portuguese navigator Gil Vicente is buried in it. Not buried, but on display, are the bones and skulls of some 5000 people covering the walls and columns of the church’s Chapel of Bones

Do you have any additional suggestions as to where one should visit, or eat, in Evora?!