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 4th wine: Vida Nova Syrah / Aragónez 2007 Algarve, Portugal.

Known as the “the tourist destination” of Portugal, the Algarve is located in the sunny and beach laden south occupying 5,412 square kilometers. And though wine only takes up a small percentage of their exports,  producing much less than its fish, seafood, orange, carob bean, fig and almond production, it has become a hotspot for high end gastronomical delights.

Historically, wine took a greater precedence, but tourism has been the bane of its existence; substituting hotels, golf courses and shopping malls for large swaths of lush, green vineyards. In the last couple of years, investments have been made to revitalise the wine sector, but very few wineries have come out as true champions, such as Vida Nova.

Vida Nova, the Cliff Richard wine, is situated in Guia, a few kilometres northwest of Albufeira in the middle of the Algarve. The winey is situated at the top of Quinta do Miradouro and was built to produce high quality wine from three surrounding Quintas: Quinta do Moinho, Quinta do Miradouro and Vale do Sobreiro.

The wine is spicy and intense and goes superbly with Iberian pork fillets grilled with salt and lemon.

Another option is to go off the beaten path and pair this wine with octopus, a traditional and very appreciated ingredient in the Algarve. Although we traditionally might not suggest seafood with red wine, the tomato risotto may have enough richness to compliment it.

This receipe was taken from the “The Algarve Buzz“:

Risotto de Polvo

Source: Adapted from – Cozinha Tradicional Portuguesa
Serves 2 generously, and can be doubled easily

• 1k polvo – cleaned
• ½ med. sized onion, whole
• 3/4 cup risotto rice
• ½ med sized onion, finely chopped
• 4 large garlic cloves- finely chopped
• 1/2 can diced tomatoes (or use fresh)
• 2 bay leaves
• 2tbsp tomato paste
• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 1tsp paprika
• pinch pepper
• 4 tbsp cilantro
• pinch of sugar
• ½ cup white wine
• fish stock, reserved from octopus
• boiling water

Prepare Octopus
Place octopus in med size pot halfway full of boiling water (aprox. 4 cups water), add ½ whole onion, and let boil for 10min, on medium high heat.

Drain octopus and reserve onion

Fill pot half full again and let come to boil place octopus back in with onion and cook for another 25 min. Until fork pierces tentacles easily.

When cooked, separate octopus from stock, place octopus on plate to cool and reserve stock. You can discard the onion.

When Octopus has cooled, chop into small chunks. Set aside.

*Note. Octopus is a bit slippery when raw but will firm up nicely once cooked. It will be rubbery when cooked for only a few minutes, it needs to cook until tender about 30min. It may also have a thin purplish skin, most of it will come off during the first blanching, any remain bits are fine and don’t need to be removed unless you prefer.

Prepare Risotto
In a sauté pan, add olive oil and garlic, let oil cook for a couple of minutes to infuse with garlic, then add chopped onion and cook until onions are transparent.

Add diced tomatoes in juice, tomato paste, bay leaf, a ½ cilantro, pepper, paprika and let tomatoes cook into sauce for about 10-15 minutes on medium heat.

Add pinch of sugar, this helps round out the acidity on the tomatoes, blend well into the sauce.

Add rice and coat well with sauce, then add half of the stock and gently stir. Keep hot water close by to add when rice begins to dry. Make sure to taste sauce with each small addition of water, you can substitute stock for water if you prefer a stronger seafood flavour.

Follow package directions for rice and add water as needed unit rice start to become tender, keep stirring to ensure creaminess of rice.

Just as rice becomes slightly tender, add chopped octopus, mix well, then add white wine, mix well again. Taste for salt. Octopus stock may already have enough salt so taste before adding more.

Risotto is best served immediately, sprinkle with remaining cilantro and serve.

*Note. For a less fishy flavour you can substitute the octopus stock for a knorr seafood stock cube. Melt cube in 1 cup hot water and substitute for octopus stock.

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?!

With The BIG Tasting promotions in full swing, we felt it was high time to learn about each of the wines, starting with the region from which they’re born to the foods that bring a different light to our palate. Over the next six days, we’ll be highlighting each of the wines, with the hope that you’ll share your thoughts as to additional recipes you might pair with them, places you suggest drinking them, and if you’ve tried this wine in the past, what thoughts came to mind?!

So, without further adieu, let us begin with the Vinho Verde region of Portugal where the Quinta de Azevedo 2009 comes from. This lush, green wine region, which gives Vinho Verde its name, is located in the northwest of Portugal and has a strong Atlantic influence which results in a temperature climate of not very cold, but rather rainy winters, and relatively dry and cool summers.

This 12th century winery is housed between the rivers Lima and Cávado, in the Barcelos parish, and is surrounded by exclusively white varieties. Since 1982, this estate has been apart of the Sogrape portfolio, and considered one of the best Loureiro producing quintas in Portugal.

Vinho Verdes are known for their fresh, fruity characteristics, making them the ideal pairing for seafood, salads and grilled fish. They also have been known to be fabulous picnic wines for lazy days spent at the beach or lounging at the park. Then again, who’s to say that these aren’t wonderful winter wines when your summer nostalgia needs a little support.

Where is your favorite place to drink a Vinho Verde?

Share your thoughts about the wine.

The BIG Tasting with Oz Clarke is fast approaching, and after weeks of endless meetings, e-mails, phone calls and decisions, the event is finally planned, all the promotional material is in place, the website is live….so let the countdown begin.

The employees at Waitrose Canary Wharf and John Lewis on Oxford Street have been busy with the technology side of things. They have the responsibility to ensure that all the live streaming works on the night, so test runs have been happening in store to ensure that it all goes smoothly.

We asked Nick Room the wine buyer for Waitrose how this fun and exciting tasting benefits Waitrose and the image of Portuguese wines.

He said “The event gives good exposure to Portuguese wine and the broadcast is fronted by an excellent host, Oz Clarke, who is well known to millions. The event  is good publicity for Portuguese wine, as soon as people try Portuguese table wines they’ll love them enough to want to go on to purchase, this is because of the diversity, unique flavours, structure, weight, fruitiness, superb balance – all good attributes and delivering excellent value for money!”

Well Nick we couldn’t agree more! If you want to learn more about the Big tasting Visit the site! Or send us a question!

See you all soon!