Off to the Algarve for a couple of weeks of winter sun, get away from this dark and wet January.
Much wine will be taken.
Can any advice be given on what's good or not?
What sort of price is a decent bottle?
We've been buying a fair few bottles of their wine from Morrison's recently and they've been excellent. I can only imagine the stuff you'll get locally is even better
You don't need to go to Portugal for decent Portugese wine. Aldi have some great ones in at the moment. Both of these are really nice
Dao and Douro are often excellent
Alvarinho tastes the same as Galician Albariño to me
Port should also be sampled as often as possible
On a hot day, try a white port in a long glass with lots of tonic and ice and a slice.
Niepoort is my favourite
Very nice white;
Cliff Richard has a vineyard in Portugal. My parents met him in a supermarket a few years ago, he was sat behind a small table giving out samples of his wine. Miserable sod according to them, my Mum was slightly gutted having been a fan of his for about 50 years. She now refuses to listen to his music at Christmas, That is a good thing.
Miserable sod according to them, my Mum was slightly gutted having been a fan of his for about 50 years.
Was he a bit miffed when she said she was Frank Sinatra's mum?
When it's hot a nicely chilled bottle of Vinho Verde goes down a treat.
Portugese wine is ace and you will get the best stuff in Portugal - lots of region specific grape varieties so would hit google once you have the accomodation booked to see what applies in that area
Crianza, Reserva and Grand Reserva apply to the length of time that a wine has aged, DOC rules are in place like other bits of europe and anything Pago means its from a single estate and top quality stuff (will be pricy)
Madeira is nicer than Sherry, and Madeira is nicer than Jerez. Take a glass of whatever is on offer.
Make sure you have a glass of Pedro Ximenez (PX) every time you have a coffee.
Love my Portuguese reds, just lovely. Get mine from here so maybe this will help with info on grape varieties etc...
." Get mine from here "
That Vilarissa has got me dribbling....
Madeira is nicer than Sherry, and Madeira is nicer than Jerez. Take a glass of whatever is on offer.
We're off to Madeira at end of the month. To coincide with the end of Dry Jan. So this thread has popped up at a good time to make sure we make the most of the trip!
Cliff Richard has a vineyard in Portugal. My parents met him in a supermarket a few years ago, he was sat behind a small table giving out samples of his wine. Miserable sod according to them, my Mum was slightly gutted having been a fan of his for about 50 years. She now refuses to listen to his music at Christmas, That is a good thing.
Have you ever had something happen to you that later on you think must have been a dream because it was so unlikely? Cliff Richard sitting in a supermarket asking passers-by to try his wine would be one of those events to me. 😀
Can any advice be given on what’s good or not?
No idea, but the last Erasmus+ trip I took in February involved some lovely local wine at lunchtime, outdoor picnic and a nature reserve in the hills around Cascais. Om nom.
Make sure you have a glass of Pedro Ximenez (PX) every time you have a coffee
Seems a bit provocative insisting on a Spanish sherry to accompany a coffee in Portugal.
I've been living here in the North close to the Spanish border and no matter what local wine I have had here, it has always been good!
Have yet to see a bottle with a screw top!
Have you ever had something happen to you that later on you think must have been a dream because it was so unlikely? Cliff Richard sitting in a supermarket asking passers-by to try his wine would be one of those events to me.
My thoughts. Must of been a case mistaken identity.
No way would Cliff of been sitting in a supermarket punting his wine!
I was impressed by the claim that Madeira was better than manzanilla, fino, amontillado, oloroso, palo cortado, cream AND Pedro Ximénez. Must give that a go.
OP, I don’t think you need to take any wine, they make it there..
I was impressed by the claim that Madeira was better than manzanilla, fino, amontillado, oloroso, palo cortado, cream AND Pedro Ximénez. Must give that a go.
I've only had it once, but I'm sticking with my fino, manzanilla & PX
Have yet to see a bottle with a screw top!
Probably illegal considering they are the global centre of the cork industry.
Forget the wines.... If you're in the Algarve you're not far from Monchique. Take a drive up into the mountains and then pop in here....
https://maps.google.com/?cid=10772541655656764636&entry=gps
Get yourself a bottle or two of Medronho. The guy doesn't speak a word of English, but if you're lucky his daughter is there and she does. Either way, he'll offer you as many glasses as you want, but don't drink too much until you're home. It has a similar effect to absinthe. Drink enough and it's a bit trippy. Bought two bottles back in April and still have one and a half left. It's strong stuff.
Should add, it is available in supermarkets, but it's not done the "traditional" way and doesn't have the kick.
(folks have had a place in the Algarve since before I was around. Quite a few Portuguese friends, two of whom put my old man onto this....)
Erm https://www.portugalresident.com/sir-cliff-richard-at-jumbo-lagoa-in-may-for-autograph-session/
Well I never! Why would he bother? Particularly as doesn't seem to enjoy it?
Well got here yesterday and have tried a few local wines, all very good and very reasonable, even in the restaurants.
It was a balmy 18C yesterday, same forecast for today. Which is positively tropical for us who live North of The Wall.
Do not forget to have a drop of Port.
Drinking a bottle of wine society's 2020 Portuguese red. Is quite nice.
Re @binners post
The Animus Douro is good but the Reserva is excellent. I love Aldi
@ElShalimo - I’ve not seen the Reserva, so I’ll look out for it.
If you like your Douro then this one from Morrisons ‘The Best’ range was recommended in the Observer foody supplement.
It’s also absolutely bloody lovely and is presently on offer at £7.50 a bottle. Bargain!
You can't go wrong IME, just don't buy the really cheap stuff and try a few different regions until you land on your preferred style. I don't think I've ever had a Portuguese wine I haven't liked.
I was impressed by the claim that Madeira was better than manzanilla, fino, amontillado, oloroso, palo cortado, cream AND Pedro Ximénez. Must give that a go.
Yeah, that was pretty much what I thought!
Douro is nice, very similar to the Spanish Ribera del Duero (unsurprisingly). Nice full reds. A chilled Vinho Verde is great on a hot day. And Alvarinho is funnily enough very similar to Albariño, just over the border, and with the same name.
But the basic rule on the Iberian peninsular is avoid anything under 5€, particularly reds. You can get a drinkable white (vinho verde or otherwise) for less than that, but then chilling your drink covers a multitude of sins...) Over 10€ and it's diminishing returns. (Supermarket prices; in a restaurant avoid the house red, or the cheapest couple of bottles on the menu). I'd be looking at whatever's on offer in the local supermarket at about 7€ - you won't go far wrong!
I was just in Aldi so, remembering this thread, grabbed a couple of bottles of the Reserva that had been recommended. It was a whole exorbitant 30p more expensive than the other Animas Douro, so this better be good @ElShalimo 😂
You'll also need these to complete an Aldi-tastic evening
We’re already on to those mate. They’re bloody lovely!
While we’re on an Aldi perfect wine-accompaniment love-in….
Only 2 reds on that label, you on a health kick binners?
I’m sure the full baguette of Morrisons salt’n’pepper bread I’ll being dipping in it will more than compensate 😃
lol. Back on topic the white port with tonic shout on the previous page is a great sunshine drink.
Yay, that was me too! I probably drink too much.
About 20years ago my GP asked me how much I drank. I told him and he said that was called weekend binge drinking.
He then said "You know what they say young Man?"
I said "No" in a state of confusion.
He continued.... "They say you've only got a drink problem if you drink more than your Doctor, and you Sir are an amateur!"
Just thought I'd return to this thread to say that the Douro Reserva recommended by @ElShalimo is absolutely bloody lovely.
Smoother than a cashmere codpiece! 😀
Well I got back last Thursday.
Much drink was taken.
Very reasonable, cheap as chips in the supermarket.
Even the really cheap stuff they sold in the bars for 2.50 a glass was perfectly drinkable.
We'll probably head back next winter, it really helps to break up the long winter we have here North of The Wall.
Nice one @gobuchul
Having sampled them over there in the sunshine, it'd be interesting to hear your thoughts on the various Aldi examples on the thread now you're back in the frozen, desolate northern wastes
IME certain drinks need to stay in their home.
I enjoyed them out there, but as you highlighted on your other post they are very smooth. I much prefer a Shiraz or Malbec.
The worst mistake I ever made about drinking something in the wrong place was Banks Beer. I was working on a ship out of Barbados, really enjoyed it in the sun, brought a couple of cases back to Blighty. It was absolute cats piss!
On that note, never drink this if you're a) outside Hungary or b) sober
![zwack-unicum-bitters-0-7l-best-of-hungary-1[1]](https://stw-forum-images.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/13134094/736etok704351ifg2b9kvlmzkdvpfotg.png)
Unicum Zwack?
Is it April 1st?
Blimey! That’s bonkers cheap! Best stock up then. Cheers for the heads up
Bump for the Animus reserve price drop mentioned by ElShalimo.
I popped into Aldi earlier. Supplies were already decimated but I grabbed 6 bottles. If you’re after some at that price, I’d hurry up
