Vinho Verde – a light Portuguese Wine

Vinho Verde – a light Portuguese Wine

This white wine from the most north-westerly province of Portugal has unobtrusively developed from an insignificant mass market wine into a star among light, refreshing wines.

Until the 1980s, mostly light, sparkling red wines came from the largest Portuguese wine region, which extends from Spain to Douro. Since then, this has reversed: around 85 percent of all Vinho Verde are white wines today.
They are also considerably better suited to the climate, which is characterised by mountains, river valleys, the Atlantic Ocean, lots of rain in the winter and spring (an average of 1,200 mm annually) and the dry, warm months in summer and autumn. A thick green carpet covers the narrow valleys and plains down to the sea.

The cultivation region of Vinho Verde was defined legally in 1908, and a denomination of origin (D.O.) has been in use since 1959. Today, Vinho Verde DO covers 21,000 hectares of land planted with vines, 129,000 vineyards, 47 grape varieties, 25,500 winegrowers and 600 bottlers, who produce approx. 85 million litres of wine annually and export to 80 countries.

How are the winegrowers able to produce such light and fruity wines with an alcohol content of 11 vol. % with Vinho Verde? This is mainly thanks to the grape varieties used, which have a high acidic content. Many of them are autochthonous, i.e. they only grow in the north of Portugal.

Another reason for the fruity freshness is forgoing malolactic fermentation, in which malic acid is converted into lactic acid and carbon dioxide and acid is degraded overall.

As a result, the ideal white Vinho Verde D.O. has a taste of citrus fruit and green apples, joined by the aroma of wintergreen, kiwis, passion fruit, pineapple and minerals.

Traditional Vinho Verde D.O. is a cuvée of several grape varieties, among others Alvarinho, Arinto, Avesso, Azal, Batoca, Loureiro and Trajadura. In the meantime, however, Vinho Verde is also produced using only grapes of one variety, e. example, Loureiro, or Alvarinho. These wines are normally more complex with aromas of exotic fruit, and have less acid and more residual sugar.

More information is available at www.vinhoverde.pt/.