Vinho do Alentejo
Encyclopedia
Alentejo is Portuguese wine
Portuguese wine
Portuguese wine is the result of traditions introduced to the region by ancient civilizations, such as the Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Greeks, and mostly the Romans. Portugal started to export its wines to Rome during the Roman Empire. Modern exports developed with trade to England after the...

 region located in the Alentejo region of the country. The entire region is entitled to use the Vinho Regional designation Alentejano VR, while some areas are also classified at the higher Denominação de Origem Controlada
Denominação de Origem Controlada
The Denominação de Origem Controlada is the system of protected designation of origin for wines, cheeses, butters, and other agricultural products from Portugal.-Wines:...

(DOC) level under the designation Alentejo DOC. VR is similar to the French vin de pays
Vin de pays
Vin de pays is a French term meaning "country wine". Vins de pays are a step in the French wine classification which is above the table wine classification, but below the VDQS and Appellation d'origine contrôlée classifications...

and DOC to the French AOC. Located in the southern half of Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...

, the Alentejo region covers about a third of the country and is sparsely populated. The region is noted for it vast cork
Cork (material)
Cork is an impermeable, buoyant material, a prime-subset of bark tissue that is harvested for commercial use primarily from Quercus suber , which is endemic to southwest Europe and northwest Africa...

 production but has in recent years garnered attention for its table wine
Wine
Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...

 production.

Subregions

There are eight subregions of the Alentejo region that are entitled to the Alentejo DOC designation. The names of the subregions may be indicated on the label together with the name Alentejo, for example as Alentejo-Borba. These subregions were initially created as separate Indicação de Proveniencia Regulamentada (IPR) wine regions, after which some were elevated to DOC status. In 2003, these separate DOCs and IPRs were put together as the Alentejo DOC. Listed from north to south the eight subregions are the following.
  • Portalegre (formerly a DOC)
  • Borba (formerly a DOC)
  • Redondo (formerly a DOC)
  • Evora (formerly an IPR)
  • Reguengos (formerly a DOC)
  • Granja-Amareleja (formerly an IPR)
  • Vidigueira (formerly a DOC)
  • Moura (formerly an IPR)

Grapes

The principle grapes of the Alentejo region includes Abundante, Alfrocheiro Preto
Alfrocheiro Preto
Alfrocheiro Preto is a red Portuguese wine grape variety planted primarily in the Dão DOC and Alentejano VR. The grape is known for the deep coloring it can add to wine blends.-Synonyms:...

, Alicante Bouschet
Alicante Bouschet
Alicante Bouschet or Alicante Henri Bouschet is a wine grape variety that has been widely cultivated since 1866. It is a cross of Petit Bouschet and Grenache. Alicante is a teinturier, a grape with red flesh. It is one of the few teinturier grapes that belong to the Vitis vinifera species...

, Antao Vaz, Arinto
Arinto
Arinto or Arinto de Bucelas is a white Portuguese wine grape planted primarily in the Bucelas, Tejo and Vinho Verde regions. It can produce high acid wines with lemon notes.-Synonyms:...

, Cabernet Sauvignon
Cabernet Sauvignon
Cabernet Sauvignon is one of the world's most widely recognized red wine grape varieties. It is grown in nearly every major wine producing country among a diverse spectrum of climates from Canada's Okanagan Valley to Lebanon's Beqaa Valley...

, Carignan, Chardonnay
Chardonnay
Chardonnay is a green-skinned grape variety used to make white wine. It is originated from the Burgundy wine region of eastern France but is now grown wherever wine is produced, from England to New Zealand...

, Diagalves, Fernao Pires
Fernão Pires
Fernão Pires is a white Portuguese wine grape grown throughout Portugal but most notable in the Tejo and Bairrada where it is also known as "Maria Gomes". This varietal is known to produce wines with a spicy aromatic character, though often with delicate exotic fruity notes...

, Grand Noir, Manteudo, Moreto
Moreto
Moreto is a red Portuguese wine grape variety that is planted primarily in the Alentejo. As a varietal, the grape makes neutral wines.-Synonyms:...

, Palomino
Palomino (grape)
Palomino is a white grape widely grown in Spain and South Africa, and best known for its use in the manufacture of sherry.-Wine regions:In Spain, the grape is split into the sub-varieties Palomino Fino, Palomino Basto, and Palomino de Jerez, of which Palomino Fino is by far the most important,...

, Periquita
Periquita
Periquita , also known as Castelão and João de Santarém, is a red wine grape found primarily in the south coastal regions but is grown all over Portugal and is sometimes used in Port wine production. The name is derived from the Portuguese term for parakeet. The vine thrives in sandy soils but is...

, Rabo de Ovelha
Rabo de Ovelha
Rabo de Ovelha is white Portuguese wine grape variety that is grown all over Portugal. It should not be confused with the red Rabo de Anho grape variety that is found in the Vinho Verde region. Rabo de Ovelha is an authorized grape variety in the Bairrada, Borba, Bucelas, Redondo, Reguengos,...

, Tempranillo
Tempranillo
Tempranillo is a variety of black grape widely grown to make full-bodied red wines in its native Spain. It is the main grape used in Rioja, and is often referred to as Spain's "noble grape". Its name is the diminutive of the Spanish temprano , a reference to the fact that it ripens several weeks...

 and Trincadeira.
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