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The Alicante Bouschet is a cross between the Petit Bouschet and the Grenache. It first came into existed in 1865 by the French vine breeder, Henri Bouschet, after his father created the Petit Bouschet, another grape cross between the Aramon and the Teinturier du Cher in 1824.

The grape has red-fleshed, thick, and tough skin, and is found in different areas around the Alentejo region. It usually produces crops around “12 tons per acre,” but should be controlled because of its tendency to over crop. Also, the area in which the grape is grown should be taken into consideration since the acidity shifts from too high in cooler regions and too low in warmer regions. It does, however, go well with “rustic red wines” found in the Alentejo region, a rather redeeming characteristic.

Some of our wines with Alicante Bouschet:

Vidigal Black Label

Bonifacio Alicante Bouschet

Terra do Zambujeiro

Azamor

Altas Quintas Crescendo

Another popular grape from the Vinho Verde region is the Trajadura grape, originally located in the Monção subregion.

This large, white grape is found in medium to full-bodied clusters containing 9 to 10 percent alcohol. Although often used to give Vinhos Verdes more body, it is used more frequently as a mono-varietal wine.

If not picked early enough, the grape loses its acidity quickly, but giving “alcohol and weight” to other acidic Vinho Verde wines. This “disease-resistant variety” has an aroma reminiscent of apricot/tropical fruit, a refreshing drink for a hot day.

Prominent wines from our portfolio with Trajadura are:

Aveleda Casal Garcia

Vidigal Vinho Verde

Olá amigos!

Coming straight from the horse’s mouth, Portugal has a lot to offer the world in its winemaking industry. For starters, Portugal is one of the top wine producing countries in the world – there are over one million acres of vines in over eight different wine regions that generate some of Portugal’s top wines, including the famous Port and Madeira wines.

Port is made in the Douro valley in northern Portugal, which is the third oldest defined and protected wine region in the world . Around 30,000 growers in the Douro are involved in the process of growing grapes to sell for the production of Port. What makes Port so special is the addition of Aguardente (a neutral grape spirit) which is used to take away the fermentation of the wine, but used to keep the grape’s natural sugars to increase the alcohol content.

Madeira, on the other hand, has a special aging process called estufagem that sets it aside from other wines. This process heats the wine up to around 120°F during maturation to age it, giving it a brown, caramel color and a mellower taste. The aging process can last from 3 months to 20 years, depending how you age the Madeira. Another interesting fact is that Madeira wine can last up to 150 years, making it one of the longest lasting wines if it is properly sealed.

If only horses had that kind of a lifespan…

The Portuguese Vinho Verde, literally translated into Green wine, is not actually green! Actually it can be red, white or rosé (being a horse and partially color-blind, I have to take the experts’ word.)

Casal Garcia is one of the best-selling Vinho Verdes in the world

The name refers to the fact that it’s consumed when the wine is young, usually within 1 year. Vinho Verdes are typically light and fresh and usually feature fruity and floral aromas as well as a lemon or straw color. With low alcohol content of 9% to 11% and natural acidity, Vinho Verde also features slight carbonation that’s enough to tickle your throat but not enough to be considered a sparkling wine.

Vinho Verdes should be served well-chilled, around 50ºF, and are typically paired well with light salads, shrimp, scallops, clams, and light fish.

Vidigal Reserva dos Amigos is recommended in the South Coast Today column “Grape Expectations” as an excellent 4th of July wine! Read more…

Bonifacio Aragonez

Caves Bonifácio’s Aragonez Receives Distinguished Prémio Prestigio Award at Concurso Nacional!

Bonifácio Aragonez Regional Estremadura Red Wine 2007 received a 96.5 score and the Prestige Award at Portugal’s top wine competition Concurso Nacional de Vinhos Engarrafados 2009.

Only 6 other wines out of the 500 which entered the competition received the award, the highest mark of distinction bestowed in the competition, which was held May 12-15 in Santarém, Portugal.

In addition, other wines from the Caves Bonifácio got the following respected medals:

• Silver Medal – Encosta da Tapada Estremadura Red Wine 2007
• Silver Medal – Caves Bonifácio Cabernet Sauvignon Estremadura Red Wine 2007
• Silver Medal – Caves Bonifácio Alicante Bouschet + Aragonez Estremadura Red Wine 2007.

The Blind-Tasting Jury comprises of 200 wine professionals, including oenologists, restaurant professionals, journalists and sommeliers of national and international renown. Wines with 78 to 88 points receive the Silver Medal, and those with 89 to 100 points the Gold Medal. A Final Jury awarded the Prestige Award to 7 wines chosen from the Gold Medal winners with more than 95 points.

“We are a smaller family-owned winery, so for us these awards are quite significant,” says António Pereira, the winery’s director. “It goes to show our strong passion for producing superior wines.”

Bonifácio’s top wines are produced using the EU’s Biological Production guidelines, the equivalent of Organic in the U.S.  The vines are grown in shallow and low fertility soils in order to diminish the production, thus improving the quality of the grape. They are not watered to prevent the decreasing of tannins. No herbicides or chemical fertilizers are used. No enzymes or agents are used in the aging process.