Vinho Verde: Portugal’s Best Table Wine
Before visiting Portugal this winter, I was woefully uneducated on Portuguese wine. I knew they were mainly red, mainly dry, and mainly fruit forward. However, given my overall avoidance of most young wines (not to my taste), I’d never even heard of, let alone tasted, Vinho Verde; Portugals best kept secret.
UNDERSTAND
Vinho Verde (pronounce: veeng-yo vairde), literally 'green wine' or ‘young wine’ is not a varietal or type of grape, but a DOC for a wine production style of Portugal. Traditionally, Vinho Verde wines all came from the Minho province to the north of Portugal, but nowadays, some come from some regions slightly to the south as well. Vinho Verde wines may be red, white or rosé, and are always bottled three to six months after the grapes are harvested, hence, ‘young wine.’
Vinho Verde wines are always light and fresh, with a slightly fizzy, effervescent nature. While not a sparkling wine by any stretch of the imagination, Vinho Verdes are fruity, fresh, and perfetc for anyone getting on board the Natural Wine phenomenon. These aren’t your heavy, dry Portuguese classics - they’re fun, highly drinkable, and very, very affordable. malolactic fermentation taking place in the bottle. In winemaking this is usually considered a wine fault but Vinho Verde producers found that consumers liked the slightly fizzy nature.
WHY IS IT AWESOME?
The vast majority of Vinho Verde produced is white wine, which are known for their low alcohol content, vibrant fruitiness, and extremely tannic tastiness. They are gorgeous wines that pair extraordinarily well with food, which is why they are often served as a table wine at many restaurants and bars. Vinho Verde wines are always fresh and youthful tasting, offering a delightful hint of spritz. White Vinhos Verdes are often blends of different grapes, but bottlings from single grape varieties such as Alvarinho and Loureiro can be found. These single varietal bottles are by far the best Vinho Verde that you’ll find. Alvarinho displays tropical aromas and an overall citrus vibe whereas Loureiro is more floral, and also highly acidic.
Stylistically the whites display apple/pear and citrus flavors and range from 9 to 12% in alcohol content. Vinho Verde rosés offer aromas of red fruits. Red wines from Vinho Verde offer juicy red fruits with notes of fresh green herbs and also range from 8.5 to 11% in alcohol content. Vinhão, Borraçal and Espadeiro are red grapes commonly used in their production. It needs to be said here that Vinho Verde is cheap. Stunningly cheap. A carafe never cost me more than 5 euros, and a bottle at any restaurant was always between 5 and 10 euros, which is outstanding given that we pay $60 AUD for the most average chardonnay back in Australia. Given this, Vinho Verde is the best value wine that I’m yet to come upon in Europe.
On that note, wanna read about our guide to the best wine bars in Portugal? Read this post on the topic here.
where to get it
If you’re coming to Portugal, your first stop should be to actually visit the Vinho Verde region, and check out a few of the wineries up there. The region is dominated by small producers; many of whom grow the wines above existing vegetable gardens, adding the beautiful terroir. If you’re heading to the region, consider checking out the towns of Valença do Minho, Viana do Castelo, Monção & Melgaço and Vieira do Minho. You can read more about this route here.
However, if you aren’t lucky enough to have time to actually go to the region itself, you’re in luck (I didn’t have time). Pretty well every bar, pub and restaurant in Portugal serves Vinho Verde by the glass, carafe or bottle. My personal picks for where to get it are as follows;
Porto: Wine Quay Bar, Capela Incomumm, Prova
Coimbra: Kabra Velha
Any questions, comments or ideas? Let me know in the comments below!