The region of Alentejo used to be best known for corks. It is said that over half the world’s corks are from Portugal, and of these nearly all are from trees in Alentejo. Since the 1970s the region has also produced some interesting wine. Its best-known firm, Herdade do Esporão, hit form in the 1990s. Since then a combination of sound investment and the gifts of an Australian winemaker named David Baverstock have taken it from strength to strength.

This Reserva is the estate’s flagship wine. It has a bright, appealing nose of strawberries and tulips. On the palate it is robust and slightly tart, with a strong presence of oak. It is fiercely strong (14.5%), and while not perfectly balanced, it is straightforwardly enjoyable, particularly with the right food: steak or venison would go perfectly. $17 in the US, $8 in the UK. Read the rest of this entry »

“Good place, Portugal,” said a colleague recently. “I’m thinking of moving there.”

“Oh? Why?”

“Weather’s OK. Food’s good. So’s the wine.”

That last bit made me perk up. It was over twenty years since I had drunk anything Portuguese, but I could recall the last bottle clearly: an indifferent mass-market rosé. Half-way through it I was struck down by a kidney stone. The pain was shattering. For twenty minutes I writhed on the carpet, yelping like a dog and spewing out rosé-flavoured vomit. Finally an ambulance carted me off to hospital.
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