Country Partner: Visit Portugal Discover the wines of Alentejo Head little more than an hour inland from Lisbon and you


are enveloped in the quiet charm of the Alentejo, the hidden Portugal. Here you’ll come across some of the planet’s most astonishing wines, created in eye-catching wineries


I


n many respects, the Alentejo seems to have it all, it’s just a well-kept secret. It accounts for one third of Portugal’s land mass, but has only 6% of the population - one of Europe’s


most sparsely populated regions. The magnificent unspoilt landscapes are carpeted with wild


flowers in spring and stretch to the horizon, dotted with cork oak, olive trees, eucalyptus and swathes of vines. The region boasts charming white washed villages and hilltop castles, exquisite cathedrals and churches and countless UNESCO World Heritage sites. Mysterious standing stones, many pre-dating Stonehenge, are dotted across the region – you’ll generally have them to yourself at sunset. Add to that a liberal sprinkling of astonishing Roman remains, cultural gems like Évora and Monsaraz and the Dark Sky Alqueva Reserve – the world’s first Starlight Tourism Destination and it’s easy to see the appeal of this unhurried, stress-free region. Above all, the Alentejo is the country’s gastronomic soul and its wine is its crowning glory.


A unique wine heritage


Winemaking in the Alentejo can be traced back to Roman times. Today the traditional is celebrated and the modern is embraced, with state-of-the-art flagship wineries rubbing shoulders with traditional producers to create truly sensational wines that are making experts around the world sit up and take notice.


" The Alentejo is the


country’s gastronomic sou & is wine is is crowning glory


64 December 2019


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