A happy return

Exactly a year after our first buyers’ trip to the Setúbal peninsula, we’re back, with a new group of merchants but a similar mission. We know that there are wines and wineries here that are a perfect fit for independents, and we intend to unearth them.

The region is just south of Lisbon, accessed from the Portuguese capital via the 17km Vasco da Gama bridge, one of the longest in Europe, which spans the vast Tagus estuary. It’s one of three bodies of water that have an influence on the local climate, the others being the Sado river to the south, and the Atlantic to the west. This is a hot corner of Europe, to be sure, and the peninsula’s wine growers are grateful for the moderating oceanic influence.

We begin our visit with some facts and figures.

About 80% of the region is comprised of ancient sandy plains with low water retention, we are told, which suits the red varieties nicely. The rolling limestone hills to the west are home mainly to white grapes, with Moscatel de Setúbal the stand-out variety. Overall about 65% of the peninsula’s production is red wine, 30% white, and 5% fortified.

Understanding Setúbal peninsula’s appellation system is pretty easy. The Setúbal PDO itself, dating back to 1907, is just for fortified wines. Most of these are Moscatel de Setúbal (the local variant of Muscat of Alexandria) but in the past 30 years the pink-hued, more perfumed Moscatel Roxo has been enjoying something of a comeback. Both macerate for at least six months on their skins before fermentation is stopped with brandy. Moscatel de Setúbal must then age for at least 18 months in barrel, and Moscatel Roxo for at least twice that time. Locals drink these wines as aperitifs and digestifs, rather than during meals, though over the course of our visit we prove that they can work with cheeses and desserts too.

Then there’s the Palmela DO, taking its name from the town just north of the port city of Setúbal. It’s mostly associated with red wines, which must have a minimum of two-thirds of Castelão in the blend, and may also contain varieties such as Trincadeira, Touriga Nacional and Alicante Bouschet.

The rules for whites are more relaxed. The main varieties are Fernão Pires, Moscatel and Arinto and there’s no specified minimum quantity for any of them.

Finally, we have the Peninsula de Setúbal PGI, which approves a mind-blowing 150-plus varieties in red, white, rosé and fortified styles. It’s under this banner that many winemakers have most of their fun, and we’re about to join them for some of it.

Six producers are presenting their wines at a walk-around tasting, giving us chance to cover a lot of ground quickly. There are some treats in store, such as a minerally Verdelho from Serenada with a delicious citrus-pith bite; an exotic and very rare unfortified Roxo from the Adega de Palmela co-operative; and a juicy, fresh, 100% Castelão from Herdade de Cebolal made using carbonic maceration and served lightly chilled.

Sangue Real is pouring Colheita Tardia Moscatel, the only botrytised wine we encounter, while Cadeado Wines’ highlights include an unoaked Aragonês/ Castelão/Syrah blend with a peppery kick.

José Mota Capitão of Herdade de Portocarro happily abandoned a career as an architect to become a winemaker. Revelling in his reputation for making wines that either delight or dismay, he names his range after buses and native American chiefs and is apparently having a crack at growing Sangiovese. He’s showing a Tinta Roriz/Touriga Nacional/Cabernet Sauvignon blend that he delights in telling us will “explode” in our mouths. It does, in a good way.

Our first visit is to José Maria da Fonseca, a sixth-generation family producer whose cellar, dating back to 1775, is home to some bats who could do without our intrusion. The red wines have a pleasant rusticity and there’s an almost tropical note to some of the whites. All are underpinned by a well-judged acidity.

Our next stop is Palmela Wine Company, not exactly a co-operative but a private company owned by small producers. The winemaker is Filipe Cardoso, whose main job is running Quinta do Piloto. One of the highlights is Serra Mãe Reserva, a 100% Arinto which has a delicious salty tang.

We try a spicy, unfiltered 2020 Castelão. “For me it’s always the variety of Setúbal. We express it very differently to other regions,” Cardoso says. The market may have a slight downer on oak, but Cardoso is a master at deploying it sensitively. “Some wines need a little micro-oxygenation to polish the tannins,” he maintains.

Day two begins with a visit to Fernão Pó, where winemaker João Palhoça explains at length the meticulous cleaning regime involved for his treasured concrete tanks. It sounds like a full-time job in itself.

Palhoça likes to “season” his Castelão with other varieties. Cabernet Sauvignon proved too dominant for his taste, so he prefers Touriga Nacional and Tannat.

A natural showman, Palhoça captivates the group as he talks about some of his more experimental wines, such as ASF Oaked 2017, a blend of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon with a barrel of Syrah also in the mix for good measure. It’s a one-off wine, he says, that simply tells the story of a difficult vintage. There’ll be other stories to tell in future years.

We then call in at Filipe Palhoça winery, which produces 1m litres of wine a year but has plenty in its range to interest importers looking for lower-volume wines. We try impressive rosés: one made with Castelão, which has an appealing Atlantic freshness, and another made with Roxo. It has notes of passion fruit and roses and is a hit with Lisbon restaurateurs.

The afternoon shift starts with a visit to the Pegões co-operative, which has capped its membership at 100 growers –apparently there’s no shortage of farmers willing to sign up. Setúbal peninsula’s white blends are among its hidden treasures, with a simple drinkability and mineral freshness that seldom drifts towards blandness. Pegões epitomises the art, and is achieving good things with Fernão Pires, Arinto and Verdelho, and even a little Antão Vaz.

Last stop of the day is Espirra, where 32 of the 36 hectares of sandy vineyards are devoted to Castelão. We’re briefly distracted by the resident peacocks before winemaker Ana Varandas leads us through the 40-year-old ungrafted vines. Heat damage is a real challenge in this part of Portugal, we’ve been hearing, and Varandas confirms that already 20% of this year’s fruit has been reduced to raisins. The grapes that do survive the blazing summer will be hand-picked and foot-trodden.

It’s a pleasure to experience the wines over dinner. A tomato-tinged rosé (85% Castelão, 15% Aragonês) is a delight with our gazpacho, while the red blend of Alicante Bouschet, Aragonês and Touriga Nacional has the acidity to work perfectly with the range of cheeses in front of us.

Our final morning includes a visit to Venâncio da Costa Lima. It’s famous for its fortified Moscatel – “the pride of the winery” – which has picked up several accolades in the Muscats du Monde competition. We start with some well-crafted Verdelho and Castelão wines and then the fortifieds are revealed.

There’s a sure-footedness about these wines that can’t fail to impress. We detect a host of flavours and aromas, including tea, herbs and honey, even in the least expensive wines. We finish on a 1983 Moscatel de Setúbal that stops us in our tracks with its deep, concentrated prune notes and amazing persistence.

We also call in to see Filipe Cardoso, this time at his family winery Quinta do Piloto. Cardoso has mastered all the classic styles of the Setúbal peninsula but seems to gravitate towards underdog varieties, and has a restless urge to experiment.

He makes a fresh, salty white with 100% Síria, a grape only found in small pockets of the region: he likes it so much that he’s just planted another hectare. He also roots for Roxo, preferring it to the more popular Moscatel de Setúbal variant, and has a cult following for his unfortified style.

His sideline Trois project, involving two friends, produces a superb Alfrocheiro which is designed to be served chilled and has an unmistakable aroma of rhubarb.

Before we leave, we’re given a sneak preview of the Moscatel de Setúbal wines that are currently ageing in rum, tequila and Scotch whisky barrels, due for release next year. They’re tasting spicy, herbal and vegetal, in that order, and it’s anyone’s guess if they’ll be deemed “typical” enough for PDO approval. Cardoso might have to declassify, he admits. But you sense that won’t take any of the fun away, either for him, or for those lucky enough to get their hands on the bottles.