
Festa and the future of wine tastings
Last weekend a landmark wine festival, Festa, opened its doors for a celebration of Portuguese wine in London’s Tabacco Dock.
Read more...Last weekend a landmark wine festival, Festa, opened its doors for a celebration of Portuguese wine in London’s Tabacco Dock.
Read more...Paul Symington has been awarded a CMG (Companion of the Order of St. Michael and St. George) in The Queen’s Birthday Honours List, published 2 June, for services to UK/Portugal relations and social, environmental sustainability in the Douro.
Read more...It is known as Arribes del Duero in Spanish, and Arribas Do Douro in Portuguese, but now Iberian producers in this cross-frontier wine region have joined forces to create Arribaes, a new brand of low-intervention fine wines.
Read more...Oz Clarke, the wine writer and presenter, waxed lyrical about the wonders of Portuguese wine during a masterclass on Tuesday, explaining to the audience why the on-trade should sit up and take notice.
Read more...A ground-breaking celebration of Portuguese wine, gastronomy and culture, will be held at Tobacco Dock, in Wapping, London, from June 24-25. The inaugural edition of FESTA will pay tribute to festivals, which are at the heart of traditional Portuguese culture.
Read more...Port company the Sogevinus group has announced the launch of four classic Vintage Ports, one from each of its brands: Kopke, Burmester, Cálem and Barros.
Read more...Leading importer Justerini & Brooks will distribute three niche Portuguese wine brands in the UK, in anticipation of rising consumer demand.
Read more...London’s Tobacco Dock will host an inaugural consumer-led festival in June, dedicated to Portugal’s wine, gastronomy, music and arts. The event is set to coincide with the Festa de São João, a famous event within Porto’s calendar where thousands travel to the city and surrounding neighbourhoods to celebrate Porto's patron saint, John the Baptist.
Read more...UK importer Hatch Mansfield has expanded its portfolio with the addition of Portuguese wine brand Esporão.
Read more...Jacopo Mazzeo looks at what regions such as the Douro and Jerez are doing to survive in a market increasingly hostile to fortified wines and explores whether these efforts are effective. Port, for instance, is heading in two diametrically opposed directions: simplification and (extra) premiumisation, with new categories that span from youth-friendly RTDs to Tawny 50yo and White 50yo. Sherry meanwhile, has just changed a number of its regulations and now embraces unfortified wine.
Read more...The Fladgate Partnership has welcomed the return of normal weather conditions in the Douro, with a mild summer in 2021 allowing for differentiated ripening across vineyards and lending “flavour, elegance and natural acidity to the grapes”.
Read more...The UK remained the third biggest destination for Portuguese wine in the first half of 2021 in value terms, according to new export data released by Wines of Portugal.
Read more...Cockburn’s has produced a trio of experimental ports under the name Tails of the Unexpected.
Read more...Mentzendorff has taken on historic Alentejan brand Cartuxa, one of the oldest brands in Portugal.
Read more...Wines of Portugal is reportting sales uplift of +286% in volume and +300% in value at participating retailers that were specially selected for June’s month-long promotion.
Read more...Symington Family Estates has announced that it has bottled six quinta vintage Ports from 2019, of which two will be released en primeur – Quinta do Vesúvio and Dow’s Quinta da Senhora da Ribeira.
Read more...The Covid-19 pandemic has added fuel to a trend among regular Portuguese wine drinkers for more expensive wines, according to the latest Portugal Wine Landscapes 2021 report from Wine Intelligence.
Read more...Port sales to the UK increased by 11.4% in volume and 2.8% in value in 2020, according to the Port and Douro Wines Institute (IVDP).
Read more...Ines Salpico reports on how the country’s winemakers are finally finding a balance between tradition and modernity
Read more...The UK remains at the forefront of the premium Port category, with sales of late-bottled vintage (LBV), quality white Port, aged tawnies, single vineyard and classic vintage ports, all remaining resilient through Covid. A nation of consumers stuck at home, looking to indulge, appears to have been largely positive for the quality end of UK Port sales. Built on a long-standing relationship with the UK, sales at Symington Family Estates are up 10% by value and 9% by volume compared with this time last year.
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