09/06/2026
A once in a lifetime tasting experience at Apoteck Wine Bar in Porto. Four iconic reds from four distinct Portuguese regions illustrate the power and finesse of Portuguese wine making. All four are made with traditional Portuguese winemaking techniques including foot stomping, fermentation in open lagares or concrete vats, long bottle-aging before release and sparing use of new oak barrels. All four from tiny producers who release just a few thousand bottles a year. I can’t do justice to all four but I will highlight one: a 1967 vintage Collares from Vuiva Jose da Silva. Collares is a coastal region where grapes grown in sandy soil produce high acid low alcohol wine that only show its brilliance after decades of aging. This wine was almost 60 years old but showed fruit and intensity of a youngster. The other three were also amazing, all from different regions, all showing amazing fruit intensity and persistent aromatics. I’m truly in heaven.
