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Food & Drink in the Algarve, Portugal
what to drink during your stay in the Algarve
The Wines of Portugal - Porto
Bom Dia
 My recent trip to Porto, and more about this below, coincided with confirmation from the Trade Office in London that we can announce some dates for you to come along to consumer shows around the country and taste Portuguese wines with us. So if you are living, or simply visiting, in or around the following areas do come along and say `Bom Dia' and of course enjoy and perhaps discover some great Portuguese wines.
Torquay, Devon; Riviera Centre 20th & 21st October
Brighton, Sussex; Brighton Centre 27th & 28th October
Cardiff, S Wales; Cardiff International Arena 8th & 9th December
You will have to pay a small fee to get into the actual event but our tastings, 4 each day, are all completely free - and you can come to as many as you like! If you would like any more information, just email me at wineeducators@aol.com or call us on 01327 354480.
If you can't make it along to any of them, but do try, there will be a report on all the events in a future article
 So I did have the always great pleasure of returning to Porto recently, partly for a meeting which might just mean we can announce some very exciting news in a future newsletter for you lovers of all things Portugal. Watch this space!
I was able to enjoy the city during my stay and thought that I would share a few of the experiences with you.
Having arrived, from home in Palma with Air Berlin; yes, I know that's a very strange combination (flight from Spain to Portugal on a German airline and the languages being German & English!) but one that works very well for me and my travelling needs, my first evening was a very pleasant interlude at the atmospheric Restaurant Terra in Foz (email: email@restauranteterra.com) with the equally lovely PR Manager of Sogrape to discuss the opportunities for their wide & diverse range of wines within our programmes. This included enjoying a bottle of the very same Duque de Viseu (2002 vintage) that I had written about a few days earlier for last month's newsletter! It really went well with the food - which was also really good.
 A starter of crepe, `shrimp' & spinach and one of superb octopus carpaccio with a great sauce of basil, olive oil & onion, was accompanied by a glass of my great love, Vinho Verde, from the Quinta de Azeveda, which even though being 2004 and not the 2006 as listed, was drinking well.
(By the way, if you are passing through Porto airport the duty free has both these wines - respectively at €6.50 & €4.40. I also picked up a bottle here of Sandeman Apitiv White Port at €9.40)
 I just had to have the `Portuguese game sausage', Alheiro while my companion had monkfish (Tamboril) but cooked in red wine which strangely was in fact Chianti! Dessert was simply not possible but I was forced to partake in a (chilled) glass of Sandeman Vau Vintage 2000 (UK stockist - Stevens Garnier, Oxford; tel: 01865 263300 or email: wine@stevensgarnier.co.uk) which was drinking superbly. Watch out for the 2003 soon too; always a vintage wine for drinking young.
By the way the same restaurant has a very authentic sushi bar downstairs and a sister restaurant across the road. A real plus mark for the restaurant was  there use of excellent Schott-Zwiesel wine glasses including the versatile Sensus for the Port.
I had some time after my morning meeting to stroll both sides of the Douro from São Francisco Church over to Gaia, which meant walking across the emblematic bridge; a great experience and view.
The next day's tasting included a couple more examples of VV and an excellent Rosé from Vinha do Defesa. The evening just had to be one spent on the Cais de Gaia where I had earlier spotted, and then had confirmed as very good by my hotel, Adega Transmontana (who again also happen to have another restaurant round the corner). This was just a great experience; email: alberto.lopes-865@clix.pt
 My table here was already laid out for me with an array of `petiscos'; this included hams, cheeses, olives & white anchovies. I think I ate the portion for 4 people while I thought about the choices from the menu! This itself is a combination of tapas, raciones & main courses, and includes a section of `on the plank' dishes! I settled, partly on my waiter's recommendations, for a ½ (?) portion of a `cassoulet' - broad beans, smoked ham & chorizo and a plate of very garlic shrimps. All was very good but the funny story was the wine. Of course I wanted some red to accompany these last two dishes but as I had to work the next day, asked my waiter if they had any ½ bottles of red. Sim, of course! Expecting him to reappear with a wine list, I was surprised when in fact he just brought me a bottle, left it on the table and said that I could just drink half of it! Turned out most of the restaurant were drinking this, the house wine - Lopes Douro from the Port house of Poças. And yes, I did stick to just the half!
 Staying on the wine theme of the restaurant, the place became full around 9 o'clock and a queue formed; obviously popular and you might want to book in advance. Uniquely, as there is simply nowhere inside the wait, the latecomers were asked to wait outside where they were all served a glass of White Port (Poças, I assume)!
Talking of hotels, I always try to stay in the Sol Melia group; experience has shown me they are always good at the very least, often very good indeed, and extremely good value with friendly & very helpful staff; other hotels take note! In Porto, the Melia Gaia Porto is no exception and one to try if you are there.
Until next month, when I am planning on taking that look at Portugal's wine representation in the independent and specialist sectors.
 Martin
Wine Educators International
www.wine-educators.com
A reminder of other forthcoming events featuring Portugal:
7th to 9th and 23rd to 25th November - Taste Portuguese wines at our Residential Wine & Food Courses at Denman College, Abingdon, Oxfordshire.
If you would like to know more about Portuguese Food and Drink, why don't you dip into our Restaurants in the Algarve section and our series of articles on Portuguese Wines and Ports. We also feature some Traditional Portuguese Recipes and a glossary of useful Portuguese food & drink words and phrases
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