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Article: DINING STYLE: PORTUGUESE COUNTRY WINES - PART 2: ALENTEJO.(Features)
- Article from:
- The Birmingham Post (England)
- Article date:
- February 23, 2005
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2005 Birmingham Post & Mail Ltd. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Byline: CLIVE PLATMAN
In many ways, Alentejo is Portugal's answer to the New World. It is a land of wide open plains and gentle rolling hills, scattered with occasional olive and cork groves. Sparsely populated, the agricultural heritage is sheep and cereals.
Located about 120 kilometres east of Lisbon, the climate is arid and continental, with hot summers and cold winters. It's ideal for producing fullbodied fruity red wines, but the absence of rainfall makes the use of irrigation essential for achieving perfectly ripened fruit.
This region, above ...