In early December 2024, London hosted a unique event: Wines of Alentejo, Battle of Icons. This gathering brought together 18 people from the trade and press to explore and celebrate the exceptional wines of Alentejo, one of Portugal’s most renowned southern wine regions.
The event focused on identifying and highlighting wines poised to become ‘Icons’, top-tier examples of Alentejo’s winemaking excellence. By spotlighting these soon-to-be Icons, Wines of Alentejo, Battle of Icons also aimed to enhance the reputation and recognition of Alentejo wines.
The event began with a refreshing, sparkling Vinha D’Ervideira. However, the main focus of the evening was pairing food with nine blind-tasted wines from the region, divided into three flights of three wines each, each paired with a carefully selected canapé.
The wines had been chosen by Rodolfo Tristão, one of Portugal’s leading sommeliers and a former president of the Association of Portuguese Sommeliers. Throughout the tasting, Rodolfo and Paula Nunes from the Alentejo Regional Wine Growing Commission (CVRA) provided brief descriptions of the wines as they were tasted, without revealing the brands or producers.
For each flight, we were asked to select our favourite wine without knowing its identity. Once preferences were submitted by smartphone, the wines were revealed and the most favoured wine from each flight was crowned a new Icon. The three chosen Icons were then retasted to determine an overall winner of the evening.
In addition to identifying the Icons, we were encouraged to consider whether any of the wines bore similarities to the style of well-known international wines, a topic I will explore in greater detail later.
As it turned out, the wines I voted for in every flight were the ones that emerged as winners at each stage, as well as in the final selection:
Reserva do Comendador Adega Mayor 2022 emerged as the winner of the whites flight. Made from a blend of Antão Vaz, Viognier and Verdelho grapes, this wine stood out with its greatly aromatic and floral profile. Tropical notes added depth and vibrancy, making it a perfect match for the smoked salmon blini. Its character could be likened to a toned-down and more delicate version of a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc, but showcasing finesse and elegance. Available from Atlantico UK.
Chão dos Eremitas Moreto Fita Preta 2022 emerged as the winner of the lighter-style red flight. This wine showcased ripe red fruit and exceptional aromatics, made from Moreto, a grape variety that is a cross between Sarigo and Alfrocheiro Preto, sourced in this case from 50-year-old vines. Fresh, fruity, and well balanced, it offered a character reminiscent of a USA Pinot Noir, with a subtle earthiness adding depth. Notably, it also proved to be the best of the three wines with food. Available from Swig Wines.
Abegoaria dos Frades Moreto 2022 claimed victory in the heavier reds flight. Coming from Central Alentejo, specifically the Granja-Amareleja sub-region, this wine showcased the versatility of the Moreto grape. Fuller-bodied than the previous flight, it featured darker fruit notes and stood out as the smoothest and most complex of the three. Its richness and layered profile made it a winner in this category.
The overall winner of the evening was the Chão dos Eremitas Moreto Fita Preta 2022, a great example of innovation driving exceptional winemaking in Alentejo. This wine is the brainchild of António Maçanita, widely regarded as one of Portugal’s most dynamic young winemakers. Known for his non-conformist and innovative approach, António was named Winemaker of the Year in 2018 by Revista de Vinhos magazine.
As co-owner of FitaPreta with David Booth, an English viticulture consultant, António represents a new generation of winemakers in Alentejo who are trying to adapt to the challenges of climate change in a region that often endures 45°C heat. I researched a bit more and found that, António has embraced innovation not to follow recent trends but to revive the historical essence of Alentejo winemaking. Historically, the region produced a more nuanced and diverse variety of wines and António has sought to recover these traditions, moving away from the modern preference for full-bodied, fruit-forward styles.
Instead, his wines, including the Chão dos Eremitas Moreto FitaPreta 2022, express a near-forgotten Alentejo, showcasing the inherent characteristics of the grape varieties and terroir. His approach has already gained acclaim, with the 2019 vintage of this wine earning an impressive 97 points from Robert Parker. The growing recognition of wines like this has elevated them, with prices reflecting their quality and rarity, €33 which is relatively high for Portugal.
The closest contest of the evening was in the heavier reds flight, where two wines drew, and as far as I could tell, the winner was decided by just one vote. While the winners of the whites and lighter reds really stood out as exceptional, memorable and inspired me to think more broadly about Alentejo wines and consider them as Icons, the heavier reds felt less differentiated and jointly typical of the region. Though very enjoyable, of undoubted quality and great wines, I and some others thought they did not particularly distinguish themselves in any unique way, as also evidenced by the very close scoring. Perhaps they were all icons as they were all typical. At the recent Wines of Portugal tasting, I remember encountering Alentejo wines of perhaps greater uniqueness in this category, such as Herdade do Rocim Alicante Bouschet. This raises the question for this category, for a wine to be an ‘Icon,’ does it need to be really unique and memorable or should it have the very best typicity?
During the event, we were asked to consider which wines reminded us of other international varieties or regions. This approach aimed to provide valuable marketing insights, allowing Alentejo wines to be promoted with the logic of “if you like this, then you might like that.”
This highlights a challenge for Alentejo wines. The growing consumer preference to categorise wines by grape variety, reflected in supermarket shelves and buying habits, means that exceptional wines from Alentejo, made with lesser-known native grapes, risk being overlooked in favour of more familiar options.
On the positive side, these wines are not only excellent but also incredibly varied and, in many but not all cases, relatively affordable. This presents an opportunity for importers and indeed consumers willing to look beyond the familiar and explore the unique offerings of this rich and diverse region.
