Algarve food and drink – Wine
Surely we talked about Algarve wine only a few days ago, but in that article we took a generalized look at the history and some geographical influences that make Algarve wine what it is, today we’ll look at it more from the point of view of its impact on the traditional culture of the place, especially the culinary culture.
Benefiting from the Mediterranean climate, traditional grape varieties, low level of acidity and lots and lots of sun, result in some very high alcohol drinks and as such the wines and brandies of the Algarve have become a very important part of the entire region’s gastronomic traditions.
The current Algarve wine-growing region is very clearly divided between Lagos, Portimao, Lagoa, Albufeira and Tavira – these are places that grow both traditional, introduced vines as well as create new ones, such as the one produced by Sir Cliff Richard.
This creates a very wide variety of different wines, however even so, the ones that are usually recommended to accompany the plethora of delicious Algarve dishes are the wines that originate from Albufeira, Tavira and Portimao, respectively Vida Nova, Balsa and Alvor Vinho Regional Algarve or Tapada da Torre. When it comes to digesting the Algarve traditional sweets and desserts, the Convento de Arade table wine is most recommended.
As we said earlier Algarve wines come in different shades, they can be table wines, sweet wines, however regardless of their type they are regarded as being an essential contributor towards a very satisfying meal. But the only way of ending a traditional Algarve meal is with a taste of medronho – which is made from arbutus berries – or some other traditional liqueur of the region made with fruit and honey.
The hills around Monchique are the region where this particular drink has its most special and unique taste. It’s distilled in copper stills according to age-old ancestral methods and it is usually sipped by men sitting around a table.
We’ll continue talking about this subject in a future article, keep in mind to employ our Algarve car rental services while on your trip to the Algarve.
