I’m currently traipsing around Australia and was very interested to meet a winemaker who was excited about the new section of his vineyard that he had planted with grapes like Touriga Nacional, Tinto Roriz, and others that he planned to use to make a dry red wine in the style of those made in Portugal.

Such wines (when they are good) are currently some of the best value red wines on the market today, which is why if I weren’t in Australia I would be attending the Wines of Portugal Tasting coming up on April 5th.

Known primarily for producing the sweet fortified Ports that are famous the world over, the Douro region of Portugal has also been producing dry red wines from a number of indigenous grape varieties since the 1950s and some of these wines have garnered much acclaim in recent years. The wines, when well made — and there are certainly still a lot of unremarkable ones — are wonderfully complex and savory, with red fruits and good acidity that make them great matches for many different foods.

Beyond the Duoro, Portugal offers a wide range of wines from its diverse regions including the brisk white Vinho Verde, the reds of the Barraida region, and more. This year’s Wines of Portugal tasting will include roughly 30 producers from these varying regions showcasing more than 100 different wines. It’s not a huge tasting, but it offers a wide variety of wines and should be manageable for someone interested in seriously learning about the different styles and varieties of wines available.

Full disclosure: Wines of Portugal is a paid advertiser on Vinography.

Wines of Portugal Tasting
Monday, April 5th, 2010
5:00 PM – 8:00 PM
Westin St. Francis Hotel
32nd Floor
450 Powell Street
San Francisco, CA 94110

Tickets are $35 if purchased in advance online. Any remaining tickets will be sold at the door for $50, so get yours ahead of time.