Humus Organic Wines: Going Back to the Basics

It’s easy to get swept away by beautiful places and fascinating stories in the world of wine. And I will be the first to admit (and have already admitted) that that’s what makes me tick, marvel and dream. But it’s not all about stories (I’ve got my logical hat on today). Wine is very much…

Wine and the art of living: Casal Figueira

About an hour north of Lisbon, there in the small Portuguese town called Vermelha. A small town with a dozen streets, a couple cafes and a few churches, Vermelha is hidden in a beautiful landscape of lush green vineyards with a splendid backdrop of the Serra de Montejunto. Somewhere in Vermelha there is a small…

Heading south but keeping cool: Herdade de Cebolal

“I used to say that our family’s DNA has a special mark: to make wines, to be winemakers,” Isabel Mota Capitão, 4th generation winemaker from Herdade de Cebolal, told me while we strolled through the estate’s vineyards in southern Portugal. Her son and chief winemaker, Luís Mota Capitão, was busy in the winery when I…

Lisbon town: Exploring Pintarola wines

“Tenho em mim, todos os sonhos do mundo” — Fernando Pessoa (Within me, I have all the dreams in the world) Lisbon. Lisboa, a city that has for centuries captured the hearts of many a writer, poet and traveller. With its incredible architecture, sometimes raw and ruined and other times polished and clean, the tiny…

Short but sweet: A Quick Visit to Herdade do Mouchão

After Cortes de Cima, I did something I have never really done before: I drove aimless through the countryside with no clear destination at all. I hadn’t booked a place to sleep for the night and the evening would be fast approaching but despite this (and surely because of it) I felt a huge sense…