Setúbal Peninsula (also known as Península de Setúbal) is the Portuguese wine region immediately southeast of Lisbon, across the Tejo estuary. The Terroir in the area ranges from sandy coastal plains to the craggy, limestone-rich Serra Arribida hills. The area is known for its Dry red wines made from Castelão, and for its fortified wines and Sweet Moscatel de Setúbal.
The wines produced here are made under three titles: two DOCs, Palmela and Setúbal, and one IGP.
The IGP (formerly VR, or Vinho Regional) has been officially named "Peninsula de Setúbal" since 2008, but before that was known as VR Terras do Sado, meaning "lands of the river Sado". The Sado is one of Portugal's major rivers, and flows North from the Caldeirão hills to Setúbal city, on the southern edge of the eponymous peninsula.
The Setúbal Peninsula's two DOC titles cover a similar area, but encompass different styles of wine. Palmela covers both the sandy plains and the hills, while Setúbal covers the land on the hills.
The Castelão Grape which comprises the majority of Palmela wines performs admirably on the dry, sandy soils, which is one of the few terroirs in Portugal where it can reach Full ripeness. Other Portuguese and international varieties like Cabernet Sauvignon, Touriga Nacional and Syrah are planted on the slopes hills.
The other DOC covering the peninsula, Setúbal, is for sweet fortified wines made from Muscat of Alexandria, here known as Moscatel de Setúbal. These are made slightly differently from Portugal's most famous fortified wine, Port, in that leftover grape skins are added to the wine after Mutage.
In Portugal, it is one of the most planted white grape varieties, and we have found it to be very similar to the torrontés grown in Spain (Galicia). It can be found in Australia and South Africa, but is almost unknown in France.
André Hugel was an 11th generation member of Famille Hugel, one of the region’s most influential and highly-regarded wine families. The Hugel family settled in the town of Riquewihr, located in the heart of Alsace, all the way back in 1639. André ran Famille Hugel along with his brothers, Jean and Georges, as it developed into one of the world’s top producers. It owns 30 hectares (ha) of prime plots in the Haut-Rhin area, half of which are classified as Grand Cru, and it buys grapes from a furth ...
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Having joined Domaine Barons de Rothschild in 1999, Congé has since held the role of oenologist and wine operations manager across Château Lafite Rothschild and Château Duhart Milon for over 22 years. He has now been appointed MD of Saint-Estèphe fourth growth Château Lafon-Rochet. He takes on his new role with immediate effect. Congé will work closely with Emmanuel Cruse, director of Vignobles Cruse-Lorenzetti, which acquired Château Lafon-Rochet from the Tesseron family last year. The appoint ...
