Portugal: Not Yet Named Wine Company & VineVinu, Vinho Verde 2024

Grape varieties: Loureiro, Alvarinho (the Portuguese name for Albariño) and Arinto. 12.5% alcohol.

Loureiro and Arinto are both indigenous Portuguese varieties. The Arinto, around 25% of the blend, was aged in barrel - it brings texture and complexity to the blend.

Vinho Verde is a region in the far north-west of Portugal, bounded to the north by the Minho river and bordering Spain's Galicia region, while it stretches along the Atlantic coast as far as the city of Porto to the south.

The Atlantic has a strong influence here, the landscape is verdant and lush thanks to cool temperatures and abundant rainfall.

There is some confusion as to the origins of the region's name, with some believing that the 'Verde' (green) designation is due to the acidity and freshness of the region's wine, in the sense of unripe fruit or 'green wine', while others say that the name relates to the region being very rich in vegetation and therefore very green, even in the summer months. 

The wine is made by Alex Brogan and Manuel Cerdeira, who both studied winemaking alongside me at Plumpton College and in 2024 established the 'Not Yet Named Wine Company' with the ambition to partner with quality producers to make wine all over the world. Not Yet Named members vote on each stage of the winemaking process which the company refer to as "democratic winemaking."

Alex is from Manchester and speaks Portuguese while Manuel was born and bred in Vinho Verde and hails from a winemaking family who own both Soalheiro (considered by many to be the region's finest producer) and VineVinu, the latter run by Manuel and his father Luis.

VineVinu specialises in the region's coastal vineyards, from which this wine originates. 

This is a serious wine that needs a little time in the glass to reveal itself and should be drunk lightly chilled rather than fridge-cold.

Some may know Vinho Verde as very light and with a 'spritz' - a ubiquitous style in the region - but style-wise this has much more in common with a top quality, saline, tensile Spanish Albariño.

An uplifting, generous wine that unravels in the glass, gaining depth and complexity on each pour!

Food Pairing:

A perfect wine for seafood, but also grilled white meats, salads, light pasta dishes, pea risotto, asparagus, young goat's cheese, mozzarella or burrata, Thai, Japanese and Chinese dishes, as well as Indian fish curries. Great with Piri-Piri Prawns. And of course with sardines!