ADEGAMÃE, A PLACE FOR WINE TO GLOW

In Torres Vedras an exceptional and innovative winery leads the way to a new world of wine production in Portugal

The trip to the winery, the most public secret of Ventosa

It will take you some 30 minutes to go from Lisbon to the soft hills of Torres Vedras, a generous piece of fertile land where a serious investment in wine production has been made in recent years with both national and international new castes embracing the soil. There is where some of the most original wines in Portugal are made, out of vibrant fruit, minerality and the inevitable touch of salinity, packed with personality.

Of course not all about the place moves around wine, for Torres Vedras is rich and artistic patrimony and natural beauty, with different places to visit and taste good wine. But AdegaMãe is more than just another of those places: it’s a mandatory stop. AdegaMãe is a winery, a research laboratory, a triumph of the best wine tourism and gastronomy can provide and a serious bet on innovation beyond comparison in this country. And it can all be found at Quinta da Archeira, by Ventosa.

The name has something of a celebration in its double meaning. An homage to the family matriarch Manuela Alves and a salute to the full cycle of creation between vineyard, winery, the fruit and the great wine that comes from it all.

AdegaMãe, or what to see and feel in a unique place

As soon as you arrive, the experience starts when among the vineyards you see the amazing building of AdegaMãe, modern and clean lines designed as a gigantic balcony to the whole property. The architect Pedro Mateus says he took inspiration from the continuous curling of the hills, an exercise on serenity like a frame of a beautiful picture.

Inside, contemporary décor and state of the art technology are available for the guest to visit and learn everything there is to know (including a secret or two) about wine production according do AdegaMãe. The tour includes the laboratory, the mandatory wine tasting (reds and whites), the salon for different events (Espaço M), the Sala do Tempo (Room of Time) and the inevitable store, for you will want to take back home more than a taste in your mouth or an image in your mind.

Wine tasting and the new restaurant Sal na Adega

Among the many different possibilities of visits, with wine tasting and harmonization, the experience of AdegaMãe is a sensorial plunge into red, white, and sparkling wines with an Atlantic inspiration, that may be combined with the gastronomy and the seasonal products. And since 2020 there is an even greater reason to get lost on this space: the new restaurant Sal na Adega.

Here you have an interpretation stage of the Portuguese traditional cuisine, that stands side by side with the elegant, fresh, and mineral wines, marked by the oceanic influence.

In the heart of the rooftop of AdegaMãe’s building, in a functional and refined area, Sal na Adega has a 48-seats capacity, complemented with a wine bar and a store, overlooking the extraordinary landscape of vineyards that dominates the region.

Indeed, at AdegaMãe, the wine tourism is so much more than a product. It is an experience available 365 days a year. And the restaurant Sal na Adega becomes its most recent and distinctive complement, celebrating the traditional cuisine, the sea products, the most diverse cod dishes, the Portuguese coast octopuses, or the fish cooked in salt or grilled. And also the meat, like the most traditional goatling, lamb or “cozido à portuguesa” (Portuguese stew), or “chuleton” (rib steak) cooked on fire. A service permanently challenged by the estate’s wines, always available by the glass, so that the wine tasting may be complete.

Speaking of wine tasting, we highlight the white single grape variety like Viosinho and Arinto, wines that AdegaMãe’s viticulture and oenology have confirmed with distinguishing true expressions of the Atlantic terroir, real pearls of freshness and minerality, while solo tasted.

Emphasis on the ex-libris of AdegaMãe, 221 Alvarinho. A wine with a touch of intrigue, after two oenologists, Anselmo Mendes and Diogo Lopes, fill the same grape variety (100% alvarinho) and separately vinify the wines in used casks, a battonage that takes nine months… and results in just over 2700 bottles. And there you will find the nuances of grapefruit and honey as well as the unavoidable touch of minerality. It is bulky in the mouth, with a pronounced texture, citrus fruit, and rich expressiveness. The end is prolonged in intensity with a slight salt touch. A guaranteed ace for seafood and fish cooked in oven.

In the new blended wines, bear in mind the Dory (red, white, and rosé) of the iconic brand of AdegaMãe, that comes as a tribute to the Portuguese heritage of the cod fishing. The red wine is a Portuguese style Bordeaux, which is enhanced by the “hand” of the Touriga Nacional grape variety. A pronounced palate in a full-bodied wine, with a refreshing acidity, evident tannins, and different fruity touches. A long ending with notes of spices and red pepper. This one of 2014 is considered more promising than triumphal. As for the White Dory, probably the most famous wine from AdegaMãe, it is a youthful celebration of fruit, freshness, and saline character, which makes it perfect for any summer moment.

It is also important, of course, to make a journey through the red single grape varieties. Here, the highlight goes for Touriga Nacional, with its robust ruby colour, typical of the variety, with floral notes clearly present. A light toast with some black berry duly blended, and the perfect structure and the fine tannins give a long ending in the mouth. Highly suggested for roast meats and cheeses.

Being Portugal a small sized country in the west coast of the Iberian Peninsula, the influence of the Atlantic weather and its ocean is predominant. The country is usually described as having a temperate wet climate with dry summer (Douro, interior and South) or with dry and temperate summer (North, Centre and South Alentejo). The Lisbon region, where Torres Vedras is inserted, as well as AdegaMãe, is characterised by the soils close to the Atlantic Ocean, from where the wines, usually unique, are marked with a natural acidity and a deep minerality. That is how obviously shines the last suggestion of AdegaMãe wine tasting: the Terroir (white and red). These wines are only produced in years of exceptional harvest, the maximum expression of the project and of everything that sets it apart. Truly special wines. The red wine is extremely complex, with notes of resin, mineral and black berry. The tannins are intense and mature, ensuring a vigorous flavour in the mouth and a matching structure. The ending is persistent and remains in your memory, so to speak. As for the white wine, it stands out for its elegance, freshness, and salinity, all in a well-integrated barrel set, which grants volume, unctuosity, and great complexity.

Returning home, ou how to enjoy the region

We strongly advise you to stay at Hotel Dolce CampoReal, in Torres Vedras, with a golf course, an equestrian experince and wonderful first class gastronomy. While saying ‘goodbye and see you next time’ to AdegaMãe, a little travelling is in order. First, north to Peniche, beautiful beaches and a surfer’s dream. There are more beaches waiting like Baleal and Santa Cruz, this one a point of departure to the historic patrimony of Linhas de Torres (the Torres Lines) that enlights the visitor about the napoleonic invasions of early 19th century. You can always hang out by the Dolce CampoReal and explore the delights of Torres Vedras, the wineries, churches and convents, never forgetting to taste the amazing bean tarts. And on the way back to Lisbon, a stop in monumental and sumptuous Mafra is mandatory, or a last and refreshing pause by the seaside at Ericeira for all the pleasures of shellfish and seafood accompanied by the best and golden white wines of the region. The ones from what has become our new favorite winery, to start with…

And yes, we shall meet again, AdegaMãe.