MoscatelRoute

Moscatel Roxo is their main grape and was nearly extinct because it has a small and early yield. Thankfully it was found in amongst some other varieties and perpetuated by Horacio Simoes to make the recognizable Moscatel de Setubal.You should note that from the middle of September through to the end of October, the traditional treading of the grapes takes place here and all visitors are welcome to join in! A little further up the road towards Palmela, we entered through the huge, heavy wooden doors of the winemaker Venancio da Costa. A high ceilinged room with an elevated walkway to give the visitor, as long as you are not scared of heights, the opportunity to see into the top of the wine vats. At ground level you can still see the row of windows where the grapes, brought by horse drawn carts, were unloaded directly into the treading tanks. Alongside these, an early pressing machine. All this created an atmosphere of time to accompany our wine tasting. Founded in 1914, Venancio da Costa is still run by the family and amongst the reds and whites they have to tantalize, this year their Moscatel was the only moscatel to win first Prestigio Nacional which is higher than a gold medal.Time for lunch and we go to Chico, a smart, modern and recently opened restaurant in Aires 4 minutes from Palmela where there are tables outside and popular international dishes.

Casa Ermelinda, in a place called Fernando Po, is a winery run by women, yes, lets hear it for the girls, and has been handed down from mother to daughter for four generations. They have a large selection of wines and we were given an informative tour finishing with a comprehensive wine tasting. In the not too distant future they plan to plant a garden with each variety of vine so that the visitor can note the differences, which I thought was a good idea.

The grandson of this family run business, which began in 1910, showed us around the adega which does everything from growing the vines to bottling the wines. The latter was of particular interest to me as I watched one man push the seal over the cork using an amusingly unusual mechanical contraption.