Brachetto Ice Wine White Blend Portugal Porto

Brachetto is a delicate red wine grape grown predominantly in the Piedmont region of northern Italy, where it has been cultivated and used in the production of a range of wines for centuries. The grapes usually hold delicate flavors of summer berries, most notably strawberries, and are used to make light bodied, extremely drinkable wines perfect for hot sunny days. Their thin skins mean that they are usually low in tannins, which results in a silky smooth, mild red wine. Because of their lightness and fresh, summery flavors, they are also used to make excellent sparkling wines, similar to a Lambrusco. They are a highly aromatic grape varietal, and in recent decades they have started to be planted in many New World countries with similar climatic conditions to their native Italy.

Benefiting from both the hot, dry Iberian climate as well as brisk Atlantic winds, Portugal is a perfectly situated country for vineyard cultivation and wine production. With a wine making history which stretches back thousands of years, it comes as little surprise that wine plays an important role in the cultural identity and practices of the country. The Phoenicians, the Carthaginians, the Greeks and the Romans all had a hand in forming Portugal as an important center for wine production, and over the millennia, this resulted in each region of this beautiful part of Europe producing its own distinctive wines easily identifiable and separate from neighboring Spain's. Today, the varied terroir and climate across Portugal allows a great range of wines to be made each year, from the fresh and dry Vinho Verde wines to the famous and widely drunk fortified Port wines, and many in between.


The magnificent city of Porto - the capital of Portugal - is located near the mouth of the beautiful Douro river, in the beating heart of the Douro wine region. The Douro region has been regarded as one of the most important viticultural region of Europe for several centuries, and was the third region to be officially recognized and protected as a wine region, with laws having been passed in the mid 18th century regarding its status. Porto is, of course, most famous for the production of Port wine, an aromatic and slightly viscous tawny colored fortified wine, with a fascinating history of seafaring, experimentation and innovation. The vineyards used in the region for the production of Porto's wines contain up to a hundred different grape varietals, resulting in the wide range of Port wines on offer today.