When it comes to learning about grape varieties, it is hard to find an educational tool that kicks butt. Sure, there are many great books to get the job done, but sometimes adding a web interface and some audio can take it from dreary to delightful. Take the Wines of Portugal site. They have a slick page to learn about native grapes you’ve probably never heard of before and they make learning fun.
Have you ever heard of grapes such as Bical, Malvasia Fina, Alfrocheiro, and Rufete? Me neither! That’s why you should head to the grape varieties page where they creatively describe each grape with just enough information to keep it interesting—not too geeky and not to novice and each grape has an audio clip so you know how to pronounce each grape like a pro! They also have a great section covering Ports and a really cool page covering the history of Portugal wines.
Now if you want to learn about other wine regions and grapes, I have a few awesome wine book recommendations every wine aficionado should invest in; staple books you can’t live without:
- World Atlas of Wine by Hugh Johnson
- Sotheby’s Wine Encyclopedia by Tom Stevenson
- The Oxford Companion to Wine by Jancis Robinson
…want to learn more about wine? How about a free copy of the Wine Encyclopedia!
Everyone that hits us up with comment below by July 30th will receive a link to download the book!
Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/lgcustodio/ / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
Subscribed and commenting! Can’t wait to download the book!
Thanks Jennifer, I just sent you the link to the info! Cheers!
Woah, there. My husband said the exact same thing the other day!! Looking for a link to that ebook, thanks!
Just sent it to you, enjoy the ebook!
I would love a link to the download, thanks.
I just sent you the link, enjoy!!
Hey, killer job on this post you guys!
Cheers Caro, appreciate the kudos and glad you found the post useful…
Loved our trip to Portugal. Thanks for the book offer.
I just sent you the link, enjoy Paul!
Fantasitic! This will be perfect for my tour of the Douro and Northern Portugal this September
Jade, I just sent you the link, enjoy!!
Free Wine Encyclopedia eBook is a very cool and very useful offer. Thank you in advance!
I just sent you the link, enjoy it!
Sounds interesting, can I get a link?
Certainly! I just sent you the link…
I would like a copy of the book too, thanks.
No problem, I just sent you the link!
Thanks, this is one region I am not familiar with, but very interested in!
Hi David, I just sent the link, enjoy!!
Looks interesting! Can’t wait to read a copy!
You got it, just sent you a link!
Great! The more wine reading material the better!!
Just sent you the link, enjoy!!
A great way for people to step outside of their (wine) comfort zone and learn more about the unfamiliar! Thank you!
Exactly! I just sent you a link, enjoy the reading!
I’m just back from a one month trip through france. Cote de nuits/beaune, macon, beaujolais, south rhone and languedoc-roussillon. Tasted some marvelous things, learned a lot but also felt there is still so much to discover – so a link to download the book would be highly appreciated…
cheers,
Bart
Sounds like a great trip Bart! I just sent you a link!
Looking forward to learning more! Thanks for the opportunity!
I just sent the link, happy reading Colleen!
Great information… excited to learn more!
Great! I just sent you a link to the ebook! Happy reading!
Glad to see you are helping out to raise the profile of Portuguese wines and their indigenous grape varieties. Their wines are under appreciated and great value.
Totally agree Colin! By the way, I just sent you a link to the ebook, happy reading.
Love it, can’t wait for the ebook!
I just sent you the link Yazir!
Well done article. I’ll make sure to use it wisely.
Cheers Flossy…
Always a pleasure to learn more about the wonderful world of wine! Waiting for that link, thanks!
I just sent you the link, cheers and happy reading!
Great advice, Pamela! Portugal wines are also pretty affordable, at least here in the states!
Thanks, and great comment about the affordability :) Enjoy the read, I just sent a link to download the ebook!
LOVE Portuguese wines!! They have so much more to offer than just Port. Hope to start seeing more in wine shops soon.
Totally agree grapevine! I just sent you a link to the ebook, hope you enjoy the read!
Have loved Portugese wines since my first visit there in 1967. Would love the link.
Portugal may have even more indigenous grape varieties than Italy!
Congrats on your recent Wine Blog Award!
Agreed and thanks Sassodoro!
Great review! You actually covered some great things in your post. :)
Looks like I’m a day late and a dollar short but I’ll still enjoy the Portugal site, thanks!
This is way more helpful than anything else I’ve looked at, thanks!
Glad it was useful and thanks!
Very educational post, many thanks!
Hello, I accidentaly found your blog!I am trying to get ideas for proper writting style for my own website and what you write definitely gave me some ideas. You have a cool website so keep up the good work!
I love Portugal wine! Thanks for the link to the site, I love it!
Love the wines of Portugal but it is very difficult to sell them in the UK.
Why do you think that is? I would love to hear your thoughts… Pamela
As a UK wine blogger and consumer I think there are a number of reasons:
1. most wine is bought in supermarkets. They push the usual suspects – Italian pinot grigio, Australian shiraz etc etc
2. Portugal is a bit of an unknown to many consumers. They may have been to the Algarve but probably drank beer instead whereas everyone has been to France and associates France with a wine drinking culture
3. Portuguese grape varieties are a bit of minefield (even for those of us with the WSET Diploma!) so its easier to buy something you know such as chardonnay or cabernet.
It’s a real shame as the enjoyment of Portugal for me is the diversity, quality and value of its wines.
Totally agreed on all points…its an educational opportunity to say the least. Appreciate you diving in to the details! Thanks Colin ~Pamela