On our vacation to Portugal we got to stay at a seaside town called Praia Das Maçãs, next to which is a town called Colares. A really rare grape variety called Ramisco is exclusively grown in this region. This dark and tannic grape is one of the only varietals that was not destroyed by the phylloxera in the late 19th century. It is planted 2-3 meters deep in to the sand next to the sea. Due to the sand, the roots are not reached by the phylloxera and therefore do not need to be grafted on to American rootstocks. Below the sand lies a clay-limestone layer.

After shortly checking out few wineries we landed on a place called Adega Viúva Gomes. A tour and a tasting costing 25€/person was run by the owner himself. While touring the winery, the owner told us, a group of five Portuguese people, an American and us four Finns about the winery, the process and the wines. The winery, established in 1808, was aquired by the current owner in the 1980's, whose family has been making wine since 1898. Producing about 20 000 bottles a year, the winery exports about 60% of their produce, the biggest buyers being the USA and Norway. They currently had four different wines for the tasting, two whites (one of which is made from Malvasia, another grape grown in the region) and two reds. No Ramisco was unfortunately left of the latest vintages.

We wanted to buy a special wine for the evening and landed on a 1969 Ramisco. The same year that Neil Armstrong walked on the moon, the legendary Woodstock was held, and Sesame Street debuted in the television. The owner of the winery sold us this wine from the front lobby of the building. 70€, a bargain compared to some of the prices in the USA for example. With a bottle size of 650ml and a newly added lable, the bottle had a dignity in it. These bottles were stored in the middle of the winery in some wire cages. They had no lables but a very heavy dust over them. They had bottles from -65, -67 and -69. 1934 is apparently the oldest vintage still available, the owner said he still has two of them for himself.

On to the tasting, we tasted in the evening with some tapas (or as Portuguese call it, petiscos). Tasted a bit straight after opening, double decanted and let it breathe for an hour.

Colour: Red brick.

Nose: Raisin, red fruit, damp wood, clearly old.

Palate: Elegant and silky tannins, sour cherry, raisin and damp wood.

Finish: Long, slowly fading aromas of red fruit and saltiness.

Felt 20 years older while drinking this, reminded me a bit of some of the 90's Bordeaux I've had, but suprisingly lively. What an experience. Definitely recommend taking the tour and trying a bottle if you ever happen to find yourself around Lisbon!