We all know that the current economic situation is not as favorable as we would hope. Private and public consumption is weak; families, companies and Governments are all over indebted. The GDP (Gross Domestic Product) if growing is moving at a very low pace and politicians do what they can to protect their economies while reducing their debt, by dropping expenses, but mostly, increasing taxes.

The wine consumer is also suffering with this, not only because VAT is rising in many countries (from 2010 until 2012 14 out of 27 of the EU countries rose VAT) but also because politicians are trying to further rise tax on alcohol consumption.

Politicians still ignore the merits of wine, treating it as heavy alcohol. Brazil has a Machiavellian plan to reduce the imports of wine in order to protect local production, which actually is tiny, mostly of table grapes and when for wine is very expensive. England is also preparing a new bill to increase the alcohol tax, as points the Economist magazine in a recent article. More countries may come next.

I find it hard to understand. We know that too much alcohol is not good for our health. Alcohol may create addiction, leading to further problems in case of too severe consumption. But, many of us who drink fine wine (putting spirits and other rough stuff apart) do it to complement a meal. On the table we have bread, rice, meat, vegetable, fruit and a glass of wine. That is the so spoken Mediterranean way of drinking wine. One or two glasses of wine a day, almost every day and almost always with food and it just helps or blood and heart. That is what the World Health Organizations suggest when says “(…) the pleasure and health benefits of moderate wine consumption have to be recognized.”

If at least we would see some economic relief, politicians’ tax hangover would finish and the merits of moderate wine consumption could be recognized also by the bureaucrats.

Oscar

P.S. One day after posting this text, found an article from Harvard Medical School about the benefits of resveratrol, a chemical found in red wine.

Quick update about the weather situation in the Douro. After a long period of sunshine and clear sky, clouds came back to the desperate-for-water Douro valley and gave us some relief. The situation looks a bit better now, with April presenting 2/3 long-term average levels of rainfall. The big question still remains: will rain continue to fall catching-up on the very dry Winter or will this be a 1/3 average rain year. Hopefully it continues to rain for few more weeks but as soon as flowering starts we better have dry weather in order to increase the number of fertilized flowers, which later will be grape berries. Heavy winds and rain are not welcome at the time of pollination, or the potential crop will be largely reduced. Then, in June, we will get into deceases period, which will be better avoided with dry weather.

So the best case scenario would be a two or three week period of rain to help increase the level of water in the soil followed by a period of dry weather. These are just wishes and sometimes they are accomplished, but not  always.

Oscar

Editor’s note: The article you find underneath was written by a friend, Monique de Jager, a friend from Holland that spent a week in the Douro last September, for the harvest. I challenged Monique to share her experience and here it is. If you dare to come over next September let us know. Oscar

Harvest time at the Douro; a wonderful but tough period of the year for all the wineries. Eugène and me (Monique) were there in September 2011.

My brother has been a Port lover for the last three years. Last year he met Oscar in Holland in Nieuwegein at a wine tasting evening. Oscar invited Eugène to come to the winery to pick some grapes during the harvest. Well, Eugene started to make his trip to the Douro and almost one year later, just a few weeks before leaving to Portugal, he invited me. I had to arrange everything with my husband (Ronald) and kids (Jelle and Sietse) and at my work too. All worked out positively. I was the lucky one that had the opportunity to go to the Douro with my brother Eugène. After a full day of work in the hospital – I am a nurse – we left Amsterdam by plane at night and arrived to Porto just in time to pick up our Clio at the car rental of the airport.  After one short night at the Ibis Hotel we went to Oporto for a tasting of some very nice Port Wines: Old Tawny Ports and Vintage Port. I write it all in capitals because of the respect for the Port Wine of the Douro.

We started the trip to Quevedo’s winery in S. Joao da Pesqueira; our final destination of the Douro trip. After two and a half hours driving, it was about 6pm when we arrived at the winery. We met Oscar (junior) and Claudia, his sister. It was a warm welcome. Oscar showed us the winery in great lines and let us try one of his Port Wines.  We saw that it was a very busy time. Harvest time is the most intensive time of the year. And still than, the family was so open, friendly and they had always time to show parts of the winery and explain how the process of the grapes was going.  We got to know the parents of Oscar and Claudia too. We even were invited for dinner on the Thursday of our stay. It was so nice to meet Mr and Mrs Quevedo. We got to know this very hard working family.  One of the friends we met at the reunion weekend told us about Oscar. After finishing studies, Oscar worked at a bank. He made a change in his career when his grandfather died. Oscar wanted to save the winery and started working for the Quevedo Winery. He, Oscar, changed in a positive way. He found the job for his life. He became a happier guy than ever.  Somewhere in the evening Oscar brought us to the house in Valongo dos Azeites. It was amazing to see such a beautiful house in such a beautiful surrounding. We were really surprised. The house belongs to the family. It was just restored, we could still smell the paint.

The next day we had to be at the winery at 7:00 am. We got a pair of scissors to pick the grapes. And that was it, that was the tool, and a hat for the sun and the right working clothes. We had to work at rocky places also on hilling tops. It was work where you get some more condition. It’s like going to the gym and working your muscles. Well, we went with our Clio to the house of the parents of Oscar. On our way we saw a beautiful sunrise.  There we met the father of Oscar, Mr Quevedo, Oscar Quevedo. With his jeep / pick-up truck and some other people from Romania and Bulgaria we drove to the vineyard. It was a very rocky, narrow and windy off the road. We enjoyed the view so much. In the beginning, it was around 7:30 am, it was very chilly in the vine raw up the hill. Then, when the sun rose and the warmth of the sun rays started to do their work, it became in all of a sudden very warm. It was a big moment to pick up the first grapes. This was for we came for. Picking grapes, harvesting at Quevedo’s winery. It gave us a big kick. It also was very nice to work with people from abroad. Their goal was very different of our goal. Two separate worlds. It made me think about the differences in the world too. We are very lucky with the way we live here in Holland and that we have the opportunity to visit Portugal in the way we did in this harvest trip.

The funniest thing was that when Eugène started cutting the very first stem of the very first bunch of grapes, he cut his finger; it started bleeding, no it was not the liquid of the red grapes, it was really blood. I put some ‘homemade’ bandage around his finger and he has to do with it because nobody has any bandage in his/her pocket.  In the afternoon it happened to me… Luckily, it was also the last time we cut ourselves because we decided to buy some garden gloves in the afternoon at the store in the main street of S. Joao da Pesqueira. Because I loved the gloves and the scissors I bought a few sets for my friends and myself to use in Holland.  At about 9.30 am we’ve had a half a hour rest. Oscar senior and junior brought us to the village where they served a good cup of coffee and very good pastries. Portugal is famous for its pastry’s! I can confirm you now it is true!  Coming back to the vineyard we started the second part of the day picking grapes. When one parcel of the vineyard was finished, Oscar drove us to another part of the quinta… it was really rocky… now and then a hole…. Suddenly we got stuck and the truck almost turned over. Luckily there were strong men who got the car on its four wheels again.

At 1.00 – 2.00 pm we had lunch and after the lunch we took a big nap at the top of the hill of the vineyard. From 2.00 – 5.00 pm we had the last shift of grape-picking. When we finished at 5pm, it was time for the pickers to rest and get their body strong enough for the next day, for the family Quevedo it was different: the big work started and went on and on and on, even by night they have to control the process of the grapes to finally make the authentic  Port Wine of the Douro.    The most wonderful things will be made here, at the winery by Claudia. Of course no Port Wine without joint work of Oscar junior, Oscar senior. And never forget Mrs. Quevedo who is doing all the invisible  things around this hardworking family.  For now we say thank you for the wonderful time at your place, your hospitality and kindness. We loved to pick the grapes but we even love more the taste of Port Wine! In Holland, Quevedo Port Wine is at the distance of a two-minut walk of a Jumbo Supermarket. This way, I always stay close to Quevedo’s Port Wine and keep fresh in my memory a wonderful harvest time at the Douro with the family Quevedo.

Monique de Jager

Christmas is gone, but lets go back for the gifts Santa brought over, not this year but a couple of years ago, in 2010, when I received Oz Clarke’s Wine Atlas. Though it was my preferred gift of that Christmas, I had it parked for several months. Last week, out of nothing, decided to take it out of the dusty shelf and start going through it.

We always learn something while reading a book or a magazine, even if it is the supermarket catalogue. Books that really please us are those which can grab our attention for hours, taking us to a place far way from where we are and absorbing us so much that we can’t even stop reading it. Oz’s book is one of those. Before start reading, I thought it was going to be enjoyable but very light and simple. I was totally wrong. The Wine Atlas is actually very complete and detailed. The Douro valley is often referred because of its climate, soil or landscape and always very accurately. It is a very nice guide for beginners and also for those more advanced into wine. I strongly recommend it. Turn the TV set off earlier and don’t be afraid of opening it. It is well worth your time and your friends will thank you for what you will teach them at next wine tasting!

Oscar

1. 2012 should start with 5cm of snow in January, painting everything of white

2. a very cold February, to help wines to clarify

3. sunshiny March so blooming almond trees will look gorgeous

4. rainy April, creating enough reserves of water in the soil for the hot and dry Summer

5. warm and dry May free of diseases which so much affected our production in 2011

6. good weather for at least one day of June, the St. John day, June 24th for a dry rabelo’s regata in the Douro river

7. hot and dry July wherever I go for holidays

8. a couple of days of rain in August to re-hydrate vines

9. clear and warm September for a dry and happy harvest

10. foggy and cold October will help out on the ripeness of our olives

11. warm first week of November so the cheastnuts will taste better with the new wine on St. Martins day (Nov 11th)

12. anything for December is okay, as long as we feel happy for the last 11 months

Oscar

Currently, the global economic situation, with a local and international crisis with reduction of Port Wine production and the difficulties that some vinegrowers are facing, made me reflect about the impact of the Port Wine production in the population of the Douro valley. Is Port Wine really increasing life standards of the population that live in the region, when compared with the surrounding areas of the Douro valley? Put in another way, is it worth for the population, to grow vines and make Port Wine, or would it be better to focus on something else?

Trying to get some figures that could give us a hint to reply to these questions, I went to the INE – Portuguese Statistics Institute. I searched for the per capita purchasing power indicator by town. The data show two groups: population from towns mainly within the Douro region and another from municipalities surrounding the Douro (outside or barely inside the region). In this analysis are excluded major cities either inside and outside of the region that have a major part of the services sector in their local economies (such as Vila Real, Lamego, Chaves or Bragança). The last series available is from 2007, which is more than okay for what we need.

These are the results:

Towns within the Douro

Peso da Régua    76,68
Mesão Frio    55,93
São João da Pesqueira    55,05
Torre de Moncorvo    54,31
Vila Nova de Foz Côa    54,01
Freixo de Espada à Cinta    53,52
Sabrosa    52,30
Murça    52,23
Alijó    51,26
Vila Flor    50,70
Armamar    49,83
Santa Marta de Penaguião    49,74
Mêda    49,19
Tabuaço    47,75
Carrazeda de Ansiães    47,64

Average     54,25

Towns out of the Douro

Almeida    72,90
Miranda do Douro    63,09
Tarouca    59,06
Celorico da Beira    55,72
Alfândega da Fé    55,40
Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo    54,80
Moimenta da Beira    54,03
Mogadouro    53,85
Vila Pouca de Aguiar    52,46
Castro Daire    52,23
Vimioso    51,15
Boticas    48,74
Resende    47,95
Penedono    47,71
Sernancelhe    46,95

Average 54,40

Surprisingly, there is no difference in the per capita purchasing power by town, in % of the whole country. This means that on average, the purchasing power of those living in the Douro valley is 54% of the whole country, and those living in the surroundings of the Douro have exactly the same figure, 54%. This is frustrating, it means that the Port Wine industry was able to make Port Wine the most well know product from Portugal but failed to improve the life standards of the population where it is made.

Oscar

The second week of harvest is gone and temperatures persist high. Too high for what we wished. Summer is almost over but it is still hot in the Douro. High temperatures make our life both in the vineyards and at the winery much more difficult. In the vineyards harvesters are not as productive as with cool climate. At the winery, we use more energy to control the speed of fermentation, in order to reduce the temperature of the tanks, so we can slow down the reproduction of the yeast and to make sure we keep nice bouquets.

We finished the harvest this week-end in our third Quinta which is by the riverside. After Mós and Alegria, Quinta Vale d’Agodinho was the last we harvested. So far, the production is being lower that in the last years, which is in line with the reduction of around 25% in the beneficio system for 2011. The rainfall we had two weeks ago did dont lead to a reduction in the sugar of the grapes. Actually, we are recording higher values than last year, which will mean that lower volumes of brandy will be necessary to fortify our musts (as more sugar of the grapes will be fermented and transformed into alcohol).

Some of our readers have been asking how is quality of 2011 Ports and wines looking like. No clue… nice colors, but not too dark, nice flavors but not surprisingly intense, rich but not overwhelming. Well, maybe we can say that we have balanced musts that need time to show something. And time we have, a lot!

Oscar

May brought to Quevedo lots of good news. May, the month of strong storms and rains in the Douro, that in some years destroy our crop, was, this year, also a month of bonanza. We found distribution for our Port Wine in 3 new markets: Finland, Latvia and Brazil. Our big mission for 2011 was to find an importer in Brazil, as we really wanted to find a good partner there. I was there in April at Expovinis, in Sao Paulo, trying to understand this market and looking for options in terms of distribution. So, it was no big surprise when we saw the first order coming.

On the other side, Finland and Latvia were, honestly, unexpected. We had made some contacts in Finland in the past but nothing very serious. And then Latvia. What, really? So you guys really want our Ports! What a surprise! I'm very much looking forward to see how the sales will evolve, as Latvia represents not even 0.1% of Port Wine total sales.

But we made it and now, if you live in any of these countries, you can already enjoy our Ports! Once you find the right partner you realize that all that hard work, trips to here and there, emails sent, messages received, were well worth each minute of our time. And I feel like I've accomplished a big mission! But 2011 is not over and other tasks lie ahead, especially, to paint the house of Quinta Vale d'Agodinho!

Oscar

Have you heard about 3D printing? The only magazine that I read every week, The Economist, recently made an article about this that I strongly suggest you to read here, 3D printing on The Economist.

How does this work? Imagine a machine similar in size to the paper printer you have in the office or at home that can make small objects like trainers or a ring or a bigger printer that can make bicycle frames, panels for cars, aircraft parts or even a violin. Well, this machine already exists. First you make a blueprint on your computer, then you press print. And the machine will build up the object gradually. It is already being used in academic and industrial niches, like the computer in late 1970s. It’s price now is lower than the price of the laser printer in 1985. As the technology spreads and the costs drop, we will see more people making their own objects at home with 3D printers.

I was wondering how this could change the wine business. In terms of grapes production, it shall not change anything, as a complex and rich grape with plenty of vitamins, minerals and other chemical elements are not something that a machine can replicate. But maybe this 3D printer can in the future make personalized bottles, cases or stainless steal tanks in wineries.

How does the 3D printing can affect your life?

Oscar

For those who read a post I wrote here about our goals for 2011, you may still remember that one of our missions for 2011 is to find an importer for our wines in Brazil. Since the time I wrote that post, on November 26th, we have already had some contacts with people in Brazil, but nothing very serious really happened. So we still have to fix it. I hope my visit to Brazil to exhibit our wines at Expovinis, in São Paulo, during this week, between the 26th and 28th of April, can finally open us the door of the biggest economy of Latin America.

We are also complementing our visit to Expovinis with other activities, first by participating in the wine tastings organized by the IVDP in São Paulo and Curitiba and also by giving a tasting of our wines to a group of private wine lovers, in São Paulo, an event organized by my friend Luiz Alberto from The Wine Hub and Marcelo Vieira from Meu Estudio.

Many people say that Brazil is getting riskier in terms of payments and also mention that most of the importers are already representing Portuguese producers. But this won’t prevent us to try our luck, I will not  give up. Someone in the country of the football and beaches must be waiting for a producer like us.

So Brazil, there we goooooo!

Oscar