Niepoort Sempar Tinto Alantejo Portalegre. “A vibrant and juicy glass of red.”

Niepoort Sempar Tinto Alantejo Portalegre (DOC) 2019, 13.5% ABV

€19.95 at Bradleys

“A vibrant and juicy glass of red.”

 

This red is a blend, as are many of the red wines from Portugal. While it has generous fruit and body, it is not at all complicated—quite an easy drinker, in fact. 

It is light ruby in colour with impressive fresh red berry aromatics. The palate is also fruity, with darker fruit now (such as cherry and plum), and there’s a lively acidity. Rounded and engaging, it finishes very well indeed. Highly Recommended. Get a few bottles in for the barbecues ahead.

“Sempar” signifies “unequalled,” “unique,” and “incomparable”—a name that encapsulates Dirk Niepoort’s wine philosophy. He strives to produce straightforward wines that fully express the character of their vineyard origins. Dirk has a deep appreciation for the region around Portalegre, a sub-region in Alentejo. He unleashes his creativity to craft light and bold Alentejo wines brimming with individuality.

“Niepoort? Is he one of the famous Port family?” you may well ask.  Indeed, he is and was highly instrumental in the firm’s move into making still wines. He was soon a very influential winemaker in the Douro region (where Port comes from) before turning his attention southwards to the Alentejo region.

Close-up of the bark of the cork tree (Quercus suber) that
you can see in Fota Gardens, East Cork

While much of the region is planted to vines, there is still room to grow the thick-barked Quercus suber trees for which Portugal is so famous. These are the sprawling oak trees from which cork is made. Other oak varieties are Alba (the American white oak) and Robur, the European version. The Irish tree Quercus Petrea is also known as Sessile Oak and is used locally by whiskey makers such as Midleton and Donegal’s Crolly Distillery.

The sprawling Quercus suber tree in the arboretum at Fota.