Outside's Go Magazine - Travel and Style for Men

Travel Notes

Portugal Wine Country

By Charles Bethea

ACCESS
>Fly TAP Portugal airlines (flytap.com) from New York City directly to Lisbon. Round-trip fares from $800.

LODGING
>Casa do Terreiro do Poço (casadoterreirodopoco.com) is a magnificent hotel in Borba (a town with white marble sidewalks) filled with furniture from around the world—including a chest once allegedly owned by a king of France.

>At Évora’s Convento do Espinheiro (conventodoespinheiro.com)—the name has something to do with the Virgin Mary and a thornbush—hospitality is sacred. This heritage hotel (a 15th-century convent) and spa now has 59 rooms set in eight hectares of manicured gardens, with nary a thornbush in sight.

> First a convent, then a castle, then a palace, Pousada Flor da Rosa (pousadas.pt), 70 miles northeast of Lisbon, is now a 24-room hotel with its original stone walls, medieval cloisters, fortress towers, and arrow slits intact. It is one of dozens of historic structures scattered across the Portuguese countryside that have been turned into luxury hotels.

SUSTENANCE
>At Fiahlo, a traditional Portuguese tavern tucked within the town walls of Évora, you pick the meat, from partridge to pork, and the in-house sommelier pairs the dish to a regional wine.

> For some quirkiness, go to Quinta de Catralvos (quintadecatralvos.com), set on 60 hectares of vineyards in Serra da Arrábida near Setúbal, where Chef Luís Baena offers a whimsical 15-course menu. From his fresh take on sushi (local cheese wrapped with honey ham) to his McSilva Burger (a perfect replica of a McDonald’s fish sandwich—until you get to the rich patty of Portuguese cod), the flavors are matched only by the surprising presentations.

> Pull up a leather chair under the beamed cathedral ceiling at Gambrinus (011-351-21-342-1466), and bib up for the best seafood in Lisbon. Enjoy a vast spread of shellfish with a dry Trincadeira, or try the chicken piri piri with a Sagres Bohemian ale.

> Order one of the more than 150 by-the-glass port wines at Lisbon’s Solar do Vinho do Porto bar (011-351-21-347-5707), set in an 18th-century mansion.

ATTRACTIONS
>Take to two wheels on the Alentejo Wine Route (bikeiberia.com), which reaches the region’s best wineries. An appointment is recommended at most tasting rooms.

> A few wineries not to miss: Cortes de Cima (cortesdecima.com) in Vidigueira; Herdade do Esporao (esporao.com), a high-tech, modern winery in Reguengos de Monsaraz; Borba’s João Portugal Ramos (jportugalramos.com), run by one of the country’s most respected growers; and Herdade da Mingorra (mingorra.com) outside Beja.

> And when the trip is at its end, wander into one of numerous smoky fado clubs in Lisbon to hear some Portuguese soul music.

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