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Bairrada is a DOC of the Beiras (Beira) region in the central northern area of Portugal. It is known for producing rich, deeply colored red wines made from Baga, Castelao and Rufete (Tinto Pinheira) grapes.
Beiras is relatively wide, as Portuguese regions go, and stretches from the Atlantic coast right to the border with Spain (about 100 miles/160km). It was traditionally a single region, but was later split into Beira Litoral (coastal Beira) and Beira Interior (inland Beira). The latter name survives today in the form of the Beira Interior DOC. Bairrada is located in the western, coastal half of Beiras, and enjoys the moderate climate influenced by the vast expanse of the Atlantic Ocean. In terms of soil profile, the majority of Bairrada vineyards have limestone-rich clay soils (barro is Portuguese for 'clay'). This terroir continues eastwards into the Dao wine region, where some of Portugal's most highly prized vineyards are found.
Baga typically makes up the lion's share of Bairrada's red wines, and accounts for more than three-quarters of the area's red-wine grape plantings. Prolific and late ripening, the variety's large crops are often threatened by the risk of autumn rains blowing in from the Atlantic, one of the more significant challenges facing Bairrada vignerons each vintage. Baga-based wines are typically deeply colored, highly acidic and very tannic (a consequence of their small berries and thick skins), so modern Bairrada winemakers now use Merlot, Cabernet and Touriga Nacional to add softness and depth.
Bairrada white wines are dominated by Fernao Pires and Bical. Bical is a very popular white-wine grape in Bairrada and Dao, and has acquired the affectionate nickname Borrado das Moscaos ('fly droppings'). After approximately five years, Bical wines often have aromatic qualities similar to those of aged Riesling. Fernao Pires (also known as Maria Gomes) is Portugal's most widely planted white grape, used more intensively in the south than the north.
For centuries Beiras has suffered the repercussions of a significant event in the wine history of Bairrada, its westernmost viticultural area. In the early 18th century the British appetite for port (produced in the nearby Douro valley) was reaching fever pitch, creating significant commercial opportunities. A number of Bairrada producers were caught exporting their Bairrada wines as port, and a number of legitimate port producers were found blending Bairrada wines into their own to increase output. Wine legislation and regulation was in its infancy back then (tokaj and port were among the first), but so valued was the port name that the Portuguese government took immediate action to maintain its purity; Sebastio Jose de Carvalho, the country's vehemently nationalist First Minister, ordered that all vines in Bairrada be uprooted. The stain on Bairrada's reputation lasted well into the 20th century, and only in 1980 was the area finally granted official recognition as a Portuguese wine region.
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