Alvarelhao
The magnificent geographical variations that are offered in the landscape of Portugal are also governed by distinct climatic and external factors. The dominant climatic types noticed in Portugal are the Mediterranean type climate and the oceanic type climate owing to the presence of the vast Atlantic Ocean. Therefore it can be easily concluded that climatic excesses are hardly noticed in the major parts of the country except in the extreme north eastern and south eastern fringes of the country. Wine cultivation requires favorable climate and several other factors which are suitably provided by the Portuguese landscape and this is the reason why Portugal today is one of the major wine exporters in the world. The quality of wine here depends upon the variety of grapes which undergoes processing and fermentation to produce the final output. The major grape varieties or ‘castas’ used are the red and white castas.
Among the different kinds of wines cultivated in Portugal, one of the minor ones is the Alvarelhaos. The Alvarelhaos are wine grapes of red color which are presently grown in the northern part of Portugal. It is referred to by various names like Alvarello, Varancelha, Locaia, Pilongo etc. in the country of Portugal, about 470 hectares of land are dedicated to the cultivation of Alvarelhao grapes or the Brancelho variety. It is merged with the red wines of the Dao region. It is necessary to mention here that the Dao region is confronted with absolute temperature conditions being located in the extreme northern fringes of the country. Therefore the harsh weather conditions make the red colored Alvarelhao wine obtained from that region strong and coarse. It is also said that the Alvarelhao is part of the red wine which is combined in the very prosperous Douro region though this fact has not yet been authorized or confirmed by the IVDP which is the premier authority.
