Screwcapped Casal Garcia
Portugal is the largest producer of cork in the world and has long been quite understandably resistant to the idea of using screwcaps to close wine bottles. Over the past decade Portuguese cork producers have deployed a range of arguments to attempt to stem the increasing popularity of alternative wine closures. These have included warnings of environmental disaster and the loss of fauna and flora if we do not continue to use their sometimes defective product to stopper our wine bottles.
However, it is clear that some of Portugal's largest wine companies believe that screwcaps are suitable at least for their rosés. About a year of so ago I came across half bottles of Mateus Rosé in a Lisbon supermarket closed with screwcaps. Mateus is made by Sogrape, Portugal's largest wine producer. This week we tried a bottle of Casal Garcia Vinho Verde Rosé, which is made by Quinta da Aveleda, another very large Portuguese company, Casal Garcia being one of their biggest brands of Vinho Verde. Incidentally, well chilled, the rosé was pleasantly easy drinking with raspberry and cherry flavours.
How far the use of screwcaps on Portuguese wine in their home market will spread remains to be seen. Quinta do Cotto have used screwcaps on their Douro red.
Doubtless the cork producers will cite this impertinent break with the divine order of cork as a reason that Portugal didn't win the 2010 World Cup!
