Portuguese Red Wines Come of Age, Steal Spain’s Thunder

Back in the 1990s Spain seemed to be Europe’s most forward looking wine producer. But as overproduction and high alcohol wines increasingly dominate Spanish viniculture, it now appears Portugal can steal some of its thunder.

Such an achievement would simply not have been possible 10 years ago. Prior to 1986, when Portugal joined the EU, its wine industry was wracked by political directives and a lack of any dependable system to make sense of its wine regions.