622 Journal of Agriculture, Victoria. [10 Oct., 1916. 



NOTES ON PORTUGUESE WINE VARIETIES. 



By F. -de Castella, Government Viticulturlst. 



(Conthuu'd from page 570.) 



Touriga. 



Touriga, which is at the present time the most popular variety in 

 the Alto Douro or Port wine district of Portugal, differs considerably 

 from the sorts de&cribed in the two previous articles. Alvarelhao, so 

 largely responsible for the " dry finish " of a true Port, yields a wine 

 light in colour. The wine made from Bastardo rapidly loses its colour, 

 in the same way that a " Grenache " does. Touriga, on the otber 

 hand, yields a wine rich in colour, and, in spite of the opinion of some 

 old Portuguese writers to the contrary, its colour seems to possess 

 ccnsiderable stability. In addition, it is a good and regular bearer, 

 setting its fruit well, and little liable to spring frosts. 



To these qualities are no doubt due the great popularity- Touriga 

 now enjoys. At the time of the writer's visit to the Alto Douro dis- 

 trict, in 1907, it was generally looked upon as the leading port wine 

 grape, though, in order to obtain all the qualities characteristic of this 

 remarkable wine, the admixture of a certain proportion of other sorts 

 appeared to be indispensable. 



It is probable that it will prove to be a dual purpose vine, equally 

 valuable for the production of dry and of sweet wines, in much the 

 same way as Syra, better known as Shiraz, in Australia. Though 

 Touriga is so largely grown for conversion into sweet wane in the 

 Port wine district, it is also capable of yielding dry wines of excellent 

 quality, as witness those of Dao (Portugal) made from the same 

 grape. A dry red wine, made from this grape, was tasted by the 

 writer at the Quinta de Malvedos;* it strongly resembled a dry Ruther- 

 glen Shiraz, suitable for export, and suggested the idea that Touriga 

 may prove of value for the production of dry as well as of sweet wines 

 in Australia. Mr. Burney's experience of this vine is most interesting, 

 especially as regards the quality its fruit possesses of hanging on the 

 vine, when fully ripe, without wasting, a point of great importance in 

 a warm, dry vintage. 



Is Touriga destined to displace Syra as the most generally useful 

 wine grape in North-East Victoria? Time alone can tell. This is, to 

 say the least, by no means impossible. Our present experience of the 

 variety' is such that it can be confidently recommended for propaga- 

 tion on a large scale with certainty of satisfactory results. 



The following extracts from Portuguese writers concerning this 

 promising grape may prove of interest. It will be seen that Touriga 

 has steadily increased in popularity; largely, ho doubt, in consequence 

 of the growing favour for Ports of darker colour in the early part 

 of last century, when it became the fashion to bottle and lay doA\ai 

 " vintage " ports. The earlier writers are not in accord concerning 

 several technical points in connection with this grape, as will be seen. 



* A sample of tliis wine was submitted at official wine tastings in Melbourne and Rutherglen and 

 was highly thought of ; on analysis it was found to contain 24 • 5 per cent, proof spirit, 23 • 6 grms. per litre 

 total extract, pnl -64 per cent, total acidity (as tartaric). See p. 20, Report of Department of 

 Agriculture, 1907-10, sample No. 24. 



