Restaurant O Barradas in Silves welcomed members for a food and wine pairing
Seventy-two members of the Algarve Wine Society met after the summer break in the delightful surroundings of Restaurant O Barradas, in Silves, to enjoy the wines of Quinta da Lapa, paired with a series of delicious dishes prepared by Luís and Andrea Pequeno and their excellent team.
Quinta da Lapa is one of the oldest estates in the Tejo region, established in 1733. The winery produces a wide range of wines and styles, which combine a gastronomic nature with an excellent price/quality ratio. We were delighted to welcome one of the owners, Sílvia Canas da Costa, who talked about the history of the estate, and her husband, the well/known chef and food and wine writer, André Magalhães, who introduced the eight different wines which were tasted.
Members met and mingled while tasting a choice of three welcome drinks, their Blanc de Blancs Espumante and the Selection Branco and Rosé. In the welcome shade of the trees, we sat down to enjoy a starter of mackerel fillets with Algarvian salad which paired beautifully with the Alvarinho.
This was followed by fried fillets of wild fish in a lemon thyme sauce, which balanced very well with the more full-bodied Arinto Reserva. We then tasted three different red wines of very different styles. Firstly, to pair with a rich dish of Osso Buco, was the Malbec Reserva, which was of great interest as it is the first Malbec produced in Portugal.
In contrast, we moved on to a lighter Pinot Noir Reserva to enjoy with the cheese and, finally, on to an excellent full-bodied Red Reserva blend which catered well for the richness of the chocolate mousse.
The full complement of kitchen and waiting staff were then given a rousing and well-deserved ovation. A vote of thanks to Sílvia and André followed before members queued up to order the wines in great quantity. No fewer than 80 cases were sold on the day! A clear confirmation of how much our members had enjoyed the wines of Quinta da Lapa.
The Algarve Wine Society’s next events are a wine tasting at the local Cabrita estate on October 10, followed by a four-day trip to the Jerez region of Spain, from October 27 to 31.
For further information, visit algarvewinesociety.com
By STEVE RIGBY
