A white made from Touriga Nacional, the region's noble red grape vinified off the skins, at 12.95 euros. An unusual bottle and a cheap way to taste an idea rather than a category.
Tip: Compare it with the estate's red Touriga at 19.60 euros to see what the skins actually contribute to the grape.
A white blend of Encruzado and Bical from altitude vineyards on granite, fermented and aged in stainless steel, 14.50 euros on the estate's own organic-farmed shop.
Tip: Textura farms 22 hectares organically across seven parcels; the Pretexto is the range that shows what that costs at entry level.
The entry red from a family estate founded in 2013 at Quinta do Soito, priced at 12.75 euros on the producer's own list and the cheapest way into the Terras de Azurara style.
Tip: Buy it alongside the Soito Encruzado at 13.25 euros; free shipping starts at 60 euros on the estate's own shop.
Varietal Encruzado at 13.25 euros on the estate's own list, the grape that is grown almost entirely inside this region and the cheapest honest introduction to it.
Tip: The Reserva version doubles the price to 25 euros; taste them side by side at the cellar door before deciding which to carry home.
Single-variety Touriga Nacional rosé at 15 euros from the estate's own list, the summer bottle to drink on a terrace at 400 metres while the reds are still in barrel.
Tip: If 15 euros is over budget the plain Soito Rosé sits at 9.50 euros on the same list and drinks well cold.
Barrel-aged Encruzado named for a forebear who helped start agricultural cooperativism here, nine months in French oak, 17.40 euros on the estate's own shop.
Tip: The producer suggests it with fish, shellfish and cheese, served at 10 degrees; it is a Serra da Estrela cheese wine.
A white field blend of Encruzado, Malvasia Fina, Cerceal Branco and Bical at 9.94 euros, the four classic white grapes of the region in one bottle under ten euros.
Tip: The producer publishes the blend as 45 per cent Encruzado, 35 Malvasia Fina, 10 Cerceal Branco and 10 Bical, and asks for 4 to 6 degrees.
After hotel pickup in Coimbra, we take direction to activity start in Viseu. Day dedicated to bicycle touring on an old railway branch that has 130 years of transpor...