red grape · regional staple
Souzão
Minho region, Portugal
Say it
soh·zown
The -ão suffix is a nasal diphthong; the final syllable approximates 'own' with slight nasalization through the nose
On the palate
raspberrypomegranateblack cherryblackberryvioletblack pepper
How you spot it blind: near-black pigment masking a bracingly light, high-acid red body
The story
First written down · late 18th century, Minho, Portugal
First recorded by Portuguese ampelographer Rebello da Fonseca around 1790 and quickly adopted in the Douro as a blending grape prized for the near-opaque color it contributes to Port.
Where it lives
Minho / Vinho Verde, Portugal · Douro, Portugal · Galicia, Spain (as Sousón) · Swartland, South Africa
Shows up as
still redfortified
If you like this, try
Also answers to Souzao.
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