• Q: What is VinoCamp ?
• A: An un-conference based on the ‘BarCamp’ format. Normally, BarCamps are all about technology. VinoCamp is about technology and wine, or a BarCamp devoted to wine.

• Q: What is a BarCamp ?
• A: “BarCamps are a type of conference or symposium. They are sort of an anarchic un-Conference, organized by all the attendees at the very last minute. I mean they’re not totally anarchic. There are rules of BarCamp. But the rules are written on a wiki that anybody can change” – Ryan O’Vineyards .    The first BarCamp was held in Palo Alto, California, in 2005.

• Q: What was VinoCamp Portugal?
• A: VinoCamp Portugal was held May 27-29th 2011 with 63 participants from Portugal, France, Italy, Spain, Holland, UK and USA. With people coming from far and wide to attend, the program was extended to give the participants the chance to see more of Portugal and it’s wine industry . ViniCamp Portugal’s 2011 itinerary was as follows:

1. Day 1 (a fun day in the cork forest and to visit an Amorim cork factory)- organized by one of the sponsors Apcor.
2. Day 2 (Vinocamp! Barcamp like event where we discuss about wine and web) – held at the Centro Cultural de Belem, Lisboa.
3. Day 3 ( a day in the vines and in a winery) – the group was bussed down to Cortes de Cima for a winery visit,  live online wine tasting, and lunch in our winery tasting room overlooking the vineyards.

• Q: Where else are VinoCamps happening?
• A: Past VinoCamps have happened in Canada , Paris, Bourgogne and Languedoc. Future ones are soon to take place in Bordeaux and Geisenheim. Or plan one yourself! You can make it happen! All you need  is some IT geeks, winelovers (preferably one and the same!), a small venue and throw in something yummy like Chaminé with a pastel nata to get the conversation flowing!

Chef Otto Bjarne will be serving his fabulous buffet dinner, to be savored with your favorite wines in an idyllic vineyard setting. Read more here.

Friday, June 17th – not to be missed! Reservations now being accepted. Book now to avoid disappointment! Telephone 284 460067 or send an email to: adegaclube@cortesdecima.com.

A good time was had by all, at the Cortes de Cima annual Danish Christmas Lunch and Wine tasting! One of the various events put on during the course of the year for the Cortes de Cima Adega Club members here at the winery. If you are not a member yet, you can join here!

In a spirit of altruism, Anja and Georges are collecting wine bottles directly from wineries, to be auctioned in Hong Kong in May 2011. The goal is to raise $150,000 which will be donated to the Lao Rehabilitation Foundation, offering medical assistance to Laos. This charity happened to be started by Georges’ father, and therefore they are sure that all the money raised for it goes to the people who are the most in need. We happily gave them 2 bottles of Incógnito 2005 from our own private cellar, and helped them in their quest to visit more Alentejan wineries to collect other special bottles for the upcoming auction, before sending them on their way to Spain to continue their expedition.

The wine world is not unfamiliar to Georges. Raised in Napa, his mother, Genevieve Janssens, has been the winemaker at Mondavi for over 30 years, and was just honoured with the title of Winemaker of the Year 2010 by Wine Enthusiast. Anja Cheriakova, is Dutch but originally from Belarus. We join Jancis Robinson in “wishing you both luck on this great venture.”

Plan a weekend outing to the Alentejo in late November, and let us help you get into the Christmas spirit! Our Danish chef Bjarne Otto, will be serving a buffet of traditional Danish Christmas fare, served with a complete tasting of our entire range of currently available wines, while admiring the views from our winery tasting room of the winter vineyard. To get a taste of what is to come, visitors will also have a chance to sneak preview some of the 2010 tank and barrel samples.

We will also be offering tasting of the other wines on sale in our Cellar Door Shop, which will be open if you want to take some bacchanal Christmas presents home with you.

Places are limited, so book early to avoid disappointment! webinfo@cortesdecima.pt or call 284 460 067

Danish Xmas Menu

Variety of marinated herrings

Gravad Laks with dill dressing

Fried fish fillets with remoulade

Danish pork meatballs with cucumber salad

Homemade liverpaste with mushrooms and bacon

Roast pork with red cabbage

Cheese platter with fruit

Rice and almond pudding with cherry sauce (Riz à l’amande)

Wines for Lunch

Chaminé 2009, Chaminé Branco 2009, Cortes de Cima 2008, Syrah 2008, Aragonez 2007, Reserva 2004

Wines only for Tasting

HCA 2008, Trincadeira 2008, Touriga Nacional 2005

In the middle of all the activities, a visitor from Louisville, Kentucky arrived - Fred Minnick, aka ‘Camera Boy’, a photographer and writer, “who captures the world with his words and lens.” Fred’s story is so interesting, to be worth sharing here – “Fred Minnick spent more than a year in Iraq as a U.S. Army public affairs photojournalist, covering the good, bad and ugly sides of the conflict. With a Nikon in one hand and an M-16 in the other, he accompanied combat troops on missions ranging from raids on suspected terrorist strongholds to public relations events including the opening of a school for girls. Some of the stories made it back home, most did not.” From that experience, has sprung his book (available at Amazon) – Camera Boy: An Army Journalist’s War in Iraq .

Fred’s main purpose was to shoot pictures and write an article for an American magazine about Cortes de Cima during harvest. However, this being Fred’s first trip to Portugal, we wanted to show him as much as possible of Portugal as we could in the short time available. Fred of course recorded these places with his lens. Fred’s pictures are worth a thousand words, so let’s let them speak for themselves –  Bocca Restaurant in Lisbon, Mar d’Ar Aqueduto Restaurant in Évora, Ocean at Vila Vita Parc, Arte Nautica restaurant, Maladinha Nova, Cortes de Cima, and other Alentejan scenes.

]]> http://cortesdecima.com/general/a-camera-boy-in-portugal/feed/ 0 http://cortesdecima.com/events-eventos/singing-the-portuguese-national-anthem-for-the-world-cup-victory/ http://cortesdecima.com/events-eventos/singing-the-portuguese-national-anthem-for-the-world-cup-victory/#comments Mon, 28 Jun 2010 09:04:59 +0000 Carrie http://cortesdecima.com/?p=5762