Portugal is the least explored corner of Western Europe, except maybe for its Algarve coastline. There is a beautiful scenery and wonderful food and wine to discover, all far away from the masses. The Ribatejo region in particular has a lot going for it.

The Ribatejo stretches along both sides of the Tejo (Tagus) rive, north of Lisbon. It is a land of rolling hills and wide plains �Ethis is Portugal’s agricultural heartland with olive groves, paddy fields, extensive vineyards. The region is also known for its vegetables and fruits, producing, amongst other things, tasty irregular shaped tomatoes, beans of various shapes and hues.

There are fascinating beautiful historic towns like Tomar, Santarem and Constancia. Life in this authentic region is unspoiled and unhurried, there are no crowds.

There are several very good restaurants, where the restaurateurs take pride in serving dishes like cabritinho no forno (baby kid from the oven), perdiz de escabeche (partridge escabeche), or leitão assado (roasted suckling pig).

The necessary accompaniments to any Ribatejo meal are its wines. There are bold reds made of local grapes such as Trincadeira and Castelão, which are sometimes blended with international grapes like Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah. White wines vary from easygoing to complex, with Fernão Pires and Arinto as favoured white wine grapes.

In Ribatejo, as in other Portuguese regions, great wines are now being made. It is not surprising that respected wine critic Eric Asimov wrote in The New York Times as early as October 2005: 'For the next big thing in wine, look to Portugal'.