The Dirty Thirties and the Great Depression

I just made it through another birthday, and everyone kept congratulating me on making it into my “Dirty Thirties”, so being the geek I am, I had to look into that commonly used expression:

The Dirty Thirties is an expression describing a period in the 1930s when a dust bowl hit the American/Canadian prairie lands. This event was in big part caused by lack of knowledge by the local agricultural community (they had yet to learn about the importance of crop rotation), and the event lasted for between 6-10 years in different regions and worsened the already terrible great depression.

I get that, that might not have been exactly what people were referring to when they were congratulating me. But after a late night out, with, to be honest, maybe a bit too much Australian grown Nebbiolo and Dolcetto (found at the cosiest wine bar in the middle of nowhere) I felt a bit like a part of the great depression. Getting older is not fun!

But I made it through, and now I am ready to embrace level 30 with everything that it retains (hopefully sensible portions of wine).

This week’s theme is Portugal (since I am looking into a few days layover there in May). So, let me introduce you to the two star grapes of Portugal: Touriga Nacional and Arinto de Bucelas. Hard to come by maybe (unless you also have a cosy, well stocked wine bar in your neighbourhood), but well worth the effort!

Otherwise, keep an eye on my Instagram for further vineyards visits

Cheers,