Dartmouth’s Novo Mundo Teams Up With Westport Rivers for Special Wine Collaboration

When it comes to this fast-paced life that I live, there's nothing better than a hearty home cooked Portuguese meal and letting the rest of the world slow down for a little while. On Friday, Matthew Barth (better known as “Producer Matt”), the behind-the-scenes producer of The MGM Show, and I stopped by Novo Mundo in Dartmouth for lunch, good conversation and a first taste of something new.

I ordered the polvo guisado, or octopus stew, along with a cup of fish soup and Producer Matt went with Novo Mundo’s signature rotisserie-style half chicken. As a Portuguese foodie, this was my kind of lunch: comforting food and great company. The only thing missing was some vinho or perhaps a cold glass filled with their very own Novo Mundo light lager.

While we were there, I taste-tested Novo Mundo’s new white wine, or vinho branco, created in collaboration with Westport Rivers Vineyard. The wine had a perfect neutral balance that should please many wine drinkers. It was not too sweet and not too dry, landing somewhere between the easy sweetness of a moscato and a semi-sweet riesling.

A Wine Made for the Entire Table

Novo Mundo owner Jonathan Amaral said he wanted something that could appeal to younger and older guests alike. Westport Rivers winemaker Marco Montez delivered a blend led by riesling and chardonnay, with smaller amounts of other grape varieties grown at the Westport vineyard.

Montez described it as an off-dry, fruit-forward white wine with floral notes and enough acidity to balance its light sweetness. He recommends serving it slightly chilled and pairing it with shrimp Mozambique, chicken or white fish. After trying it with my lunch, I can absolutely picture it beside a beautiful piece of cod or striper.

A Friendship That Goes Back Years

This collaboration reaches well beyond two local businesses. Marco has known Jonathan’s family for years and was a close friend of his mother, Carla Amaral’s, oldest brother. Carla remembers Marco spending Christmas Eve at their home and bringing pastries from Lydia’s Bakery, where he worked at the time.

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“We’re welcoming people, and we gather, and there’s always an extra chair at our table for friends,” Carla said. That same feeling of friendship and togetherness now lives inside every bottle.

Portuguese Roots in Every Bottle

The connection grew even stronger when Carla, Jonathan and Carla’s mother visited Westport Rivers. Carla’s grandfather had been a winemaker in his Portuguese village, so watching Marco explain the winemaking process brought back emotional memories for her mother. Even the bottle tells part of that story. Its label features hydrangeas, a flower closely tied to the Azores, while also keeping the recognizable style of Westport Rivers.

READ MORE: Massachusetts Brewery Creates Custom Beer for Dartmouth Portuguese Restaurant

The limited Novo Mundo White Wine is available by the bottle at the Cove Road restaurant, either with a meal or to take home. To that, there is only one proper thing left to say: saúde!