Culture of Portugal associated Portugal with its God of Wine Bacchus. Today, many Portuguese wines are known as some of the world's best: Vinho do Douro, Vinho do Alentejo, Vinho do Dão, Vinho Verde, Rosé and the sweet: Port wine (Vinho do Porto, literally Porto's wine), Madeira wine, Muscatel of Setúbal, and Moscatel of Favaios. Beer is also widely consumed, with the largest national beer brands being Sagres and Super Bock. Liqueurs, like Licor Beirão and ginjinha, are popular. Portuguese literature has developed since the 12th century from the lyrical works of João Soares de Paiva, Paio Soares de Taveirós and King D.Dinis.
Piemonte (wine) the Langhe, Barolo is a big, tannic expression of the Nebbiolo grape. The soil of this area is a composition of clay and marl which helps to lessen the naturally high acidity of Nebbiolo. The Tanaro river flows through the heart of Barolo country and serves as a tempering influence on the region's summertime heat till harvest time in late October/mid November. A small wine region, extending over 7 miles in length and 5 miles at its widest point, Barolo produces about 500,000 cases of wine annually. Nearly 87% of the zone productions comes from vineyards in five communities: Barolo,