We joined a day excursion tour of the Douro Valley, about an hour and a half’s ride from Porto. The Douro Valley produces the best Port wine in the world. In fact, only wine made in this region is allowed to be labeled ’Port’’. So, not really any competition.
Two wineries, 8 generous tastings of both red and white port, and a lunch with all the wine you can drink included.
You port lovers will know that port is a super sweet wine, more so than even Manischewitz. Okay, maybe not THAT sweet. The sweetness comes by abruptly halting the fermentation process at a key moment. Accomplished by adding “fire spirits”. (high alcohol content spirits such as brandy).
The Port Institute of Portugal regulates both the quality and quantity of port that can be put out to market. It’s simple Supply and Demand economics. Don’t flood the market or the price will go down. If a vineyard has made more than is allowed onto the market, well, too bad. Perhaps they can use it privately and throw big parties.
Wineries are called farms here (quintas) and as such are not distinguished from other types of farms. First Quinta stop, the vineyard that produces Kopke port. After an informative tour where we learned about growing, fermentation, stopping fermentation, aging and bottling…we were offered two glasses each. One white, one red. Oh so full of flavor. And I got Grubb’s glasses as well.
Lunch in a small town. Not particularly remarkable. Some kind of soup that we couldn’t identify. A young couple (from Minneapolis) seated across from us thought maybe corn or squash. Grubb surmised mushroom. The remainder of the meal and dessert are not worth describing. But it’s true, they kept the flow of wine going. The highlight of the meal was the Delta espresso served afterwards.
Second vineyard was Quinta de Marracos. A very small operation. They are struggling for workers and the guide said come back in September and you can stomp grapes for two days. it’s simple. You form a line and the supervisor calls out ”left….right”. Find us on AirBnB. Again we were offered a generous pour of a white and a red port. And a platter of crackers and lovely freshly made jam. Why yes, thank you. Obrigada.
Interesting fact about vinho verde (yes I know it’s not port but we passed fields where those grapes are grown)…the verde (green) doesn’t mean the wine is green, it just means the grapes have been picked before they are fully ripe. And the fizz in the wine is natural. Produced by the fermentation process.
I was in a stupor for the ride back to Porto. i do remember we decided to walk home from the first Porto stop. We may have called in at the empanada place on the way home. After the bland lunch, we needed a savory pick-me-up.
Port: perfect with walnuts, quince paste, and manchego cheese.
Charlie and I were in Porto a total of two or three nights, plus hiking heading north from there for several days so nearby. But I’ve never tasted Port. I’m curious. I think I’d probably like it. You certainly got a good sampling of it!! Sounds like fun.
Many people don’t like port because of its sweetness. I fell in love with a white port. At our next get together, we’ll have to share a bottle. We will see what Jubilation or Total Wine have to offer.
Oh, that sounds like fun!
We found out that Port wine was started in “Porto” in “Port”ugal hence tge name porr wine!