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The Douro River, Porto and Port Wine -
The dipsomaniacs amongst us will be familiar with the produce from the abundant grapes harvested in late September and early October in the many vineyards bordering the Douro river. The Duero, as it is known in Spain, begins its alcohol-associated life quite innocuously in the Sistema Iberico range of mountains which stretch from Burgos in the north towards Valencia in the east. From Soria it meanders across the Tierra de Campos plains of Castilla and Leon, passing Vallodolid and Zamora before forming 50 miles or so of the northeast border of Portugal. It has a slight name change to become the Douro river to satisfy the Portuguese language, finding its way through the Alto Douro mountains and the fertile valleys south of Vila Real before emptying into the Atlantic Ocean at Porto.
Ribera del Duero is the best known of the Denominacion de Origen (D.O.) wine regions in the Duero valley, but its wine output is dwarfed by that from Spain’s best known Rioja D.O., which has almost four times as much area under vine cultivation.
The famous names in port wine production all have their ‘quintas’ in the area centred on Pinhao. For my recent visit, we spent a couple of nights in a pousada in nearby Alijo. Pousadas are the Portuguese version of the Spanish paradors, so if you want to spoil yourself, try the Pousada do Barao de Forrester in Alijo. It is associated with a little bit of port wine history. Joseph James Forrester arrived in Portugal in 1831 to join his uncle’s wine company in Porto and enthusiastically set about reforming the port trade. He waged war on shippers who adulterated the wine and also studied vine blight and methods of avoiding it. His contribution to the industry was such that in 1855 Pedro V bestowed on him the title of ‘Barao’ (Baron). However, the story has a sad ending. In 1862, Forrester’s boat capsized in the rapids on the Douro. Dragged down by his money belt he drowned, though the ladies in his company survived, buoyed up by their crinolines.
Porto -
Like many European cities, Porto (or Oporto) has a Roman history. Of course, Portugal has a rich maritime history and Porto played its part in that. Modern Porto is very much associated with the port wine trade which began in the late 17th century. The southern bank of the river is where all the port lodges are located and, in fact, the southern bank is actually Vila Nova de Gaia, with Porto lying on the north bank. The port lodges are cheek by jowl along the river, each offering guided tours and tastings, some free of charge and others with a nominal fee. Most open around 10am and close around 6pm, so visits to several can be spaced throughout a very convivial day. The lodges (or armazens) – there are no cellars as such – are where the ports are blended and aged. I made a bee line for W & J Graham’s, but despite the tenuous family links, was unable to negotiate any discounts!
Porto is not the most alluring of city sight-seeing destinations, but a bus tour is always worth the money. Unfortunately, an Atlantic weather front crossed on the afternoon we did this trip and sitting inside rather than on the open top detracted from our appreciation. A boat trip is also worth while. From the river you can see all the port lodges and admire the magnificent bridges across the river – seven in all, I recollect (it rained that afternoon as well, but the view was still fairly good).
Portugal is not top of the list of European gastronomic destinations, but you can always find good food, particularly if you are willing to try the local delicacies. The food is certainly better than the tourist destinations on the Algarve. I particularly enjoyed several variations on bacalhau (dried salt cod).
Port wine.
Port, like sherry, is a fortified wine, with typically 20 per cent alcohol added to the basic wine. Whereas sherry has tended to be an aperitif to the British, port is traditionally a digestif, often drunk with the cheese course at the end of a meal, or even with coffee. However, port aperitifs are readily available, dry or sweet. A dry, white port, drunk chilled, is very similar to a fine sherry. The king of ports is, of course, a vintage port. Ports are good enough to be declared ‘vintage’ quite infrequently. To be a vintage port connoisseur, you have to be patient. Fifteen years is the minimum recommended period to lay down your vintage bottle before you decant and drink it. You also have to be fairly wealthy. Unless you buy and lay down your wine in the early years (and they are still not cheap then), you will pay lots of Euros for a good vintage port. A cheapskate like me has to be satisfied with one of the others:
LBV (late bottled vintage) – is wine of a single year that has been matured in wood for four to six years before being bottled ready for drinking.
Ruby – is a fruity port named after its deep red colour and is matured in wood until ready to drink, sometimes as soon as after three years.
Aged tawny – is named such because it pales to an amber colour as it ages; it is less full-bodied than vintage or ruby ports. It may be labelled as 10, 20 or 30 years old, referring to the average age of its blend of wines.
Article provided by kind permission of The Leader Newspaper
The dipsomaniacs amongst us will be familiar with the produce from the abundant grapes harvested in late September and early October in the many vineyards bordering the Douro river. The Duero, as it is known in Spain, begins its alcohol-associated life quite innocuously in the Sistema Iberico range of mountains which stretch from Burgos in the north towards Valencia in the east. From Soria it meanders across the Tierra de Campos plains of Castilla and Leon, passing Vallodolid and Zamora before forming 50 miles or so of the northeast border of Portugal. It has a slight name change to become the Douro river to satisfy the Portuguese language, finding its way through the Alto Douro mountains and the fertile valleys south of Vila Real before emptying into the Atlantic Ocean at Porto.
Ribera del Duero is the best known of the Denominacion de Origen (D.O.) wine regions in the Duero valley, but its wine output is dwarfed by that from Spain’s best known Rioja D.O., which has almost four times as much area under vine cultivation.
The famous names in port wine production all have their ‘quintas’ in the area centred on Pinhao. For my recent visit, we spent a couple of nights in a pousada in nearby Alijo. Pousadas are the Portuguese version of the Spanish paradors, so if you want to spoil yourself, try the Pousada do Barao de Forrester in Alijo. It is associated with a little bit of port wine history. Joseph James Forrester arrived in Portugal in 1831 to join his uncle’s wine company in Porto and enthusiastically set about reforming the port trade. He waged war on shippers who adulterated the wine and also studied vine blight and methods of avoiding it. His contribution to the industry was such that in 1855 Pedro V bestowed on him the title of ‘Barao’ (Baron). However, the story has a sad ending. In 1862, Forrester’s boat capsized in the rapids on the Douro. Dragged down by his money belt he drowned, though the ladies in his company survived, buoyed up by their crinolines.
Porto -
Like many European cities, Porto (or Oporto) has a Roman history. Of course, Portugal has a rich maritime history and Porto played its part in that. Modern Porto is very much associated with the port wine trade which began in the late 17th century. The southern bank of the river is where all the port lodges are located and, in fact, the southern bank is actually Vila Nova de Gaia, with Porto lying on the north bank. The port lodges are cheek by jowl along the river, each offering guided tours and tastings, some free of charge and others with a nominal fee. Most open around 10am and close around 6pm, so visits to several can be spaced throughout a very convivial day. The lodges (or armazens) – there are no cellars as such – are where the ports are blended and aged. I made a bee line for W & J Graham’s, but despite the tenuous family links, was unable to negotiate any discounts!
Porto is not the most alluring of city sight-seeing destinations, but a bus tour is always worth the money. Unfortunately, an Atlantic weather front crossed on the afternoon we did this trip and sitting inside rather than on the open top detracted from our appreciation. A boat trip is also worth while. From the river you can see all the port lodges and admire the magnificent bridges across the river – seven in all, I recollect (it rained that afternoon as well, but the view was still fairly good).
Portugal is not top of the list of European gastronomic destinations, but you can always find good food, particularly if you are willing to try the local delicacies. The food is certainly better than the tourist destinations on the Algarve. I particularly enjoyed several variations on bacalhau (dried salt cod).
Port wine.
Port, like sherry, is a fortified wine, with typically 20 per cent alcohol added to the basic wine. Whereas sherry has tended to be an aperitif to the British, port is traditionally a digestif, often drunk with the cheese course at the end of a meal, or even with coffee. However, port aperitifs are readily available, dry or sweet. A dry, white port, drunk chilled, is very similar to a fine sherry. The king of ports is, of course, a vintage port. Ports are good enough to be declared ‘vintage’ quite infrequently. To be a vintage port connoisseur, you have to be patient. Fifteen years is the minimum recommended period to lay down your vintage bottle before you decant and drink it. You also have to be fairly wealthy. Unless you buy and lay down your wine in the early years (and they are still not cheap then), you will pay lots of Euros for a good vintage port. A cheapskate like me has to be satisfied with one of the others:
LBV (late bottled vintage) – is wine of a single year that has been matured in wood for four to six years before being bottled ready for drinking.
Ruby – is a fruity port named after its deep red colour and is matured in wood until ready to drink, sometimes as soon as after three years.
Aged tawny – is named such because it pales to an amber colour as it ages; it is less full-bodied than vintage or ruby ports. It may be labelled as 10, 20 or 30 years old, referring to the average age of its blend of wines.
Article provided by kind permission of The Leader Newspaper
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