Among the various categories of Port Wine, Vintage Port is the highest exponent of this “nectar” of the gods. This is the only Port that ripens fully in bottle and its consumption must be immediate so as not to lose the fragile aromas in contact with the air.

It is bottled 2 to 3 years after aging in wood and gradually evolves during 10 to 50 years in bottle. This aging removes the influence of air completely resulting in a much slower loss of color and the ability to preserve their typical fruity aromas.

It is the producer who decides which harvest can be declared vintage. Austere in its youth, with an enormous depth of taste and massive structure, capable of evolving for several years. It is a wine produced from grapes of a single year and must be of exceptional quality. It presents a deep color, a solid structure and intensely fruity aromas and flavors.

After the selection, the producer has to take it to the IVDP (Instituto dos Vinhos do Douro e Porto) who validates it. If the wine has “exceptional organoleptic characteristics, from a single harvest, “retinto” and full-bodied, […] and has very fine aroma and taste”; (Regulation 242/2010) it is then declared Vintage Port.

It is therefore the ideal wine for anyone who wants a good investment since its value increases as the time goes by. Don’t forget to keep it lying down, always in the same position, in a dark place and preferably with temperatures between 16º and 18ºC.

And when that special time comes to open it, remember to decant it (to eliminate the natural deposit) and to drink it at that exact moment.

To appreciate it in all its fullness, bear in mind that it is an exceptional quality wine, hand-picked, produced according to ancestral techniques and coming from a very special place.

Discover it by visiting its birthplace with us.

O conteúdo Do you know which Port Wine should be consumed at the time of its opening? aparece primeiro em Douro Promenade.

A variety reacts differently depending on where it is planted, influenced by all the characteristics of the soil and the climate (the terroir), leading to differences in the final product: the wine. This is why many native grape varieties have the highest potential in the Douro region.

Throughout the Douro Demarcated Region 209 million vine plants are planted, with around registered 150 varieties, and many of them don’t exist anywhere else in the world. The varieties cultivated in the Douro region have a secular history, since some come from the time of the Cistercian Order (Middle Ages).

The most common and considered the best for Port Wine and Douro DOC wines are:

Red wines: Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, Tinta Barroca, Tinta Roriz, Tinto Cão, Trincadeira and Souzão.

White wines: Malvasia Fina, Gouveio, Rabigato, Viosinho.

For the production of Muscatel (fortified wine), the Moscatel Galego variety is used.

We invite you to get to know some of these grape varieties in their stunning natural territory through the best douro wine producers.

O conteúdo Did you know that there are about 150 grape varieties listed in the Douro region? aparece primeiro em Douro Promenade.

It was on the basis of the renowned excellence of Port Wines and the potential for the production of still wines of the predominant grape varieties, that the region saw the Douro Denomination of Origin created and regulated in 1982.

After 2 decades, the most demanding specialists and critics are beginning to discover and attesting the wines high personality and quality properties. Douro Doc wines have become fashionable among oenophiles with dozens of awards and recognitions among the best wines in the world.

In White Douro Doc wines it is possible to find freshness, with fruity and floral fragrances, of great aromatic intensity. These should be consumed young and at temperatures between 8º and 10ºC. There are also whites with aging potential (usually called Reserva or Grande Reserva), which are aged in wood and can be kept in there for a few years. They are full-bodied wines, persistent on the palate, with complex tropical fruit and almond aromas that must be consumed at temperatures around 12ºC.

The Douro Doc red wines are often young, ruby colored wines, with aromas of cherry and raspberry, ready to be consumed from the moment they are bottled. They should be served between 13º and 15 ºC.

The Douro Region is, however, very suitable for red wines with potential for ageing (“vinhos de guarda”, usually called Reserva or Grand Reserve). They are wines with great structure, persistent tannins, good depth of color, complex and intense aromas. When consumed young, these wines have black fruit, chocolate, violet and notes of wood aromas. After a few years they become softer, with more delicate and subtle but complex aromas. The ideal temperature to drink them will be between 16 and 18ºC.

The Douro Doc Rose has been gaining more and more fans, following the trend of consumption worldwide. They are produced from a light maceration of red grapes, which gives them a beautiful pink color and exuberant aromas of raspberry, cherry and candy. Inside the mouth, they fill our palate with their smoothness, sweetness and acidity being ideal to accompany Asiatic dishes. They should be consumed young and between 10º and 12ºC.

Douro has become a mandatory destination for all oenophiles and is today one of the great wine regions of the world that you have to visit at least once in your life.

Discover the best of the Douro region and delight yourself with its wine heritage.

O conteúdo Did you know that DOURO DOC still wines are already a reference on the world? aparece primeiro em Douro Promenade.

This bottle entered Guiness World of Records as the most expensive Port Wine ever. It is a Vintage of 1863 of the house Niepoort in a Lalique crystal bottle.

Niepoort is a Dutch family with a great tradition in the wine world that started marketing Port Wine in 1842.

In 1905, its founder decided to bottle a 40-year-old wine in 11 demijohns. Over the years, this wine was used to make several batches of the best Port in the house. One demijohn left over and was used to fill 5 bottles requested to the famous French Cristallerie Lalique, each one with the signature of the 5 Niepoort generations.

It was one of these 5 precious bottles that was auctioned for the highest price ever given to a Port Wine.

This wine from 1863 is a reference in the history of Port Wine, since it comes from a time before the plague of phylloxera that devastated the vineyards of the Alto Douro and changed them forever.

Come and discover with us the place where this valuable nectar is produced.

O conteúdo Do you know which is the world’s most expensive bottle of Port Wine ? aparece primeiro em Douro Promenade.

What is Phylloxera ?

Phylloxera was a great plague that had influence in all of the world viticulture. It is characterized by small yellow mites that feed on the roots of the vines, sucking out their sap.

This plague arrived in Europe in the early 1860s through the import of North American grapevines, and at the time there were no regulations whatsoever. These vines were used to this mites and developed ways of resisting them, which didn’t happen with European vines.

When did the Phylloxera appear?

The 1st significant outbreak occurred in France, in the south of the Rhône region, in 1862 and the plague quickly spread to other parts of the country causing widespread devastation in the vineyards.

Portugal was the second European country to be invaded by phylloxera, initially in vineyards in the municipality of Sabrosa, in the Douro region. From 1871 on, phylloxera spread throughout the Douro, which was the first Portuguese wine region attacked by this plague and also the one that felt its effects the most.

What were the effects in the Douro wine region?

Phylloxera had an immediate effect and drastically reduced the cultivated areas leading to a reduction of more than a half of the wine supply on the market.

The fight against phylloxera was difficult and costly, and the most affected were the small producers, who could not bear the costs and were forced to abandon vine growing. Some properties in the Alto Douro Vinhateiro stopped cultivating vines and abandoned the terraces where it was planted.

These terraces that were left abandoned (some with olive trees or almond trees) can still be seen today and are called “mortórios”.

The solution that was most effective was the grafting of the European vine with the American vine, which was resistant to the plague. They had to replant new vines creating a new type of vine. Today the original “prephylloxera” vines are very rare.

The expression “deu-lhe a filoxera”– loosely, “he/she/it has phylloxera” is still used today in Portugal, in a figurative sense, to say that a certain person has fainted or that a device malfunctioned.

With us, you can learn more about this and other stories told in person in the oldest demarcated wine region of the world.

O conteúdo Did you know that Phylloxera marked an Era in the history of wine? aparece primeiro em Douro Promenade.

Natural landscapes almost touch the sky with their beauty, in which Douro and Côa rivers draw a singular colorful painting where vineyards, olive and almond trees are the main figures.

In these territories which have been occupied since time immemorial, one can admire a heritage legacy that covers all Eras. For 30,000 years, some of the world’s great masters have passed by this area. Some left what UNESCO said is “a masterpiece of humanity’s creative genius”. We are referring to the stone engravings of the Vale do Côa Archeological Park which is the largest rock art sanctuary in the world.

Besides the diversity of the archeological remains, Castles, “Castros”, “Solares” and Churches also add much value to the historical richness

In V.N.Foz Coa are located some of the most emblematic wine producing farms of the Alto Douro Vinhateiro, which is a World Heritage site and without any surprise it became one of the most sought-after terroir in the Douro Demarcated Region.

It is a territory of excellence not only for the production of Port Wine (which is called “fine wine” here) but also for the production of some of the best Portuguese still wines (e.g. Barca Velha and Duas Quintas)

In addition to wine-growing, olive oil is also one of the ex-libris of V.N. de Foz Côa. Ancient olive groves produce some of the most award winning Portuguese olive oils that are sold all over the world

Covered in almond groves, the county has been given the title “Capital da Amendoeira em Flor” ( loosely, Blooming Almond Tree Capital). The flowering period (around February and March), not only brings many cultural festivities, but also offers one of nature’s most beautiful spectacles. Take a deep breath, close your eyes and imagine hills and valleys painted with tones of pink and white brushes. There you have one of the main attractions.

The entire county of V.N.Foz Côa reveals itself as one of the most remarkable territories of the Alto Douro being its visit essential for those who want to know the incredible Douro Valley.

O conteúdo Did you know that V.N.Foz Côa is the only Portuguese county that has 2 World Heritage sites? aparece primeiro em Douro Promenade.