PORTUGAL 2023
Being in the wine trade lends to vacationing in wine country. This is how we live our lives, how we met and what we think of when planning a trip. This time we took a group of wine club members with us.
More than a year ago in early 2022 the initial discussion began. 'For the love of port' offers in depth tours of Portugal wine country and we had three different individual introductions to them. The conversation between us began to develop and the planning was initiated. August 2023 an email was sent to a group of local wine club members inviting them to join us for a trip to Porto.
Over the coming months all the plans and attendees came into place. June 4th was the date to begin our group tour.
As Mat & I rarely travel overseas due to owning a demanding business, we took full advantage of going that far and added an additional 5 days for us to venture solo before our group of club members join us.
We landed in Porto in the dark and woke up on the beach in the Foz neighborhood at the mouth of the Douro River where it meets the Atlantic ocean. Our choice to start our vacation 10 miles outside of Porto was relaxing and enjoyable. Beach front walks for miles, lunch on the beach including white port cocktails, mini golf and far less tourism. And of course we found some great food. Casa Aberta & Pedro Lemos were a block from our hotel and so great!
Pedro Lemos, michelin star restaurant that seats about 25 people. This was an exquisite meal including service and wine pairings. We had to come all the way to Portuga to get a fix of Foie!
Casa Aberta, much less formal than their neighbors but really great we made a second visit.
The group tour started Sunday June 4th with everyone at the Caleway Charm Hotel in Vila Nova de Gaia, a great boutique hotel a few blocks off the Douro River very central to all our needs and the start of the tour.
WOW is a pretty huge Port tourist location formerly housing all port from Douro for ageing and export. Once all the wineries created space in Douro these buildings were no longer being used.
Room after room with educational walk through tours, wine tastings and restaurants all right in the heart of Gaia. The 'Wine experience' tour and the cork were fascinating and full of education.
Dinner after in one of the many restaurants was not as impressive. Although we did start with a fun port cocktail and the Somm did demonstrate the cork removal by heated tongs.
Day 1, the 1st full day of the tour started with a few blocks walk from our hotel to Calem Port House. We had a private guided tour through the facility and ended in a board room for a tasting of 4 white wines and five reds with the winemaker. Ricardo spoke no English and was full of words that were briefly translated. The wines spoke for themselves.
Lunch across the road on the Doura at UVA was spectacular for scenery, food and wine.
Next up, a bus ride to the Douro Valley. About two hours east and we land in Folgosa, our home for the next 5 nights. From this destination we'll go north, east, south and west with a river boat trip, a train ride and a truck ride.Our 1st evening at Quinta do Portal hosted by winemaker Paulo. An evening over seeing the vineyards with thunder and lightning. Four course dinner highlighted a favorite seared duck breast.
Finished dinner with a very special port opening by torching the neck of the bottle and they made me do it. I guess the 1st female to be given the opportunity at this winery.
( To remove the sediment, port tongs were invented. The tongs would be heated up in a fire until they were red hot, then they would be clamped around the neck of the bottle and used to cleanly sever the glass. The hot tongs would break the bottle, opening the bottle without worrying about an old cork breaking or crumbling into the wine if a corkscrew had been used. Finally, the port would then be poured out of the bottle, leaving the sediment behind. )
Day 2 another early start and off to a sparkling producer to tour caves, vineyards and lunch catered by DOC, a local favorite. This day was pretty incredible for everyone. A tour of incredible caves full of Sparkling wine bottles. Bottling line in action and a vineyard tour. The winemaker Marta was absolutely incredibly passionate. Lunch was a serious high light paired with multiple bottles of bubbles.
my very favorite course of our Douro tour, octopus carpaccio with sparkling wine.
Mat was seated beside Marta, owner/ winemaker and every wine Mat discussed she'd request a bottle to be opened. This was a lunch of many many wines!
Following this incredible morning and afternoon at Murganheira, we had a short hotel nap and off to tour and Dinner at Quinta do Vallado.
The facility of Vallado was a crazy combo of super old ( built in 1716 ) and modern new built in 2009. The history was 4 or 5 generations deep with stories to coincide. The new facility designed by a famous locally trained architect was very impressive includes a gravity flow cellar.
Dinner with the owner / winemaker Fransisco was a delight. Filled with multiple magnums, goat, custard and cheeses and of course a little port!
Day 3 was a very big favorite with the group. Sisters Luisa and Maria hosted us in the original family home of great Aunt Alice where they have been producing wines for years. Our introduction with a barrel tasting of 70 year old tawny. Lunch set up in 'La Gare' which is where the wines are foot stomped.
I was so happy to have an incredible salad to pair with one of my favorite white wines of the trip, 2022 Alice branco.
The bus was not able to take us into town due to mud so, we hopped off and meandered our way through this tiny village to Viera de Sousa.
And then back to the bus for our next stop.
Nieport Wineries very modern gravity flow facility tour and a sit down tasting of 2 whites and 2 reds.
And a short tour and tasting with the winemaker George at Quinta de Tedo
We were all pretty exhausted after an incredible lunch and then 2 additional wine tours and no rest!
Off to dinner in the town of Re'gua which is about to host the President of the country for the National Holiday. Dinner was low key as everyone was pretty exhausted.
Slept well after this day!
Day 4 we walk across the road from the Hotel to the dock. A boat ride and a truck ride to Quinta do Crasto. Beautiful views from the boat and refreshing fresh air ride rather than the bus. We land at the docks of Crasto to meet owner Miguel and an old restored 1950's American pick up truck ready to load us for the ride up hill to the home, tasting room and production facility. Of which we toured it all.
and then a truck ride
We were pretty excited to have our 1st duck rice lunch ' a Portuguese traditional meal' and we love duck. We started with a tomato soup and finished with a nice offering of local cheeses.
And of course we tasted multiple Crasto wines from whites then reds then port, of course.
Vineyards surround the hill top winery showing the intense steep slope of vines and views of the Douro river.
Back on the truck on off to the train station at the bottom of the hill. Train ride to Pinho was short and sweet and the bus awaited to return us to the hotel.
Directly across the road from our Hotel is a very popular and superb restaurant DOC, we were thrilled to have an evening so close to home.
As a treat to everyone including our hosts and the restaurant staff, Mat & I had brought 4 Paul Mathew wines for a dinner in Douro.
Burrata paired with 2022 Viognier Codfish paired with 2021 Grenache
Bisaro pork neck cooked for 12 hours paired with 2018 TNT and Ruxton vineyard Pinot's side by side
This was a really nice treat for everyone and not only was the meal phenomenal, the service was top notch, the room was very buzzy full and we finished with a beautiful Crasto tawny. The Somm was very excited to have some remaining bottles stay in his possession. Not everyday does Douro wine region see Russian River Pinot, viognier and grenache hand delivered.
And we walked home all of maybe 50 feet.
~
Our final Douro day we got a small reprieve, an extra hour to sleep in or not.
The bus departed at 10:30 directing west to Quinta do Mouroa and a tasting at church.
Seriously the proprietors have a church for family services only and our vertical tasting ( 2001 - 2018 ) with the owner was set up inside the church.
Miguel and Roy definately have a special relationship, Roy always receives Calo Verde soup for lunch. Green soup made from Kale and potato and Miguel kept opening old ports of which the oldest wine of our Portugal visit was served.
Classic portuguese dessert ( Pasteis de Nata ) which we tried several but none were as good as Mourao's paired with 30 year tawny then a 40 year.....he just kept popping corks.
cheers to the Douro! We fell in love with you and all your gorgeous views, welcoming winemakers and non stop port.
Back to Porto we go.
Just a couple blocks from the Caleway Hotel on the waterfront which is lined with restaurants, port houses and everything tourism. We have a pretty traditional meal of tapas. a simple meal of cheeses, sausage, croquetta.... not every meal has to be a DOC!
Our final day with Mario and Roy, we're back on the bus and headed north east to Vinho Verde. Mat & I are especially excited about our one and only white wine house.
The owner and winemaker on hand to walk us through the vineyard, a flight of 8 white wine tasting in the cellar and then a wonderfully casual al fresco lunch with the wines.
We bid farewell to the last winery on our tour and head back to Vila nova de Gaia for our final meal as a group. I believe everyone received more than what they expected from this 7 day tour. High lighting table wines verses port but never lacking a sufficient amount of port at the end of every meal! Right till the very last evening.
And the tour is over. Leaving us with a couple memories to say the least!
Mateus might be a back in style but I'd suggest to dig deeper and look for one, two or more of many very fine wines from Portugal.
CHEERS!
