When sipping a Port, you are drinking the fruits of the Douro River Valley wine region.  About 60 miles from the heart of Porto, this wine region runs along the Douro River.  Just as Germany has her Rhine, and France has her Loire and Rhone, Portugal has her Douro.  Portugal’s “quintas” (farms or vineyard estates) rise along the Douro River.

The Soil

The Douro is, on the surface, seemingly most inhospitable for growing grapes.  The terrain is steep - almost vertical, and hilly making it necessary to hand-pick all grapes.  No machinery here.  In fact it would be virtually impossible to drive a tractor through the vineyards - the terraces were manually grated centuries ago and allow only about meter between rows.  The soil - well, there is no soil.  Its all granite and schist formed thousands of years ago.  This terrain makes it a bit challenging for vines to drink their water, so their root systems penetrate up to 40 feet down for a sip.  However, this is a good thing...since these vines have to really struggle for water, they direct all their energy into their grapes.  And this means wonderful fruit concentration and growth.

The Growing Conditions

Another unique aspect of the region is its unbelievably different microclimates.  Within a single vineyard the same grape variety will be wholly different based upon its sun exposure, slope placement, or elevation.  A single Portuguese Quinta can have as much diversity as an entire wine region in other countries.  This aspect, and the “soil” give Portugal a most distinct terroir or sense of place.

The Grapes

Lastly, not unique to the region is her vast number of indigenous grape varieties.  An astounding 80 varieties are permitted in the Douro Valley alone (for DOC designation).  I’ll go into some of the major ones in my next update.