Portugal is blessed with the Mediterranean clime that is conducive to a cultivating a wide variety of grapes or "castas" that produce different qualities in the wines made from them. The country is among the most abundant wine makers in Europe behind France and is now considered the 10th largest wine exporter in the world.

Its premium wines are made in the Douro valley region which has been recognized by UNESCO as a world heritage site. Its most noted wine product started to be exported from the City of Porto that had its first export to England in 1679 and promptly became famous as the Porto or Port Wine that many Britons can’t do without from their daily meals.

The Port Wines

The Vinho do Porto or port wine is classed as a fortified wine that has a richer, sweeter and fuller taste with a higher alcohol percentage than most wines. It is fermented from five known castas or grape varietals - the Touriga Francesca, Touriga Nacional, Tinta Barroca, Tinta Cao and Tinta Roriz (Tempranillo), with the Touriga Francesa used most widely used. White port wines under the same process as red port wines but used a different set of grapes - Esgana-Cão, Folgasão, Malvasia, Rabigato, Verdelho, and Viosinho.

As a fortified red wine, port is produced from grapes grown in the Douro valley and fortified with a neutral grape wine call aguardente to control the fermentation process and produces residual sugar to boost its alcohol content. The fortification produces brandy-like qualities and the wine gets the usual aging process in oak barrels stored in the cellar which Portuguese calls "cave" like the one in Vila Nova de Gaia. It then gets bottled and commerced from the seaport city of Porto where the Douro River empties to the Atlantic.

The Douro Valley

The Port wine has its origins in the northern Portuguese region where the major Iberian river Douro crosses Spain from its Soria province and passes through the Douro Valley in Portugal emptying into the Porto outlet to the Atlantic. The valley enjoys a microclimate that is conducive to the cultivation of almonds, olives and a grape variety that has made the region famous as a major wine producing region in the country.

Its vineyards or quintas are located around the upper Douro valley regions of Pinhao and Sao Jao da Pesqueira considered the center of port wine making with the City of Porto as the main hub of port wine commerce, hence, the name. GP