Port Wine Lodges, Port Wine Lodges, Vila Nova de Gaia
Cross the River Douro on the Ponte Luis I Bridge from Ribeira in Porto and you arrive in Vila Nova de Gaia, a separate municipality and home to dozens of historic port wine lodges and warehouses (caves) at the commercial centre of Portugal's port wine trade.
The port wine lodges of Vila Nova de Gaia are the end point of the journey of port wine down the river from the quintas (wine estates) of the upper Douro valley.
The English names of many of the lodges (Cockburn, Croft, Graham's, Osbourne etc) show the influence of Britain on the early trade but Portuguese names are here too (Cálem, Barros, Ferreira, Ramos Pinto, Rozès).
Portuguese wine became popular in Britain when sanctions were placed on French wine during the War of Spanish Succession (1701-1714). In 1756 the Companhia Geral do Agricultura das Vinhas do Alto Douro regulated and demarcated a region where port wine (vinho do Porto) could be legitimately produced.
Later in the mid-nineteenth century, brandy was added to the wine to fortify it and allow it to travel further.
The wine lodges of Vila Nova de Gaia offer tours and tastings (in English) and a chance to take home a bottle or two of vintage port.
Wine lodges in the area include such names as Barros, Cálem, Cockburn, Croft, Ferreira, Graham's, Kopke, Osbourne, Ramos Pinto, Sandeman, and Taylor, Fladgate and Yeatman. Some of the lodges have introductory films and museums dedicated to port and any tour will include a walk through the cool, damp cellars where the wine ages and matures in huge oak barrels.
Wine Lodge Tours & Tastings
Calem, Avenida Diogo Leite, 344 Vila Nova de Gaia 4400-111, tours of the museum and cellars.
Croft, Rua Barão de Forrester, 412 Vila Nova de Gaia 4400-034, includes a visit to the cellars and a tasting of three Port wines to be enjoyed on the terrace in summer or lounge in winter.
Ramos Pinto, Av. Ramos Pinto, 400 - Vila Nova de Gaia, tours of the world famous wine cellars and historic library.
Sandeman, Largo Miguel Bombarba 3, Vila Nova de Gaia 4400-222, visit to the company's museum and cellars on the riverfront in a building designed by architect Joaquim da Costa Lima Sampaio.
Taylor's, Rua do Choupelo 250 4400-088 Vila Nova de Gaia, tasting of three ports and views of Porto from the terrace.
To get from Porto to Gaia either walk over the Ponte Luis I Bridge or ride Line D of the Porto metro over the bridge to Jardim do Morro Station, direction Santo Ovidio, just one stop from Sao Bento Station. Ride the Teleférico de Gaia cable car from the Upper Station near Jardim do Morro Station to get an aerial view of the port wine lodges in Gaia.
Porto bus #900 also runs from Trindade to Santo Ovidio via Gaia. The hourly 12M night bus also passes through Gaia from Av. Aliados.
Hotel Accommodation in Porto
Hotels in Porto - Booking.com
Mercure Porto Centro Santa Catarina
Book the Grande Hotel do Porto
Hotels in Portugal - Booking.com
Order your Porto Card online with Get Your Guide
Book Air Tickets to Spain & Portugal
Cheap flights from Europe with low cost carriers