Vinologia ★ 4.4
Vinologia on Rua de Sao Joao in Porto's Ribeira is a French-run port-only tasting room with around 200 references from small Douro producers.
Signature drink: Tawny port flight by small producers
Food: Cheese and charcuterie boards
History
Port wine has been made along the Douro since the 17th century, but the modern industry dates to the 1703 Methuen Treaty that opened the British market. British merchants set up cellars in Vila Nova de Gaia from 1710, and the Douro Valley was demarcated in 1756, the first protected wine region in the world. The flight, a comparative tasting of white, ruby, tawny and vintage styles, is the standard format at every Gaia lodge.
Make it at home
Ingredients
- A bottle of white port (Andresen Branco or similar)
- A bottle of ruby port (Graham's Six Grapes or similar)
- A bottle of 10-year tawny port (Taylor's, Niepoort or Croft)
- A bottle of late-bottled vintage (LBV) port (Warre's or Smith Woodhouse)
- Almonds, dried fig and small slices of aged sheep cheese for pairing
- Four small wine glasses (port glasses or small white-wine glasses)
Method
- Chill the white port in the fridge for 1 hour; serve at 8 to 10C.
- Serve ruby, tawny and LBV at 14 to 16C. Take them out of the bottle 20 minutes before pouring.
- Pour 40ml of each port into separate small glasses, arranged left to right: white, ruby, tawny, LBV.
- Taste in that order. The white is dry and citrus-forward; the ruby is young and grippy; the tawny is nutty and oxidative; the LBV is full and structured.
- Pair almonds with the white, dried fig with the tawny and aged cheese with the LBV.
- Discuss differences between styles before opening any further bottles.
Tip from the editors. Open the LBV at least 30 minutes before serving; the cork is real, not a stelvin closure, and the wine opens up considerably in the glass.
Where to eat port wine flight
Port wine flight in Porto
Wine Quay Bar ★ 4.4
Wine Quay Bar on the Cais da Estiva in Porto is a quay-side wine room with 150 bottles, 60 by the glass and the best Douro-river view of any wine bar in town.
Signature pour: Touriga Nacional from Quinta do Vale Meao
Wine focus: 150-bottle list, 60 by the glass
Food: Cheese, cured meats and sardines
Prova ★ 4.5
Prova in Porto's Ribeira is a cave-walled wine room and shop, with a knowledgeable sommelier pouring Douro reds, vinho verde and port flights to background.
Signature pour: Niepoort vintage port flight
Wine focus: Douro reds and whites by the glass
Food: Petiscos and charcuterie
Capela Incomum ★ 4.3
Capela Incomum on Travessa do Carregal in Porto's Cedofeita is a 19th-century chapel reworked into a small wine bar, with Douro. At Travessa do Carregal 77.
Signature drink: Douro red by the glass
Food: Petiscos and cheese boards
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