24 & 25 December 2024, Porto, Portugal

Knowing that some European countries celebrate Christmas on Christmas Eve, am not sure what’s going to be open or closed today or tomorrow. In anticipation, have booked restaurants tonight and tomorrow well in advance. With Christmas Day being my day have booked a swanky restaurant for dinner. Christmas Eve is Thai.

It’s another bright blue sky and sunny day. But a fresh wind blowing down the river valley. A friend had recommended the market. Thinking that it would be a traditional old market hall surprised how new and refurbished it is. To the extent of being a bit sterile and disappointing. Plenty of salted codfish on sale. The Portuguese celebrate Christmas with salted codfish it seems. Not a turkey in sight.

First port tasting on Christmas Eve is at Calem Port lodge. Not heard of Calem before. But given three glasses to taste. Rose, Vintage and a 10 year old Tawny. Surprisingly large glasses. All the port lodges are on the south side of the river in Villa Nova de Gaia. All the casks and vats are stored in long rows of warehouses with tiled roofs…called lodges. Traditionally transported from further up the Douro valley and the vineyards by barge.

Christmas Day begins with a champagne breakfast. With a cracking view of the bridge.

Leisurely walk about a fairly quiet Porto before the second port tasting. At Taylor Fladgate.

Many of the port houses have British names. Well. It all started in the 1670s when two English merchants on holiday in the Douro valley were given a glass of sweet fortified wine by an Abbott. Liking it so much they bought his stock and shipped it home. It became popular in the early 1700s when import duties were very low and the war with France meant that French wine was difficult to get hold of. This led to the British buying up land and creating vineyards along the Douro river valley.

About 30 grape varieties are used for making port. The Douro valley is split into three regions. Baixo Corgo at the western end closest to Porto. Cima Corgo in the middle. Douro Superior at the eastern end of the Douro. Cima Corgo and Douro Superior regions in the east are hotter and have less rainfall than the western end and so have the finest ports with greater ageing potential.

In the early 1900s, Portugal had periods of instability and so to avoid damage due to civil unrest the British port houses and vineyards fixed signs to their buildings stating ‘English property’ with a Union flag.

Port is a fortified wine. The grapes are picked and allowed to ferment. To a certain extent. But then a neutral grape spirit, which is called brandy but isn’t what you know as brandy, is added to the wine to stop the fermentation process. This leaves sugar in the liquid and makes it more alcoholic.

It’s then aged in barrels in the many lodges in Villa Nova de Gaia on the southern side of the Douro river in Porto. Which gives its name to ‘port’.

All the barrels are handmade. Traditionally they were made in units: pipes, almudes, canadas. Pipe is 550 litres. Almude is 25 litres. Canada is 2.08 litres. In the Taylor’s cellar, all the barrels are marked with a cross and two numbers. The barrel is always one pipe of 550 litres plus a unit of almudes (the top number) and a unit of canadas. So an X with 2 at the top and 4 on the side calculates as 550 litres plus 2 x 25 litres plus 4 x 2.08 litres…equals approx. 608 litres.

The length of time it is aged in the vats and casks determines the colour and type of port. A vat is typically 20,000 litres whilst a cask is about 630 litres.

For port aged in wooden vats. 2-3 years is Ruby. 3-4 years is Reserve. 4-6 years of a harvest in a single year is Late Bottled Vintage (LBV).

For casks…2-3 years is Tawny. Which can then be aged in casks for 10, 20, 30 or 40 years.

Vintage ports will be aged in wooden vats for just under two years before being bottled to continue ageing in the bottle for 20 to 30 years.

The stuff you learn on this blog, dear reader.

The tour ends with a port tasting. But. It’s a white chip dry port and a 2019 LBV. The stuff I can buy in Sainsbury’s.

A steep climb from river level back up to the hotel is rewarded by having to walk through Jardin de Morro park. Hundreds of people congregating to watch the sun set. Really good atmosphere. A cracking end to the day. Again.

And to really complete Christmas day.

Dinner at Teves restaurant at Timbre Vertudes.

This is the life, dear reader.

Live it whilst you can.

Merry Christmas.

Well OK…you’re reading this in May 2025 but you know what I mean…