Vinho do Porto

Port wines deserve special mention due to their prestige and history. In the 16th century England and Portugal were routinely exchanging bacalhau (dried salt cod fish), wool and other goods for red wine from northern Portugal, those were the beginnings of a golden age. Port wine’s characteristics distinguish it from the rest of wines; they are fortified (alcohol is added), they have residual sugar (the level of sweetness varies with the type of port wine), alcohol is usually between 19% and 22% vol. and there are 8 different categories: vintage, tawny, colheita, branco, rosé, ruby, LBV and crusted. Today, Port wine can be aged in Vilanova de Gaia as historically done or in the Douro region, which is roughly 100 km (60 miles) from Porto. Why? Because the new technologies allow to reproduce the perfect humidity and temperature conditions from Vilanova de Gaia (the city on front of Porto, on the other side of the ricer).