Wine is one of the joys of dining in Portugal, where one has a choice of over a dozen major regional wines. They are often of high standards and are winning increasing recognition worldwide. Worth trying are the red Dão table wines, the reds and whites of Buçaco, and the table wines of Ribatejo. The vinho verde ("green wine" - referring to the youth of the wine, not its color) of the northern Minho region is also very popular.

The most famous Portuguese wine worldwide is Port. It is only produced on the vineyards of the Douro River, and is shipped from the city of Porto. There are vintage ports, white ports, ruby and tawny ports.

No one is sure when it was first made, but one story says that two sons of a Liverpool wine merchant on their way back to England from Porto added brandy to a wine they had liked in the region, hoping to fortify it for the long trip back, and created port. For a time since then the English dominated the port wine trade, and it is still sometimes called the Englishman's wine, although France now imports it more than England.

Madeira wine has also been popular for centuries. It has been exported to Britain since Shakespeare's time, and was highly favored by the early British colonists in the United States.

Please use the links on the menu to the left for more information about wining and dining in Portugal

Vinho Tinto - Portuguese Wines