Douro & Porto

The Douro Demarcated Region covers over 250,000 hectares in Northeast Portugal within the Douro River basin. Only fortified wines from grapes grown and produced in the Douro Demarcated Region can be called Port. The fortified wine is produced under specific, traditional methods of fermentation, adding grape brandy, ageing and storage. Situated along the Douro River and its tributaries, Porto’s soil is schistose with some granite around the edges. The region is protected from humid Atlantic winds by the Marão and Montemuro mountain barriers, resulting in cold winters and hot, dry summers.

Port Wine Day
On September 10, 1756, the Marquis of Pombal created the world's oldest demarcated region: the Douro Wine region. In 2014, 258 years later, 10th September was officially established as International Port Wine Day. It was born out of the desire to celebrate Port wine and to share it with the consumer public in ever better ways. To celebrate this day, the Port and Douro Wines Institute has been organizing Port Wine Day every year since 2014, in an event that brings together the best Port producers, organizes exclusive tastings with rare wines and innovative seminars, and infects the city and all its inhabitants with the spirit of Port.