Vivino recommends eight destinations for the summer holiday where you can enjoy wine – this year, or in the near future. In addition to Naoussa, Greece, Alto Adige, in Italy, or Martinborough, in New Zealand, there are two Portuguese destinations: the Porto & Douro region and the Alentejo.
In Porto & Douro, top of the list of five places to visit is Quinta dos Murças, in the Cima-Corgo sub-regions:
“As you step off the train at the tiny Covelinhas platform in the Douro, you find yourself standing quite literally at the doorway of Quinta dos Murças. This is the pinnacle of authentic Douro—breathtakingly steep vineyards rising up behind the winery house, the Douro River just steps below, and of course, a slew of vineyard dogs happily greeting visitors.”
Travelling to the south of the country, Courtney Schiessl introduces the Alentejo with admiration: “It’s hard to believe a small country like Portugal can have such a variety of wine regions, but ask anyone who has traveled from the Douro or Vinho Verde to the south-central region of Alentejo—this is an entirely different experience.”
And heading the suggestions for the Alentejo is Herdade do Esporão:
“One of the largest wineries in the region, Herdade do Esporão offers guests a true taste of Alentejo. A pioneer of modern Alentejo winemaking, Esporão boasts separate wineries for both white and red wines, a recently-built lagares winery for foot-treading grapes in open vats, and experimentation with concrete aging vessels and amphorae.”
Don’t just leave it at that. Discover all the recommendations and, if you can’t go one of these places now, let your mind travel with ‘Eight Destinations for a Summer Wine Vacation‘ by Courtney Schiessl.