The Douro Valley is one of the best and most beautiful wine regions in Portugal. Portal d'Azenha is one of the quality wineries of the Douro Valley. Portal d'Azenha stands for wines from the label Reserva and Grande Reserva. In addition, there is also the doc white, red and rosé. Portal d'Azenha not only stands for white and red wine, but also has a nice range of port wines.
The region owes its name to the river Douro flowing through the area. The upper course of the Portuguese part of the Douro is known for its many quintas. These are vineyards where the grapes grow for port wines. In 1757, marquis de Pombal issued the command to delineate the vineyards of the Douro Valley by placing solid granite poles on site. In this way, the first controlled production area in the world arose. The first ' appelation Contrôlée ' was born. The Dourorivier was formerly used to carry the port wine from Rabelo to Porto. These small cargo boats were specially equipped to transport the barres port wines.
De portwijn zoals we die nu kennen, viel rond 1820 in de smaak bij de Engelse burgerij en begon snel aan een wereldwijde verovering.
The port wine as we know it now, fell at around 1820 in the taste of the English citizenry and quickly began a worldwide conquest. Port is a mutated wine that you obtain by adding brandy immediately after the fermentation. White port wine follows the same production process as the red port wine, but only on the basis of white grapes. The alcohol percentage fluctuates between 19 and 22% vol.
There is a wide variety of port wines, ranging from very sweet to extra dry. The red port wines also distinguish between wines with harvest years (Vintage, Late Bottled Vintage and Colheita) and the Assemblies of different cuvées (Ruby, Tawny, 10 years old...)
Depending on the number of years of maturation and the type of barrels on which the port wine rests, Porto gets a very different bouquet and a distinct, rich and complex flavour.
The wines of the Douro region have been shaded by the reputation and prestige of the famous port wines for over a century.
At the moment the wines are covered by the Denominação de Origem Controlada, say the ' appelation Douro ', which is one of the major challenges for the region and in which Portal d'Azenha plays a decisive role.
Portal d'Azenha chooses its grapes carefully from its own vineyards. The production centre has the necessary infrastructure to prepare the best quality dourowines. The maturation cellar contains young barrels in French and American oak and typical oak barrels from Portugal.
