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Port wine cellars/caves in Vila Nova de Gaia recommendation, please!

Posted by (TOKYO) on

Greetings!

I'd like to book a tour and tasting at one of the cellars in Vila Nova de Gaia.   There are just too many choices!   Can anyone recommend which one would be the best?     I can't seem to decide whether it's better to visit one of the big producers or to go for a smaller one.     We are spending 2 days in Porto and 1 day in the Douro Valley (vising Quinta do Seixo and Quinta do Marrocos).     We are not huge drinks and becuase the visit will be during the day time, it's more for educational/historical purposes with a little tasting (don't want anyone to fall asleep and miss everything else we want to do in Porto ;)    

But I am  interested in the traditional method of opening the bottles with hot tongs.   I have no idea if all cellars offer this.  Also, I have no idea how much it would cost.   As long as it's not crazy expensive, then I think it would be interesting for us to see it done.   

If anyone has any suggestions or commnets regarding costs, I'd really appreciate it. 

Thank you!

Posted by
345 posts

A couple weeks ago, I visited Quinta Marrocos on a Duoro Valley tour and then the Calem cellars in Gaia the next day. I don't remember any mention of hot tongs on either but I imagine the well-informed guides in both places could answer about it. I knew little about Port, so the smaller family-run producer visit to the vineyard on one day and the much more massive establishment cellar on another complemented each other well for me.

There is a brief description in the RS guide book of the tours and tastings offered by each of a number of the cellars. I chose Calem simply because it was the quickest/easiest to get to. They had a tour in English coming up shortly so I took it. Reserving in advance isn't necessary for many of the cellars, but is probably a good idea so that you plan your time well. Although Calem and a number of others have tours throughout the day, the ones in English, or whatever language you prefer, are only at certain times. At Calem, you choose either 2 (white and tawny) or 3 ( white, tawny plus ruby or maybe it was an LBV). If there are 2 or more in your party, and you don't all want to drink a lot, you might book at least one person for the 3 Ports so you can all taste all 3. The cost of the tour and tasting was 13 Euro per person for 2 glasses and a little more for 3. I think the prices are similar elsewhere.

Posted by
15582 posts

If you're going to 2 quintas in the Douro Valley, you will probably learn 80-90% of what there is to know about wine production, including port wines. I took the Quinta do Marrocos tour when I stayed there. Later I took a tasting tour in Porto that included a tour of one of the several cellars visited and didn't learn anything more. Honestly, there's a lot more to see and do in Porto than another winery tour.

BTW, I tasted a lot of the Quinta do Marrocos wines (stayed there 2 nights including dinners) and brought home a €30 bottle of LBV Port last month which I'm saving for a special occasion.

Posted by
145 posts

Thank you Chdeitch and Chani.

I was pleased to hear that you both have visited Quinta do Marrocos! And sounds like you enjoyed the visit and their wines. That's good to know!

I've been wondering if it would be redundunt to visit wineries in the Douro valley and then the cellar in the city. But I thought visually the visits would be quite different and that in Vila Nova de Gaia they would talk (and show) more of how the wines age.

What about Ferreira Cellars?   Because we are planning to have a welcome dinner at Taylor's Barao Fladgate restaurant on the first night, I think I should look for another option for a cellar tour and tasting on our Day 3 in Porto (day 2 is in Douro Valley). 

​​​​​​​I see Ferreira Cellars ranked a little lower than others on TA and Google reviews, but the description sounds nice. "    Established in an old convent, Ferreira Cellars is one of the most extraordinary wineries that you can visit in Gaia. Housed in a large building with high worn wooden ceilings, the Cellar was founded in 1751 by a family of winemakers."

What sounds appealing is that this company had a very famous female leader D. Antonia.   For an all-female group (no boys with us this time ;))  and most ladies more interested in history than the wine itself, I was wondering if this would be a good tour.  SInce it's going to be a private tour, maybe they would be willing to tweak it so that there is more about the history of port wine and the company vs how the wine is made.  

Anyway, just wanted to ask if anyone has done Ferreira Cellars tour and whether it's a good one.  

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