Porto wine advice

My wife and I visited Porto in Aug 2023. We decided against visiting the Douro Valley so I have no experience to share regarding a wine tour. We did visit the Vila Nova de Gaia district; there we had an excellent time at Porto Augusto’s. It was recommended by a local, and apparently is one of the only port houses that is owned by a Portuguese family. More info is in our trip report (parts 1 and 2): https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/trip-report-portugal-aug-sep-porto-coimbra-lisbon-then-to-spain

We have visited Porto twice in the past two years. In 2023, we took an AirBnB Experience Tour with Wine Venture & Boat Trip in Douro Valley. It was a lovely experience, our host Leonardo is a native of the Douro whose family owned a small vineyard when he was a boy which gave us a more intimate portrait of family and culture. The tour is in a small minivan with no more than 8 people, all of whom were just lovely. We visited two wineries, both family owned. Had a lunch at one of the wineries and took an hour boat ride on the Douro. During our tour, it rained the entire time, so having a driver and a boat with a roof allowed us to enjoy the experience despite the rain.

On our trip this September, we stayed in Porto and spent a day in Gaia. We had two tastings, one at Grahams which also included a tour and another at Quevedo as we wanted to go on a tour at one of the big houses and then experience a smaller, Portuguese owned port house.

The Grahams tour was very professional and interesting. The tasting options ranged from a simple port tasting (3-4) to more elaborate tastings with either reserve ports and/or food pairings. We enjoyed the Grahams tour, their little museum, and the port was delicious. If you go, book in advance as they do not always have openings available for walk-ins. One of the highlights of the Grahams tour is we booked lunch at their Vinium restaurant: amazing views of the Douro and delicious food. On our next trip, I am going to book dinner so that we can see the sunset.

The Quevedo experience was in a very small space, more like a wine bar, than a traditional tasting room. We had a lovely server assigned to us who took us through the history of the winery, the ports, and the cheeses. Their wines were delicious and it is bit more intimate of an experience. I also liked that you could taste the vintners wines if you were tired of tasting port. They also have fun experience, blending workshops, cocktail workshops, and music, including Fado (check schedules for times and dates). I would go back to Quevedo if I just wanted to try wine/port without a tour in a cool setting.

Like Sandy O I enjoyed my port tasting at Grahams and had a delicious lunch there. I would certainly go back again. Reservations are strongly recommended. I would not go to Sandemans. One taste and I gave my samples (4 maybe?) to the college kids sitting next to me. The tour at Sandemans was also disappointing especially after Grahams. Heavy on the atmospherics (guide wore the Sandemans cape and hat) light on the actual engagement, information and interest. The only Quinta I visited was Quinta Nova where we had a wonderful tour, tasting and lunch.