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PORT
This is the name given to the fortified wines produced
in the neighbourhood of the valley of the River Douro
from a point near Barca D'Alva on the borders of Spain
to a point about 50 miles from Oporto, the port through
which the wines are shipped.
This river flows through steep mountainous banks upon
which the vineyards are situated, they being built up on
terraces to prevent the soil being washed away by the heavy
rains of the district. The area is up to 20-40 miles wide
in places, and is divided into the Upper and Lower Corgo
regions.
The town of Oporto gets its name from "Porto ",
meaning"harbour ",and"0"meaning"the ". Opposite
the town of Oporto is situated the town of Vila Nova de
Gaia, where the Port Wine Shippershave their Lodges or
warehouses, where their large stocks of wine are stored.
Of the history of the wine,it is said that some Portuguese
fishermen who were fishing off the coast of England first
landed wine from this area into England,but this is reputed
to have been a table wine which at that time was grown
in a place a httle to the north of the present boundaries,
and was not the Port Wine as we know it to-day. The
origin of it is said to have been due to the two_ sons of a
British wine merchant who while hoUdaying in Oporto
added some brandy to the local wine and took a hking
to it.
A notable date in the history of Port Wine was December,
1703, when the Methuen Treaty was signed; this allowed
Port Wine to be imported into England at the expense
of the French, whose wines bore a heavier rate of duty.
After many upheavals over the years between the shippers
and the growers, the Portuguese Government took over
control of the industry in 1932, and now three government
bodies look after the interests of the trade. These are the
Casa do Douro, who look after the growing and the making
of the wine; the Gremio dos Exportadores or Port Wine
Shippers Guild ; and the Institute do Vinho do Porto,
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