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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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