One of my favorite things to do when we travel is to explore the local drinks (alcoholic and not) situation. I could spend hours in the local grocery/wine/liquor store just studying the shelves. Ken is not as enthusiastic about this activity, so I usually send him off to climb a tower or something.
When we’re traveling, I post my little travelogues on the go and off the cuff. Instagram only allows 2,200 characters per post, so I have to be stingy with words. Maybe that’s a good thing. 😉 One of the reasons I started this blog is so I could take a pause after our trips, and look at something(s) more in depth. Enter, the drinks report.
Without further delay, here is my local drinks report from Porto, Portugal:
Port
Port wine is everywhere in Porto. You cannot visit Porto without having at least one encounter with Port. Seriously, it’s not possible. I suppose you don’t have to drink it, but then you would run the risk of insulting your Portuguese hosts.
So, Port. In a nutshell: Port is a fortified wine made from grapes grown in the Douro Valley, just to the east of Porto. It is fortified by adding a neutral grape spirit (usually brandy) during fermentation. This stops the fermentation before it’s complete, and leaves behind residual sugars, which give Port its sweet flavor.
Port can only be made in Portugal. Anything else has to call itself “Port-style” wine.
Without getting too nerdy, there are 4 basic styles of Port: white, rosé, tawny, and ruby (which includes late bottled vintage, and vintage). This chart from Wine Folly illustrates the styles nicely:
Port Tastings
All of the Port tastings we did while in Porto were basically the same. Ruby, late bottled vintage (LBV), and then a 10 year old Tawny (the photo is the reverse order).
It’s a good entry exposure to the different styles. But nothing special. I’m always loathe to play the “I’m a SOMM card”, so I keep pretty quiet. If the tasting room host/hostess seems like they’re on the ball, I will engage. And that usually results in some other bottles appearing for you to taste. At Pacheca, we got to taste these guys, as well as a few vintage ports. Forgot to take pictures of the vintage guys.
Myself, I’m a tawny girl. The older, the better. We asked our hostess which style was her favorite. Her reply: “If you ask a Portuguese if they prefer ruby or tawny, the answer will be, we prefer a full glass.” Huzzah.
I ended up shipping quite a bit of Port home. I wasn’t completely sober when I did this, so I can’t wait to see what I bought.
Pro tip: If you decide to buy alcohol when you’re traveling, first ask if you can get it at home (wherever home is). We all have limited luggage room/weight, so don’t waste it lugging around bottles you can buy at home.
Porto Tonic
Porto Tonic wins for my favorite cocktail of the trip. It’s so simple – just white Port and tonic water – and delicious. Unfortunately, Port has a reputation for being something your grandpa drinks. The Port wine industry is working hard to engage a younger demographic with styles like white and rosé port, which can be used to make a range of different cocktails. I will be making the Porto Tonic cocktail at home all spring/summer.
One of the bottles (OK, two) that I shipped home was this wonderful white Port from Graham’s. So, so good. Our hostess told us it’s not exported to the US, which made the sale for me.
Wine
Portugal makes some outstanding, world class wines. Most of which I did not drink, because I was so distracted by the Port wine. (Also: original Covid changed my relationship with wine – you can read about that here.)
We did indulge in some Vinho Verde (a young, lower alcohol, slightly spritzy white wine) while we were in Porto. Vinho Verde is made in the Minho region, just to the north of Porto, so it was available everywhere. Note the price: 2.50€ for a glass of wine.
Our guide sent us this bottle of Portuguese sparkling wine while we were on a boat canal cruise in Aveiro. I mention this as a public service announcement: not good.
Beer
The national beer of Portugal is called Super Bock. An excellent beer flavored beer. Great for when you’re had enough Port wine and need some hydration. 😉
Sidebar: I love how in Europe beer is always served in a branded glass. I wonder how many of these glasses get “liberated” from restaurants and bars?
Ginjinha & Licor Beirão
Ginjinha is a traditional Portuguese liqueur made from ginjinha — sour cherries. Pretty sure there’s some cinnamon and clove in there, too. It’s quite sweet, and thoroughly delicious. Our sample of ginjinha arrived in small chocolate cups. Also delicious.
Licor Beirão has the distinction of being the most consumed liquor in Portugal. It’s a sweet herbal liquor – secret recipe, of course, to include 13 different herbs and spices from around the world. I’d be willing to bet cinnamon, lavender, and vanilla are in the mix.
Small bottles of both of these somehow ended up in my suitcase.
Singeverga
I was on a mission to find a monastic liquor called Singeverga, which is made by Benedictine monks. No written recipe – it just gets passed down orally from generation to generation. We were lucky enough to get a private tour of the Mosteiro são Bento da Vitoria, where I had the opportunity to taste (and buy) some Singeverga. It’s sweet(ish) and quite good. I could only get our guide to tell us one of the ingredients – saffron. Truly a unicorn liquor – super glad I have some in my collection now.
Fanta
Disappointment: Portugal is not a Fanta Lemon country. I looked everywhere. You can get Fanta Orange and Fanta Pineapple, but no lemon.
Coffee
Porto has a lively coffee scene, but like the rest of Europe, if you coffee in Porto, you sit. Our guide, Susana, told us: “The Portuguese like to sit with their coffee. They never take it (to go). Only the Americans do this. Not even Brazilians take their coffee.” 😂 Truth. Americans are more of a grab and go people.
As for me – while I love the idea of sitting in cute little cafes with my tiny cup of coffee whilst thinking big thoughts – I usually don’t. Why? Because, coffee breath. I can’t with coffee breath. I drink one cup of coffee, in the morning, and that’s it. Why? Because I can brush my teeth right afterwards.
Coffee at our hotel was hot and strong, and served in these very pretty, but poorly designed mugs. Notice anything missing? Like a handle? I singed off my fingerprints.
And that’s a wrap on my drinks report from Porto.
Saúde!
I’m obsessed with finding white port now. I can imagine it with tonic or soda, maybe with a slice of orange? It sounds so good. But I am a port and sherry lover. Even when I was young!
Me, too! I’ve always loved Port and Sherry. Absolutely try to find some white port. We were told to use one that isn’t over the top sweet to mix with tonic, but it’s tough to know which is which. It’s an outstanding drink!
That was a good read – Lots of branded glasses get liberated from English pubs. If you walk along most High Streets in the morning, on a weekend, you’ll find quite a few left on windowsills and pavement corners. The breweries over here supply the pubs with the glasses. In fact, I’m looking at one in our cupboard right now (obviously I bought that one!!)
Thanks, Steve! I will admit to having a stein that I liberated from a biergarten in Austria . . . .
Interesting read I shall file for its info! Drink both sherry and port at times but neither is a favourite. Tawny port when such comes up. No beer at all tho’ live in a beer country 🙂 ! Wine by the bucketload and black coffee . . . always slowly sipping, always sitting down – my European roots must be showing, don’t ever remember having it on-the-go. Have truly never thought of such a thing as ‘coffee breath’ – love the after-taste as long as it lasts . . . vive la difference, I guess 🙂 !
I put embarrassing amounts of cream and sugar in my coffee – prob contributes to coffee breath!
Aussies also grab and go coffee. Places to go, people to see! 🙂 Mel
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