Wine is part of Portuguese culture, and viniculture is one of the most significant sectors of national agriculture. The heritage connected to wine production is extensive, from the Douro region recognised by UNESCO as a Cultural Landscape to the centuries-old wine production methods modernised with the help of the latest technology.
Portugal's geographical location and small area do not prevent it from being one of the world's largest wine producers.
Portugal has a lot to offer in the wine sector. With about 250 autochthonous grape varieties, it is one of the countries with the widest variety of native grape varieties.
In Portugal, wine consumption is closely linked to meals, being the favourite complement of many Portuguese when tasting national delicacies.
Chronology (Instituto do Vinho e da Vinha)
2000 BC
It is thought that the vine was introduced in the Tejo and Sado valleys by the first inhabitants of these lands, the Tartessos. When trading with other people, they used wine, among other products, as currency. All the other people that followed, Phoenicians, Greeks, Celts and Iberians, contributed to developing viticulture and wine with new grape varieties and techniques.
2 BC to 4 BC
With the Roman conquest of the Iberian Peninsula in BC 15, the culture of the vine and wine had its most significant development. Rome was the larger wine consumer, and the supply couldn't satisfy all the demand. With the decadence of the Roman Empire, Suevi and Visigoths conquered Lusitania. Although they didn't introduce innovations, they embraced the Roman wine culture.
8th to 12th century
With the Arab invasions start a new period. But although these people forbade the consumption of fermented beverages, they didn't prevent the growth of vines or the production of wine to ensure farmers worked the land, which allowed Lisbon to keep its wine exports. Later, in the 11th and 12th centuries, vine growing declined due to more restrictive measures.
12th to 14th century
The fighting that preceded the Christian reconquest led to the destruction of various crops, including vineyards. The foundation of Portugal in 1143 and the conquest of the whole territory from the Moors in 1249 by D. Afonso Henriques, the first King of Portugal, allowed several Religious Orders to settle extensive agricultural areas. Vine growing and wine consumption became a significant source of income for feudal lords and religious orders.
In the second half of the 14th century, wine production registered strong development, and its exportation increased.
15th - 17th century
Portuguese maritime expansion took the wine to the four corners of the world. By the mid-16th Century, Lisbon was the Empire's most important wine consumption and distribution centre. The long journeys of fortified wine in wooden casks allowed the Portuguese to acquire empirical knowledge about wine ageing. The heat, time and balance made these so-called "torna-viagem" wines much better.
18th - 20th Centuries
In 1703 the Methuen Treaty was signed to help to establish trade relations between England and Portugal. English woollen cloth was imported duty-free. In exchange, Portuguese wines were exported to England benefiting, from a reduction of one-third in taxes, relative to wines imported from France. The exportation of wine experienced a new boost, especially Port wine.
The rapid growth of exports led to bad practices by producers and a decrease in quality. Then, to regulate the production and trade of the famous Port Wine, the Marquis of Pombal created the Companhia Geral da Agricultura das Vinhas do Alto Douro on 10th September 1756, foreseeing the need to delimit the wine region, which materialised later. According to some researchers, the Douro was the first demarcated wine region.
The 19th century was a dark period for viticulture in Portugal and Europe. From 1870 onwards, a new plague from America appeared - phylloxera (Phylloxera Vastatrix). It started in the Douro, whose vines had not yet recovered from the 1852 oidium plague and quickly spread throughout the country. This insect was devastating for the vineyards of Portugal and all of Europe. Colares was the only exception, as its vineyards are on sandy soil, and the phylloxera insect cannot survive on sand.
At the beginning of the 20th century, the regions of some famous wines such as Madeira Wine, Moscatel de Setúbal, Carcavelos, Dão, Colares and Vinho Verde were demarcated wine regions.
With the "Estado Novo" (1926/1974), the "Federação dos Vinicultores do Centro e Sul de Portugal" was created (1933) to regulate the market.
Following the Federation was the “Junta Nacional do Vinho” (1937), an organism with a broader scope, which operated to balance supply and sales, the evolution of production and the storage of surpluses to compensate for years of scarcity.
The National Wine Board was replaced in 1986 by the Instituto da Vinha e do Vinho (IVV), an organism adapted to the structures imposed by the new market policy resulting from Portugal's membership of the European Community.
The concept of Denomination of Origin adapted to Community legislation, created the "Vinho Regional" classification, and “Comissões Regionais Vitivinícolas” settled up.
Currently, Portugal has 33 Denomination of Origin and 8 Geographical Indications.