Lamego + Quinto do Tedo

On Monday we drove to Lamego, a city which borders the River Balsemão, a small tributary of the River Douro. The town is set between two hills - one topped by a small castle and the other by the Nossa Senhora dos Remédios. We were scheduled to be at a winery by early afternoon, so we didn't get to spend much time in the town; however, we did wander around the main avenue.

The reason I wanted to make this detour was to see the Nossa Senhora dos Remédios. This 18th-century sanctuary tops the hill and requires 686 steps to get to the top!! It is quite a sight!

We then drove to Q uinta do Tedo. The winery is named after the river it borders - River Tedo. The winery produces a small production of Port and Red wines. When I emailed the winery to schedule a tour and tasting, I was informed they have a 3km hike around their property. We opted to go a bit early so we could enjoy this walk and it did not disappoint. In addition to the vineyards, Quinta do Tedo also has olive trees scattered around the property and we learned they make their own olive oil. We were able to watch them harvest the olives while we were walking.

Our guide for the tour, Vera, was wonderful and made the experience really interesting. We ended up being the only two people on the tour as another couple was scheduled, but they never showed up. We learned more about Port Wines and how they are produced. Interestingly enough, as Quinto do Tedo is a smaller winery, they still have people stomp the grapes by foot to extract the juice! They do this for 3-4 hours per day during harvest season! At the end of the tour, we were able to try a selection of three Port Wines - a Rosé, a Ruby and a Tawny. Vera also let us sample a 20-year old Tawny as a special treat.