There are documents proving the existence of vineyards in this region in the 12th century (Afonso Henriques, first Portugal king). Historians attribute the introduction of the ‘Ramisco’ variety to king Afonso III (13th century), who supposedly brought it from northern France (Boulogne) where he lived for some time. First stop will be in a nearby village to visit the ancient sand vineyards of Colares on sand soil where the vines, some with more than 100 years, grow on sand soils with roots on clay soil several meters down, spreading the bunches over the sand ground with a muscular Atlantic influence, on the westernmost tip of Continental Europe! In 1865, phylloxera entered the northern part of the country and decimated much of the European vineyards. In Colares, the grape varieties installed in sandy soil resisted this plague, that feature brought a large expansion of viticulture in this region. Till today, Colares maintains all the genetic originality of European Vitis and its native varieties, as they do not need to use the American Vitis rootstock to control the pest. “Our sand vines are not grafted, so they are all “pé-franco”.
